Day: July 3, 2009

And some Independence Day geography trivia

Anyone can look these up. How well can you do from knowledge you already have? Answers are in comments (no peeking).

1. Of the 50 states, 24 meet the sea (or tidewater); that is, their lowest elevation is sea level (well, actually Louisiana (minus 8 feet) and California (minus 282 feet) go below sea level, but that’s irrelevant here). Of the remaining 26 states that do not meet sea level, which has the lowest elevation?

Special bonus question: Which has second lowest elevation?

2. Of the 50 states, the 13 westernmost states have elevations above 11,000 feet. Texas has the next highest elevation (8,749) followed by South Dakota (7,242). The next highest elevation is in a state east of the Mississippi River. Which state is it?

3. As we all know since Katrina, New Orleans has sections of the city that are below sea level (minus 8 feet is the lowest). Which of the 50 largest cities (by population) has the highest elevation? (As a point of reference, the 50th largest city is Wichita, Kansas, population 354,000.)

4. The mnemonic for remembering the Great Lakes is HOMES. Arrange the letters by the size of the lakes.

Special bonus question: Four of the lakes are within 32 feet of the same elevation. The other is 326 feet lower. What comes in between the lowest lake and the next one upstream?

5. Of the 50 states, which is the easternmost, southernmost, westernmost and northernmost?

Independence Day trivia quiz

  1. Based on their age when they took office, Theodore Roosevelt (42) is the youngest president the U.S. has had. John F. Kennedy (43) is the second youngest. Who is the third youngest president? Fourth youngest? (Both were 46 and some months. Barack Obama is fifth youngest.
  2. Who was the oldest president?
  3. Alaska is the largest state, Texas second. Which state is the third largest? Fourth largest? Fifth?
  4. Rhode Island is the smallest state, Delaware second. Which state is the third smallest? Fourth smallest? Fifth?
  5. The highest mountain in the eastern U.S. is in which state?
  6. The largest county in the U.S. is San Bernardino, California (20,105 square miles). The smallest county (26 square miles) is?
  7. The boundary with Mexico is 1,933 miles. The boundary with Canada is about (1) half as long, (2) the same as with Mexico, (3) half again as long as the boundary with Mexico, (4) more than twice as long as the boundary with Mexico?
  8. Three first ladies earned post-graduate degrees. Which three?
  9. True or false, the Liberty Bell cracked ringing to celebrate the Declaration of Independence.
  10. The monarch to whom the Declaration of Independence is addressed is (1) Louis XIV, (2) Elizabeth I, (3) Edward VIII, (4) George III?

Bonus question: Quick, without looking, are there more red stripes or white stripes in the American flag?

Answers in comments. No peeking.

Unintended sex ed

Imagine, you and your kid are watching what’s supposed to be a DVD retrospective of the past school year. The video shows children sharing stories, clapping, then … sex. And not just sex, but sex involving your kid’s fifth grade teacher.

“It goes from my son, straight to her on the couch,” recalled “Joe,” a parent who wished to remain anonymous. “My son’s reaction was, ‘Dad, is that Ms. Defanti?'”

Yes, it was.

It was, of course, just poor editing. The Scavenger has a few more details. Great photo.

Gettysburg, the third day

Having failed on July 2 to turn either of Meade’s flanks (Culp’s Hill and the Round Tops), Lee decided on the 3rd to assault the Union center. James Longstreet, who would command the attack, wrote later that he told Lee: “General, I have been a soldier all my life. I have been with soldiers engaged in fights by couples, by squads, companies, regiments, divisions, and armies, and should know, as well as anyone, what soldiers can do. It is my opinion that no fifteen thousand men ever arrayed for battle can take that position.” But Lee had made up his mind — and he had already issued the orders. Two divisions from A.P. Hill’s Third Corps and one — Pickett’s — from Longstreet’s First Corps were to make the advance. It’s known as Pickett’s Charge, but more correctly it is the Pickett-Pettigrew-Trimble Charge.

Gettysburg Day ThreeTo prepare for the assault — to cripple the Union defenses — Lee order a massive artillery strike. The 163 Confederate cannons began firing at 1:07 PM. The Union artillery returned fire with nearly the same number. The Confederate aim was high and smoke curtained the targets. Little damage was done to the Union infantry. After a time, Union artillery commander Henry Hunt ordered his guns to cease firing — to save ammunition, cool the guns, and lure the rebels forward.

Forward they came, 14,000 men in a formation a mile wide, moving across open fields for three-quarters of a mile. The Union artillery opened on them with shot and shell and ultimately canister (shells filled with metal). At 200 yards, the Union infantry on the Confederate front opened fire, while other Union units moved out to attack both sides of the charge. Of the 14,000 in the advance, perhaps 200 breached the first Union line before being repulsed. Of the 14,000, half did not return.

Lee was defeated and withdrew from Gettysburg. While the war lasted 22 more months, the brief moment when the 200 reached the Union line was considered the high-water mark for the confederacy. Gettysburg totals: 25,000 Union casualties; 28,000 Confederate casualties.

Map: National Park Service