Harvard Fall Tournament
Cambridge, Massachusetts
November 10, 2007
ROUND FOUR
TOSSUPS
1. For an electron, it is given by the product of the Bohr Magneton, a constant slightly greater than 2 because of quantum electrodynamics, and the spin. In the presence of a magnetic field, the torque on it is given by its cross product with the field vector, and its potential energy is given by the dot product. For a current carrying loop, it is given by the product of the current and the area normal vector. FTP, name this physical quantity that measures the strength of a magnetic source and whose electrical analogue is for the dipole.
ANSWER: magnetic moment
2. One of his opponents was a virtually unknown oil producer who had balanced the budget as governor of Kansas. Another of his opponents had switched parties after testifying before Congress that the Constitution prohibited this man’s legislation to control floods and bring cheap electricity to the South. His final opponent avoided discussing the ongoing war and, four years later, was incorrectly declared President by the Chicago Tribune. FTP, identify this president who defeated Alf Landon, Wendell Willkie, Thomas Dewey, and Herbert Hoover.
ANSWER: Franklin Delano Roosevelt
3. She is disgusted when her husband fails to cure Hippolyte’s club foot and she turns to the moneylender Monsieur Lheureux for help in buying gifts for a neighbor she met at a fair. She goes often from Yonville to Rouen, where she and her husband go to the opera and run into Leon, who once shared her love of reading romances and to whom she had been romantically attracted before her affair with Rodolphe. FTP, identify this adulterous protagonist always bored with her country life as the wife of Charles in a novel by Gustav Flaubert.
ANSWER: Mme. EmmaBovary (accept either)
4. Its name is usually translated as “terrible steed,” but an alternative translation refers to its role in Odin’s discovery of runes after hanging himself. Each day, Urd, Verthandi, and Skuld draw water from Urd’s well under it so that it will not rot. The eagle Vidofnir sits atop it, Nidhogg gnaws at its roots, and the squirrel Ratatosk runs up and down its trunk bearing insults. Connecting all nine worlds, Hel and Niflheim may be found at two of its roots, Asgard upon one of its branches, and Midgard at the center of its trunk. FTP, name this “World Tree” of Norse cosmology.
ANSWER: Yggdrasil
5. A space is simply connected if any loop in the space is homotopic to one of these. In topology, a set is closed if it contains all of its limit type of these. In projective geometry, these are viewed as one-dimensional subspaces of the underlying vector space, and, in classical geometry, Menelaus’ theorem gives a criterion for three of these to be collinear. FTP, name this mathematical construct that is a zero-dimensional object in a vector space and which is often represented by a set of coordinates.
ANSWER: point
6. It begins in the church of Sant’ Andrea della Valle, where Marchesa Attavanti is used as the model for a painting of Mary Magdalene. A large choir sings a celebratory “Te Deum” when they erroneously learn that Napoleon lost the battle of Marengo, and in it Angelotti commits suicide after he is discovered by Spoletta. The title character sings the aria “Vissi D’arte” after the chief of polic, Scarpia, threatens to torture the painter Mario Cavaradossi. FTP, name this Puccini opera whose title character commits suicide by jumping off the walls of the Castle Saint Angelo.
ANSWER:Tosca
7. The Castle Bravo nuclear test discovered that it can be produced from lithium-7, but it can be formed most easily by the reaction between lithium-6 and neutrons from nuclear fission reactors. Aristid Grosse and Willard Libby showed that it is present in water because of cosmic rays, and it was discovered by Paul Harteck, M.L. Oliphant, and Ernest Rutherford. Containing two neutrons, unlike proteum, it is radioactive. FTP, identify this isotope of hydrogen with an atomic mass of three.
