Academic Decathlon

How has water been used in literature? Correct Answer: 1 -- develop plots; 2 -- drive conflict; 3 -- create imagery; 4 -- establish themes Where did early civilizations and budding empires emerge? Correct Answer: On the shores of important waterways such as the Nile, Ganges, and Mediterranean. Why did water become an important element in religious narratives? Correct Answer: Because of its life-sustaining nature (sea for food, rain for crops) As the religious nature of water develope...

On average, how many days can a human live without water? Correct Answer: ~3 days Who first studied the paradox of Value Correct Answer: Plato How did Adam Smith explain the logic behind the Paradox of Value? Correct Answer: although diamonds can be produced industrially, diamonds are nevertheless scarce, whereas water is plentiful - hence we value diamonds more highly. What is the study of the relationship of the human and nonhuman world's overtime? Correct Answer: Environmental H...

Art history Correct Answer: This discipline is dedicated to reconstructing the various contexts in which a work of art was produced. Aesthetics Correct Answer: This term refers to the philosophical inquiry into the nature and expression of beauty. Art criticism Correct Answer: This term refers to the explanation of current art events to the masses. Formal analysis Correct Answer: This type of analysis focuses on only the visual qualities of an artwork. Contextual analysis Correct...

What is the broadest definition of music? Correct Answer: Sound organized in time What kinds of sounds qualify as music? Correct Answer: Noises and tones produced by any means What is required for music? Correct Answer: A time frame, sound waves, and a cognizant mind to perceive and interpret those sounds What are some common factors in music? Correct Answer: A person (often called a composer) who imagines the music, human or mechanical performers who generate sounds, and a mechinac...

Who published the Odyssey? Correct Answer: Homer When was the Odyssey Published? Correct Answer: Around 800 BCE What was the Odyssey about? Correct Answer: Greek epic poem that tells of the return journey of Odysseus to the island of Ithaca from the war at Troy Who made Geographia? Correct Answer: Greek philospoher Plato What was the Geographia about? Correct Answer: Bounds of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans When was Geographia made? Correct Answer: 150 CE When did nautica...

When did the Cold War officially start and end? - September 2, 1945 (the official end of WWII) and December 26, 1991 (the official dissolving of the Soviet Union) How did the US economy organize production? - It relied on markets How did the USSR economy organize production? - It relied on centralized government control How was the USSR formed? - The Russian Revolution of 1917 led by Vladimir Lenin and the Bolshevik party forced Tsar Nicholas out of power What was the Marshall Plan? - A pl...

Who was the first person to use the term "Cold War"? - George Orwell in a 1945 essay When did the term "Cold War" enter mainstream usage? - After Bernard Baruch and Walter Lippmann used it When did Cold War divisions begin? - Late 1943 - early 1946 When were the spheres of influence that became the Iron Curtain drawn? - The Yalta Conference in 1945 When were the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki? - August of 1945 What was the Long Telegram? - In February of 1946 George Ke...

Who published the Odyssey? - Homer When was the Odyssey Published? - Around 800 BCE What was the Odyssey about? - Greek epic poem that tells of the return journey of Odysseus to the island of Ithaca from the war at Troy Who made Geographia? - Greek philospoher Plato What was the Geographia about? - Bounds of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans When was Geographia made? - 150 CE When did nautical history begin the develop? - 15th century Who was Hugo Grotius? - Dutch lawyer and philosopher Wh...

What three ancient structures were likely used for early forms of astrology? - Stonehenge, the Temple of Isis, and the Sun Dagger What people produced the earliest complete records of observations regarding astrological phenomena? - The Ancient Greeks What did Thales of Miletus assert? - Natural phenomena could be explained and understood by humans What did Pythagoras describe? - Mathematical patterns in nature What was one of Plato's core beliefs? - Everything in nature can be reduced t...