Are blue whales blue, and what is the most common animal? The kids’ quiz

1. Alex, 11, asks: are blue whales blue?

   1. No – not a true blue

   2. Yes, but they’re only blue on the inside of their body

   3. No, they’re red

   4. It depends if they’re male or female

2. Hamish, 7, asks: how do parrots talk like humans?

   1. They have a full set of human-like vocal cords so find it easy to mimic us

   2. They have a very flexible muscle that vibrates to make noise

   3. They go to parrot school and learn how to do it

   4. They don’t ever say things that sound like humans do – it’s a myth!

3. Alex, 8, asks: how can you feel wind currents but not see them?

   1. Wind currents are visible all around us – you’re just not looking hard enough!

   2. You can see wind currents, but only high up in the mountains

   3. Wind currents don’t exist – fairies create movements in the wind

   4. Wind is made up of air particles, which are too small for human eyes to see

4. Sam, 7, asks: what is the most common animal?

   1. Dogs

   2. Monkeys

   3. Ants

   4. Nematodes

5. Robin, 10, asks: when does your brain fully develop?

   1. At about the age of 20

   2. At about the age of 30

   3. At about the age of 50

   4. At about the age of 70

Solutions

1:A - Blue whales are not a true blue colour. They’re more like a blueish grey, but can also look silver., 2:B - Parrots have a highly flexible muscle called a syrinx. When air passes through this muscle, they can stretch and squeeze the air to make it vibrate in very precise ways. These vibrations create noise!, 3:D - Wind is created by differences in air pressure – and air is transparent as it’s made up of particles too small for the human eye to see. But wind currents are visible in the way they affect other things, like the leaves blowing along the ground., 4:D - It depends what you call an animal, but nematodes – tiny worms – are probably the most common. There are thought to be 440 quintillion of them – that’s 440 followed by 18 zeros! Ants are also common, but there are “only” 20 quadrillion of them – that’s 20 followed by 15 zeros., 5:B - According to the University of Cambridge, at about age 30-32 the human brain is fully matured. But that doesn’t mean you stop learning anything new – the brain can adapt to new information at any age!

Scores

1. 5 and above.

2. 4 and above.

3. 3 and above.

4. 2 and above.

5. 0 and above.

6. 1 and above.

Molly Oldfield hosts Everything Under the Sun, a podcast answering children’s questions. Do check out her books, Everything Under the Sun and Everything Under the Sun: Quiz Book, as well as her new title, Everything Under the Sun: All Around the World.