Saturday, September 06, 2008 | 11:41 p.m.

Trivia Bits by Stan Newman

Home > Lifestyle Columns > Trivia Bits
Please contact your local newspaper editor if you want to read Trivia Bits's column in your hometown paper.
Stan Newman

Recently

  • Trivia Bits, September 6
    STAN'S WEEKLY TRIVIA CHALLENGE CONTEST NO. 101 Who was the first American whose last name begins with "O" to be honored on a U.S. postage stamp? HOW TO WIN: Send your answer, with your full name and address, either by e-mail to TriviaBits@…

  • Trivia Bits, September 5
    Have you ever noticed that, of the four seasons, only "winter" and "summer" can be used as verbs? A search of our unabridged dictionaries could find no "seasonal" verb for "spring," "fall," or …

  • Trivia Bits, September 4
    Eponym of the week: William Mathias Scholl, the Dr. Scholl behind the foot-products company. Working in a Chicago shoe store as a teen around 1900, he started taking night classes in podiatry, eventually getting a medical degree but never practicing.…

  • Trivia Bits, September 3
    Where's the world's most tilted tower? Hint: It's not in Italy. The Leaning Tower of Pisa currently tilts a mere 3.97 degrees from perpendicular. Last November, Guinness World Records certified the 15th-century church tower in the northwest German …

Trivia Bits, July 4

We love "apposite anagrams" -- phrases whose letters can be rearranged to form other phrases with the same (or nearly the same) meaning. Our crossword pal Mike Shenk, editor of the Wall Street Journal puzzle, once came up with BENEATH CHOPIN/THE PIANO BENCH. Your humble trivia author has dabbled in these as well, discovering HAPPIER TO SEE OYL/POPEYE THE SAILOR and SNUB I USE FOR NOSY ONE/NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS.

Pop Culture Department: You're no doubt familiar with the carbon-dioxide reaction that causes soda to spurt out of a can if it's shaken before opening. The same science is at work if you shake a champagne bottle before popping the cork.
But we suggest you don't try this at home. If not removed properly, the cork will become a 30-mph missile and do some serious damage.

As stated by a character in the George Bernard Shaw play "Back to Methuselah," what is "the most perfect expression of scorn"?
A) A yawn
B) A pun
C) Laughter
D) Silence

Previous answer: According to the Census Bureau, the U.S. population reached 200 million in the first half of 1968, while Lyndon Johnson was president.

TRIVIA FANS: Send the trivia questions you've always wanted answered, or original TriviaBits ideas of your own, with your full name and hometown, to Stan Newman at StanTrivia@aol.com or on a postcard to P.O. Box 69, Massapequa Park, NY 11762.



AddThis Social Bookmark Button RSS Get RSS Feed for Stan Newman Email updates Email me Stan Newman updates Comments Comments
Originally Published on Friday July 04, 2008

Editors Picks - Lifestyle Columns
Earjacking
Mimi Kopulos
Knowing when to bail
Terry Savage
Is Regulated Online Poker in the Cards For U.S.?
Russ Scott
See All
More Stan Newman
Sep. `08
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
31 1 2 3 4 5 6
7 8 9 10 11 12 13
14 15 16 17 18 19 20
21 22 23 24 25 26 27
28 29 30 1 2 3 4
View By Month
About the author Print friendly format Email This Article to a friend
All newspaper editors want to know what their readers like. If you would like to read this feature in your local newspaper, please do not hesitate to share your enthusiasm with your local newspaper editor.

 

Shop Creators Syndicate

Click on the title to read Stanley Newman's article from Newsday, "Exercise Your Puzzle Muscles", which explores the ways that puzzles can keep you mentally fit as you age.

Also, see the Editors's Note from this edition of Newsday recounting the history of the Newsday crossword puzzle and Stanley Newman's pivotal role in revolutionizing it.
 
Saturday, September 06, 2008 | 11:41 p.m.
About Creators | Privacy Policy | Contact Us | Editor's login | FAQ | En Español
Copyright © 2006 Creators.com. All Rights Reserved.
Web Development by JJCO