ANSWER: tritium (prompt on hydrogen-3)
8. Its leader, Nicias, made peace after Brasidas conquered Olynthus and Amphipolis, but war broke out again when this city’s rival fortified Decelea on the advice of Alcibiades, who later returned when this city was ruled by the Four Hundred. Its colonies in Anatolia revolted after the Persians helped its usually land-based antagonist to build a fleet commanded by Lysander, who conquered this city in Attica and ended the empire begun by Pericles. FTP, identify this city that lost the Peloponnesian War to Sparta but remains the capital of modern-day Greece.
ANSWER: Athens
9. Guest star Kal Penn causes a flash fire in a hyperbaric chamber on this show earlier this season. Penn and 39 other candidates hope to work with the title character, who asked a janitor for technical advice in the premiere. That title character, at the behest of a colleague who kidnaps his guitar, James Wilson, and Lisa Cuddy, grudgingly tries to reassemble a “team” to replace the staff who left at the end of Season 3, Doctors Chase, Cameron, and Foreman. FTP, name this Fox show about a cantankerous and unconventional doctor played by Hugh Laurie.
ANSWER: House, M.D.
10. In its first act, Joe Mott discusses why he prefers socialists over anarchists, and other minor characters in this work include Ed Mosher and Hugo Kalmar. Piet Wetjoen and Cecil Lewis reminisce about the Boer War, while Willie Oban talks about leaving Harvard Law School after his father’s arrest. The main character turns himself into the police for killing his wife Evelyn, and he attempts to get the patron’s of Harry Hope’s End of the Line Café to give up their “pipe dreams.” FTP, name this play that centers on Theodore Hickman, written by Eugene O’Neill.
ANSWER:The Iceman Cometh
11. William Thoms coined this term to replace “popular antiquities” with an Anglo-Saxon word, and examples of it are now numbered according to the Aarne-Thompson scale. Johann Gottfried von Herder advocated its preservation as a way of building German pride, a goal later achieved by two linguist brothers. Carl Jung analyzed the archetypes present in it and saw its purpose as conveying crucial lessons to young children. Famously collected by Charles Perrault and the Brothers Grimm, this is, FTP, what term for the collective oral traditions of a culture?
ANSWER: folklore (accept folktales)
12. Formerly known as the Territory of the Afars and Issas, it contains the cities of Dikhil and Obock, as well as Tadjoura, which shares its name with the gulf that gives it its distinctive shape. It contains Lake Asal, the lowest point in Africa, but has no arable land and is thus one of the most urbanized countries in Africa, relying on the transshipment of goods shipped through the Bab al-Mandab into the Gulf of Aden. Bounded by Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia, this is, FTP, what small African country opposite Yemen?
ANSWER: Djibouti
13. Some dispute the historicity of this battle’s Malfosse Incident or that Ivo Taillefer was granted permission to strike the first blow, but it is clear that the huscarls who fought the invaders here were arrayed on Senlac Hill. They were tired because of the earlier Battle of Stamford Bridge against Harald Hardråde, another claimant to the throne, and their slain king is often depicted here with an arrow in his eye, as in the Bayeux Tapestry. Fought after Edward the Confessor’s death made Harold II king of England, this is, FTP, what 1066 victory for William the Conqueror?
ANSWER: Battle of Hastings
14. He is arrested for driving on the left side of the road and running red lights while covered in blood. His first love is Annabel, who dies of typhus; he then becomes engaged to Valeria (who deserts him) and Charlotte (who is hit by a car), neither of whom he really likes. He takes a one-year car trip around the United States with his most famous lover, who disappears with Clare Quilty, a pornographer he later murders. Writing his confessions in jail, he admits that loving twelve-year-old Delores Haze was wrong. FTP, identify this protagonist of Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita.
ANSWER: HumbertHumbert (accept either – haha)
15. If this protein found in the sclera is synthesized incorrectly, it produces osteogenesis imperfecta, and the reaction between proline and a hydroxyl group requires ascorbic acid, which is why it plays a role in scurvy. Its strength is increased by covalent bonding and deposits of calcium hydroxyapatite provide greater rigidity in cortical bone and teeth. It also strengthens blood vessels and prevents wrinkles. FTP, identify this protein that comprises 30% of the body’s protein as well as fingernails, hair, and skin.
