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Question 1: What landmark legal case in 1954 ruled that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional in the United States?
Question 2: What is the source of Green Lantern's power?
The source of Green Lantern's power is a power ring that grants the user great control over the physical world as long as the wielder has sufficient willpower and strength to wield it. The rings are powered by a central power battery on the planet Oa, which in turn is powered by the collective willpower of all sentient beings.
Question 3: Which language has the most native speakers in the world?
Mandarin Chinese has over a billion native speakers due to the large population of China. It is one of the six official languages of the United Nations.
Question 4: In which country did the tradition of carving jack-o'-lanterns originate?
The practice of carving jack-o'-lanterns started in Ireland, where large turnips and potatoes served as early canvasses. Immigrants brought the tradition to America, where the native pumpkin proved to be an ideal fruit for carving.
Question 5: What term is used to describe the phenomenon where a person experiences improved performance on simple or well-learned tasks in the presence of others?
Social facilitation is a concept that has been around since the late 1800s. Norman Triplett is credited with first observing the phenomenon in 1898 when cyclists' race times improved when racing in groups versus alone. This effect can also occur in non-competitive and non-physical tasks.
Question 6: What is the scientific term for the loss of water from parts of plants, especially from the leaves?
Transpiration is the process of water movement through a plant and its evaporation from aerial parts, like leaves, stems, and flowers. Water is necessary for various plant processes, including photosynthesis and the transport of nutrients.
Question 7: What phenomenon is characterized by a prolonged period of abnormally low rainfall, leading to a shortage of water?
A drought can last for months or years, or may be declared after as few as 15 days. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region and harm to the local economy. Annual dry seasons in tropical regions can technically be classified as droughts, but they are normal and predictable parts of a pattern.
Question 8: What phenomenon did Albert Einstein famously theorize about that is often simplified as "mass bends space-time"?
Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity, published in 1915, revolutionized the understanding of gravity. It describes gravity not as a force but as a consequence of the curvature of space-time caused by the uneven distribution of mass. The most famous equation from this theory is E=mc², which expresses the relationship between mass (m) and energy (E) with c² being the speed of light squared.
Question 9: In which year was the first Academy Awards ceremony held?
The first Academy Awards ceremony was held on May 16, 1929, at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles, California. The event honored movies released from 1927 to 1928 and was attended by around 270 guests.
Question 10: What is the traditional name for the Maori New Year?
Matariki marks the rising of the Pleiades star cluster and begins the New Year for the Maori, the indigenous people of New Zealand. Matariki celebrations include remembrance, planting new crops, and the release of lanterns.
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka was a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students to be unconstitutional. It was a major victory for the Civil Rights Movement. The decision effectively overturned the "separate but equal" doctrine of Plessy v. Ferguson from 1896.