Task developed by Andrew Weeding, Wayne Inwood & Karen Yager, Knox Grammar School, 2013

Northern NSW da Vinci Decathlon SAMPLE

An academic gala day for years 9 and 10

General Knowledge

Session 3

‘Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do’ Leonardo da Vinci.

Team Number _____________

2

Section 1: Literature Questions (10 marks)

No. Question Answer

1

This character in one of Shakespeare’s tragic plays was warned ‘O, beware, my lord, of jealousy; It is the green-ey'd monster…’

2 What colour were the eggs in the Dr Zeuss book that included …Eggs and Ham in the title?

3 What was the colour of the tree in the title of a picture book created by Shaun Tan?

4 What was the colour of the chair in a book in the Narnia series by C.S Lewis?

5 What is the name of the character in a novel by Oscar Wilde that features a painting?

6 What was the colour of the rabbit stolen by Hitler in a novel by Judith Kerr?

7 What is the title of the Man Booker prize winning novel by Aravind Adiga?

8 What is the title of a famous novel by Jack London about a dog-wolf?

9 What was the title of the famous novel by Stephen King that was made into a film?

10 In Alice in Wonderland, what colour did the cards paint the Queen’s roses by mistake?

Section 2: Musical titles with colour and light questions (10 marks)

No. Question Answer 1 What is the title of the song by The Doors that is hot? 2 What is the colour of the light in Beyonce’s song? 3 What is the title of the song by Kayne West that

featured Rhianna?

4 What is the name of a band that begins with a colour that is not a primary colour?

5 What is the name of a band that ends with a colour reserved for royalty?

6 What is the name of a band that begins with a colour and ends with the opposite of night?

7 What is the name of a band that includes a piece of furniture?

8 What is the title of the song by Jay-Z that features a colour?

9 What colour is featured in songs by the Beatles, Joni Mitchell, Pearl Jam and Elton John?

10 What colour is featured in songs by Cold Play, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, The Grateful Dead and R.E.M?

3

Section 3: True or False colour and light questions (10 marks)

No. Question True or False? 1 It takes 1.26 seconds for light from the moon to reach

the Earth.

2 Fireflies flash in the dark so they can find insects to eat.

3 Chrysophobia is the specific fear of the colour orange. 4 Auroraphobia is the fear of Northern lights. 5 Light travels in wavy lines. 6 Sound travels faster than light. 7 When the sun is more than 42° above the horizon no

rainbow can be seen.

8 Colour does not exist. 9 The box in an airplane that records voices and is used

to determine what happened in an accident is black.

10 Crocodiles are colour blind. Section 4: Art questions - name the artists who painted these famous paintings that feature chiaroscuro lighting – black and white contrast. (5 marks)

No. Painting Artist 1

4

2

3

4

5

5

Section 5: Geography and Science with colour and light (10 marks)

No. Question Answer 1 Which national flag is the only one in the world to be a

single colour with no design or insignia on it?

2 Which European country rules but does not govern Greenland?

3 What type of particles make up light? 4 What colour does an object look that reflects light of

all wavelengths in equal amounts?

5 What is a transparent piece of glass with two or more planes through which light can be reflected or refracted?

6 What is the unusual colour of the Gordon River in Tasmania that is caused by tanine?

7 What is the unique colour of the sand of Pu’u Mahana Beach in Mahana Bay on the Big Island of Hawaii that is caused by olivine?

8 What colour is the sand of a beach that has been formed by volcanic activity?

9 What colour is Pluto when viewed from space because of methane ice?

10 Why is Mars red?