Our Most Difficult Knowledge Quiz

Red is associated with Communist nations of past and present -- notably, the USSR and China. However, this is a fairly recent development -- red has long been a favored color in flags for countries of all political persuasions.

The Weimar Republic was the government that preceded Adolf Hitler's. It was named for the city were its first constitutional convention was held.

The rudder is the strong underwater blade that makes the boat "yaw" in the water, or turn left or right without leaning. Fun fact: Swimming dogs, like Labradors, use their tails as a rudder!

If you're outdoorsy, you've probably explored caves made by wind erosion. This is one of the more common terms from geology.

The Sistine Chapel painter's full name was Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni. It's no wonder we just call him "Michelangelo." Meanwhile, Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio is only known by "Caravaggio."

Classical music lovers flock to Vienna to see the city where Mozart, Lizst, Beethoven, Strauss and more lived and worked. Vienna is also the city that gave the world Sigmund Freud (though not everyone would thank the Austrian capital for that!)

You probably knew this if you live in a coastal region, where earthquakes are common. However, inland regions aren't immune from seismic activity, at least not entirely.

Holden holds this distinction. If you knew this, you're likely to also know that Elizabeth Taylor was the first woman to be paid the same amount, for "Cleopatra."

Geologists roughly divide the Earth into core, mantle and crust (going from center to exterior). "Terrestria" isn't part of that system, though we think it'd make a good name for a country in a fantasy paperback.

"Mare nostrum" means "our sea," and reflects the dominance that ancient Rome had all through the lands surrounding it. It's a bit ironic, though, because Rome had a great army, but a terrible navy -- their history is full of losses in sea battles.

Despite the Sia song, titanium is not the hardest metal on the planet. Fun fact: Diamonds became popular for engagement rings because they were hard enough to stand up to daily wear, even during housework. It doesn't have anything to do with their value -- diamond is actually rather common.

This is a complicated word for a simple thing. While many animals are classified as "diurnal" or "nocturnal," a "crepuscular" animal comes out to hunt or graze at twilight.

Diagon Alley is a shopping district in the Harry Potter novels. It's where Hogwarts students buy their books and supplies.

Lovecraft created a grand, terrifying "mythos" involving gods called "the Old Ones," which included Cthulhu and Yog-Soggoth. Horror writers set stories in his fantasy world to this day.

UNIX came out of Bell Labs in the 1970s. Fun fact: The Mac operating system is actually UNIX-based.

Crane was one of America's first practitioners of the style called naturalism. Though Crane had no military experience, he wrote a grippingly detailed story about the Civil War.

There's an old joke that says that Lee never meant to surrender. He was passing the Appomattox Court House and went in to use the bathroom. Inside, he saw an unkempt bearded man, assumed he was the janitor, and gave him his sword to hold. (This joke works better if you know that Ulysses Grant was pretty far from a sharp dresser.)

The femoral artery is named for the femur, which is commonly called the thigh bone. It's good that the femoral artery is deep inside the leg, and well-protected -- when breached, this large-bore artery can bleed out quite rapidly.

Fun fact: Hedy Lamarr was the inspiration for a villain on "Agent Carter." The character, Whitney Frost, was a Hollywood ingenue whose image belied her formidable brain and scientific skills.

These are all fields of study. Though each of them involves animals, none are classifications. Those would involve an animal's kingdom, or phylum, or ... well, you get the point.

At the present time, the InSight lander is on Mars. But the Viking crafts of the 1970s paved the way.

Yup, Stallone was a struggling actor who decided he'd write the ideal role for himself. Then he had to fight to ensure the part wasn't given away to a big-name actor.

Bob Dole was the Republican senator from Kansas. An older candidate, he was hindered by suggestions that he was too old to effectively lead America, compared to the younger Clinton.

Nirvana is the idea of ultimate non-attachment, therefore peace, that a good Buddhist will achieve after death. If you haven't heard about the complicated journey that is the Buddhist afterlife, Google it -- it's remarkably complex and mythic.

Director Quention Tarantino and Jackson -- who, we know, is more than just an action star -- evidently have a great working relationship. Jackson has appeared in several Tarantino films, but the role in "Kill Bill" was really just a cameo.

Hematologists study and treat blood cancers like leukemia and clotting disorders. The latter includes hemophilia and Von Willebrand disease.

The full name is "The Revelation to St. John" (or "the apostle John"). Highly allegorical, it purports to tell the story of the coming end of the world.

We know that "stewed beef and tomato" doesn't sound like an epicurean delight. But trust us -- you've gotta try it to really appreciate it!

"Slaughterhouse Five" is a story about war, with a strong anti-war message. A central event in it is the firebombing of Dresden in World War II.

These are also called the "613 mitzvot," with the latter word meaning good or righteous deeds. They are divided in several ways, including "positive" and "negative" commandments, commandments for men and for women, and so on.

Lot's wife was turned into a pillar of salt in the Genesis story about the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Her sin? Turning back to look behind her, which God had forbidden.

San Quentin is a very small town north of San Francisco. It really only serves as a bedroom community for prison staff, some of whom work on "the Q's" death row.

"Castling" is an unusual move in which you can move your king more than one space, and "jump" over the castle (aka rook) that will now be on the king's flank. It's a protective maneuver done early in the game.

You might have been helped here if you've read Piers Anthony's "Incarnations of Immortality" series, in which the Fates appear prominently. For those of you who haven't read it, here's the gen. Clotho, the youngest of the fates, spins the thread of a life; Lachesis, middle-aged, measures it out; and Atropos cuts it, creating death.

At the Nuremberg trials, former Nazis were put on trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Notably absent was Adolf Hitler, Joseph Goebbels and Heinrich Himmler, all of whom had committed suicide as combat came to an end.