Daily Trivia Quiz - Day 198 (2026-05-17)

Question 1

The old British phrase "as quick as a lamplighter" meant "very fast". Why were lamplighters specifically associated with speed?

Accepted Answer

They had to light hundreds of gas lamps along their route before darkness fell

Answer

They ran between lamps to stay warm during cold night shifts

Answer

City contracts paid bonuses for finishing routes ahead of schedule

Answer

They competed against lamplighters from other districts in timed races

Question 2

A gas lamplighter's long pole had two distinct functions built into it. What were they?

Accepted Answer

Lighting the gas flame and turning the gas valve on or off

Answer

Lighting the flame and carrying a replacement mantle for repairs

Answer

Turning the valve and adjusting the lamp's reflector angle

Answer

Lighting the flame and knocking on doors to warn residents of curfew

Question 3

A 'hand' is still the official unit for measuring horse height. How many inches is one hand?

Accepted Answer

4 inches

Answer

3 inches

Answer

5 inches

Answer

6 inches

Question 4

A 'furlong' is still used in horse racing today. How long is one furlong?

Accepted Answer

One-eighth of a mile

Answer

One-quarter of a mile

Answer

One-tenth of a mile

Answer

One-sixth of a mile

Question 5

What is the only temperature where Celsius and Fahrenheit show the same number?

Accepted Answer

Minus 40 degrees

Answer

0 degrees

Answer

32 degrees

Answer

100 degrees

Question 6

When Daniel Fahrenheit set 0°F, he based it on a cold mixture he could reproduce in a lab. What kind of mixture was it?

Accepted Answer

A freezing mixture of ice, water, and salt

Answer

Dry ice and alcohol

Answer

Liquid nitrogen and water

Answer

Ice and vinegar

Question 7

Why did traditional letterpress compositors have to arrange text in a way that looks backwards to most readers?

Accepted Answer

The raised metal type had to be reversed so the printed page came out readable

Answer

Printers normally worked from the last page of a book to the first

Answer

Newspaper columns were assembled from right to left before printing

Answer

Proofreaders required compositors to hide the text until the first impression

Question 8

Why did some British milk delivery fleets adopt electric milk floats as early as the 1930s?

Accepted Answer

They could make early morning deliveries quietly without waking residents

Answer

They were required by law in neighborhoods near dairy farms

Answer

Their motors powered built-in refrigeration for glass bottles

Answer

They could use tram tracks to recharge while driving

Question 9

What informal social role did British milkmen often play, beyond delivering dairy products?

Accepted Answer

Checking whether elderly customers had collected their bottles — and alerting someone if they hadn't

Answer

Delivering urgent letters and small parcels between neighbors

Answer

Reporting road damage and broken streetlights to the council

Answer

Keeping a record of which households were away to deter burglars

Question 10

Cheap alarm clocks became widely available in the early 1900s, but some British knocker-uppers kept working much longer. Into which decade were they reportedly still working?

Accepted Answer

The 1970s

Answer

The 1940s

Answer

The 1920s

Answer

The 1890s