Dear all, Today’s Monday Mind Workout is themed around the New Year. Best of luck.
1.The first ball to be dropped in New York’s Times Square happened in what year?
a. 1908 b. 1925 c. 1938 d. 1962
2.The first time that January 1st was celebrated as the beginning of a new year was in 153 B.C. when the Romans moved the first month of their calendar back to January. For what reason did the Romans do this?
a. To coincide with elections of the two highest ranking Republic positions.
b. To honor the god, Janus, god of beginnings and transitions.
c. More sacred sheep were born in January than in February.
d. To honor Tobasco, god of hangover relief.
3.In 567 A.D., the Council of Tours prohibited the recognition of an official New Year. Why did they do this?
a. They believed the end of the world would happen soon.
b. They disliked that the date was originated with pagans.
c. To move the date to August 9 in order to replace the Frankish holiday of Stickball Day with a less athletic-themed celebration.
d. Because they were just a bunch of grumpy geezers who hated celebrating anything.
4.What famous Frank was born in Bayonne, New Jersey, on January 1, 1938?
a. Entertainer Frank Sinatra, Jr.
b. Actor Frank Langella
c. Football player and coach, Frank Beamerd. Head of the barley cereal syndicate crime family, Frankenberry
5.In 1583, what event returned January 1st as the observation of the New Year in Europe?
a. A severe earthquake in Portugal on that date that miraculously took no human victims.
b. Papal fear surrounding a dire prediction by seer John Dee.
c. The institution of the Gregorian Calendar.
d. The 67-year-old Queen of Spain took her first bath.
6.The lyrics of the now-traditional New Years song “Auld Lang Syne” began as a poem set to the tune of a much older Scot folk ballad. Who wrote the poem?
a. John Keats
b. Robert Burns
c. Lord Byrond. Dr. Seuss8.
7. On January 1, 1877, what happened to Queen Victoria of Britain?
a. She got married.
b. She celebrated her 50th birthday.
c. She got stuck in her throne, requiring three hours of manpower and twenty pounds of butter to get her out.
8.On January 1, 1906, the government of the Netherlands
made what law?
a. Mandatory licenses required for driving engine-powered vehicles.
b. A national census.
c. Recognition of Dutch as the national language.
d. Prohibition on the wearing of lampshades as hats.
9.On January 1, 1962, who failed to pass an audition for Decca Records?
a. Liberace
b. The Beatles
c. Comedian George Carlin
d. The Jackson Two
10.What name was given to the predicted computer meltdown at the beginning of the year 2000?
a.Millennium Bug
b.Millennium Ants
c.Millennium Cat
