Q20 · THE QUIZ POST
The Daily Quiz — 24 August 2026
Play the The Quiz Post quiz for 24 August 2026: 20 free general-knowledge questions covering Business & Economics, Current Affairs, Science and Technology, with explanations and crowd results.
About this edition
This 20-question The Quiz Post edition was published for 24 August 2026. Answer all four-option questions to reveal sourced explanations and see how other players answered.
Topics in this edition include Business & Economics, Current Affairs, Science and Technology.
Questions and sourced explanations
This archive edition remains playable. The notes below contain spoilers and provide the question text, explanatory context and source used for each item.
Read this edition’s question notes (spoilers)
Nature · Easy
1. A British grass snake may respond to a predator by doing what?
Grass snakes sometimes feign death when threatened.
Technology · Medium
2. Which Scottish engineer pioneered the British radar system developed in the 1930s?
Watson-Watt's radar work helped establish Britain's early warning network.
UK · Medium
3. Alexander Fleming first discovered penicillin at a hospital in which British city?
Fleming discovered penicillin at St Mary's Hospital in London in 1928.
Business & Economics · Medium
4. Modern Bank of England notes are printed on which material?
The Bank replaced its paper notes with flexible polymer notes.
Science · Medium
5. On which planet would the Sun appear to rise in the west and set in the east because the planet rotates backwards?
Venus rotates in the opposite direction from most planets, so the Sun would appear to rise in the west and set in the east.
Current Affairs · Easy
6. A U.S. space-transportation policy announced on 20 August set a 2030 target of more than 1,000 annual launches and what else?
The new U.S. policy aims for more than 1,000 launches and re-entries on American soil each year by 2030.
Geography · Hard
7. Which set contains all four national capitals located directly on the Danube River?
The Danube passes through four national capitals: Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest and Belgrade.
Source: International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River
Technology · Hard
8. Who built the original wooden computer-mouse prototype from Douglas Engelbart’s design?
SRI engineer Bill English built Engelbart’s original wooden mouse prototype, using knife-edge wheels to track movement.
Arts · Hard
9. Sir John Herschel invented which photographic process in 1842, famous for producing brilliant blue images?
Herschel invented the cyanotype process in 1842 after discovering the light sensitivity of iron salts; oxidation creates its characteristic blue.
Food & Drink · Medium
10. The pods used to make natural vanilla flavouring are the fruit of what type of flowering plant?
Vanilla beans are the fruit of the vanilla orchid, including the widely cultivated species Vanilla planifolia.
Business & Economics · Easy
11. What product became the first item scanned with a GS1 barcode at a supermarket checkout in 1974?
On 26 June 1974, a 10-pack of Wrigley’s Juicy Fruit gum became the first product scanned with a GS1 barcode at a checkout.
Sport · Medium
12. Granite used in Olympic and world-championship curling stones traditionally comes from which Scottish island?
World Curling says elite stones use two special granites found on Ailsa Craig, a small volcanic island in the Firth of Clyde.
Society & Culture · Medium
13. The Japanese word “emoji” combines e, meaning “picture”, with moji, meaning what?
MoMA notes that emoji combines the Japanese e, meaning “picture”, and moji, meaning “character”.
History · Easy
14. The Great Fire of London began in 1666 in a bakery on which street?
The fire began at about 1 a.m. in Thomas Farriner’s bakery on Pudding Lane on 2 September 1666.
Current Affairs · Medium
15. World Athletics announced on 20 August that competitors will publicly choose their semi-final lanes in which event at its Ultimate Championship?
The new “lane draft” will let men’s and women’s 200-metre athletes choose their preferred semi-final heat and lane in ranking order.
Literature · Medium
16. Thomas More coined “utopia” in 1516 from Greek roots that literally mean what?
More coined “utopia” for his imagined island; the constructed word literally means “no place”.
Music · Easy
17. Which instrument was invented by Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax?
Adolphe Sax invented the saxophone in the 19th century; the instrument carries his name.
Film & TV · Medium
18. In filmmaking, what do Foley artists primarily create during post-production?
Foley artists perform and record synchronised everyday sounds—such as footsteps, clothing and object noises—to add to a film in post-production.
Science · Hard
19. What is the name of the seismic boundary between Earth’s crust and mantle?
The Mohorovičić discontinuity, usually shortened to the Moho, is the boundary where seismic-wave speeds change between the crust and mantle.
World · Medium
20. Meteora, famous for monasteries perched on towering sandstone pillars, is in which country?
Meteora is in central mainland Greece, where monasteries were built atop dramatic sandstone pillars from the medieval period onward.