Quiz of the Day
Memorial Day & Geek Culture
Monday, 25 May 2026
Memorial Day US + Towel Day + Geek Pride — military history meets sci-fi & pop culture
1. Which author is honoured on Towel Day (25 May) for writing 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'?
- Terry Pratchett
- Arthur C. Clarke
- Isaac Asimov
- Douglas Adams
Adams died on 11 May 2001, and fans established Towel Day two weeks later. In the book, a towel is described as 'the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have.' Adams famously hated deadlines, saying: 'I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.'
2. According to 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy', what is the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything?
- Infinity
- Pi
- Zero
- 42
The supercomputer Deep Thought took 7.5 million years to calculate the answer as 42. The joke is that nobody knows what the actual Question is. Adams insisted he chose 42 simply because it was a funny number: 'It was a joke. It had to be a number, an ordinary, smallish number, and I chose that one.'
3. Memorial Day in the US originally honoured the fallen of which war?
- World War I
- The War of 1812
- The American Civil War
- The American Revolution
Originally called Decoration Day, it began in 1868 when Union General John Logan proclaimed a day to decorate soldiers' graves with flowers. The Civil War killed approximately 620,000-750,000 soldiers — more American deaths than in all other US wars combined until Vietnam. It became Memorial Day officially in 1971.
4. In 'Star Wars', what famous line did Darth Vader say to Luke Skywalker about his parentage?
- 'No, I am your father'
- 'Your father, I am'
- 'Luke, I am your father'
- 'I am your father, Luke'
One of cinema's most misquoted lines — the actual quote is 'No, I am your father.' During filming, the script given to most of the cast read 'Obi-Wan killed your father' to prevent leaks. Only Mark Hamill, director Irvin Kershner, and James Earl Jones knew the real line.
5. What is the significance of 25 May 1977 in geek culture history?
- Dungeons & Dragons was released
- The first comic book was published
- Star Wars: A New Hope premiered
- First Star Trek episode aired
20th Century Fox had so little faith in the film that most executives skipped the premiere. George Lucas was on holiday in Hawaii, convinced it would flop, when Steven Spielberg told him about the massive queues. The film earned $775 million worldwide — equivalent to over $3.5 billion today.
6. Which flowers are traditionally associated with Memorial Day remembrance?
- Lilies
- Carnations
- Roses
- Poppies
The red poppy became a symbol of remembrance after the 1915 poem 'In Flanders Fields' by Canadian soldier John McCrae. Moina Michael read the poem at a 1918 YWCA conference, vowed to always wear a red poppy, and campaigned to make it an official memorial symbol. The tradition spread from the US to the UK and Commonwealth nations.
7. In the tabletop game Dungeons & Dragons, what multi-sided die is most iconic and used for major damage rolls?
- d12 (twelve-sided)
- d20 (twenty-sided)
- d10 (ten-sided)
- d6 (six-sided)
The d20 (icosahedron) determines success or failure for attacks, saving throws, and ability checks. Rolling a natural 20 is a 'critical hit' — one of the most thrilling moments in gaming. Ancient d20 dice have been found in Egyptian tombs dating back to around 300 BC, though they were likely used for divination rather than gaming.
8. What is the most visited war memorial in Washington DC?
- Korean War Veterans Memorial
- Vietnam Veterans Memorial
- World War II Memorial
- Arlington National Cemetery
Designed by 21-year-old architecture student Maya Lin, 'The Wall' was initially controversial — critics called its black granite V-shape a 'black gash of shame.' It lists 58,318 names and has become the most visited memorial on the National Mall, with visitors leaving letters, photos, and personal items that are archived by the Smithsonian.
9. Which sci-fi franchise features the phrase 'Live long and prosper' accompanied by a distinctive hand gesture?
- Doctor Who
- Star Wars
- Star Trek
- Battlestar Galactica
Leonard Nimoy improvised the Vulcan salute based on a Jewish priestly blessing (Birkat Kohanim) he saw as a child in synagogue. The hand position — split between the middle and ring fingers — is surprisingly difficult for many people to do. William Shatner reportedly could never quite manage it and had to use fishing line off-camera.
10. What does the military term 'Taps' refer to?
- A marching formation
- A coded telegraph message
- A rank insignia
- A bugle call played at military funerals and memorials
Taps was composed during the American Civil War in 1862 by Union General Daniel Butterfield, who hummed the melody to his bugler. The 24-note call replaced a harsher French bugle signal for 'lights out.' It has been played at every US military funeral since and requires no words — its simple, haunting melody conveys everything.
11. What programming language was named after a famous comedy group beloved by geeks?
- Python (after Monty Python)
- Ruby (after Ruby Wax)
- Java (after Monty Java)
- Go (after The Go Show)
Creator Guido van Rossum was reading Monty Python scripts while developing the language in 1991 and wanted something 'short, unique, and slightly mysterious.' Python documentation is full of Monty Python references — the official tutorial uses 'spam' and 'eggs' as variable names instead of the traditional 'foo' and 'bar.'
12. Which battle, commemorated by many on Memorial Day, saw the largest amphibious invasion in history?
- Battle of the Bulge
- Battle of Iwo Jima
- D-Day (Normandy landings)
- Battle of Midway
On 6 June 1944, over 156,000 Allied troops landed on five Normandy beaches. The operation involved 5,000 ships, 13,000 aircraft, and a massive deception campaign (Operation Fortitude) that convinced Germany the real invasion would target Calais. Approximately 4,400 Allied soldiers died on the first day alone.
13. In which year was the first comic book convention held?
- 1985
- 1964
- 1970
- 1939
The first comic con was held on 27 July 1964 in a union hall on Broadway in New York City, organised by teenagers. About 100 people attended. San Diego Comic-Con, founded in 1970, now attracts over 130,000 attendees and has become the premier event for film, TV, and gaming announcements — a far cry from its humble origins.
14. What is the traditional time for observing a moment of silence on Memorial Day in the US?
- 9:00 AM
- 3:00 PM
- 6:00 PM
- 12:00 noon
The National Moment of Remembrance, established by Congress in 2000, asks all Americans to pause for one minute at 3:00 PM local time. The time was chosen as a midpoint of the holiday to encourage people to stop whatever they are doing — whether at a barbecue, a ball game, or the beach — to remember the fallen.
15. What is the name of the artificial intelligence that becomes self-aware and threatens humanity in the 'Terminator' franchise?
- Skynet
- HAL 9000
- The Matrix
- WOPR
In the films, Skynet becomes self-aware on 29 August 1997 and launches nuclear missiles. The name was inspired by a real British satellite communications project. James Cameron came up with the concept for 'The Terminator' from a fever dream while sick in Rome — he saw a chrome skeleton emerging from flames and built the entire franchise from that image.