ANSWER: collagen
16. He produced mythologically themed works such as Mars Disarmed by Venusand the Three Graces, while he drew from ancient history for Belisarius Receiving Alms and The Lictors Returning to Brutus the Bodies of his Sons. He conceived of The Intervention of the Sabine Women when his wife visited him in prison. In his one of his works he showed triplets swearing to fight against Alba Longa, and in another he showed a man holding a letter with Charlotte Corday’s name on it. FTP, name this French painter of The Oath of the Horatii and The Death of Marat.
ANSWER:Jacques-Louis David
17. He argued with Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda during the so-called Vallidolid Debate, in which this man, who had earlier condemned the murder of Atahualpa and written in defense of self-determination for native Peruvians under the rule of King Phillip II, opposed the encomienda system. He is notorious for his brief support of enslaving Africans, whom he thought more suited to harsh conditions in the Americas. FTP, identify this bishop of Chiapas whocondemned the genocide of Native Americans by the early Spanish conquistadors.
ANSWER: Bartolomé de las Casas
18. He discussed the “Geist” in Lectures on the Philosophy of History, and he finished his most famous work during the Battle of Jena, which he considered “the end of history.” He argued that free will can only manifest itself through forms of the state in Philosophy of Right and examined self-consciousness through the master-bondsmen myth in his best-known work. His theory of history is that the resolution of a thesis and antithesis result in a synthesis. FTP, name this German philosopher, the author of Phenomenology of the Spirit, best known for the dialectic.
ANSWER:Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel
19. He ran two laboratories in New York City, at one point annoying neighbors while studying mechanical resonance. He is better remembered for work with electrical resonance, demonstrating techniques for wireless power transmission at the Columbian Exposition of 1893 as well as several devices utilizing alternating current, whose use he pioneered. FTP, identify this Serbian-born physicist, namesake of the SI unit for magnetic flux density, who is also remembered for developing his namesake coil.
ANSWER: Nikola Tesla
20. Its author published a treatise as Esdras Barnevelton saying this work was meant as a critique of Queen Anne. In it, a vial of tears and a bag of sighs are obtained from the Queen of Spleen by the dwarf Umbriel in an effort to comfort the main character, and an extended scene involving a game of Ombre is meant to mirror Homer’s description of heroic deeds. Based on a real episode between Lord Petre and Arabella Fermor, this is, FTP, what mock-heroic poem dealing with an incident in which the Baron steals some of Belinda’s hair, written by Alexander Pope?
ANSWER: “TheRape of the Lock”
BONUSES
1. Did you pay attention in oceanography class? Let’s find out! For ten points each –
(10) This is the apparent deflection of moving objects from a straight path when they are viewed from a rotating frame of reference. It’s why hurricanes spin in different directions in different hemispheres.
ANSWER: Coriolis effect
(10) One concern about global warming is that a large influx of fresh water from melting ice caps may shut down this exchange, sometimes called the ocean conveyer belt, which is a major force behind currents such as the Gulf Stream.
ANSWER: thermohaline circulation (accept thermohaline exchange)
(10) In a shallow strait with fast flowing water, this type of large, violent whirlpool may form. Its name comes from Norway, where they are common.
ANSWER: maelstrom
2. Their empire grew under Suppiluliuma and Mursili II to include much of Syria and Anatolia. For ten points each –
(10) Identify this ancient people whose capital was Hattusa.
ANSWER: Hittites
(10) The Hittites fought the Egyptians at this 1274BC battle in Syria that involved more than 5,000 chariots.
ANSWER: Battle of Kadesh
(10) This young pharaoh led the Egyptian army at Kadesh; he reigned a total of 66 years.
ANSWER: Ramesses II
3. On September 19, 2007, Antoine Ghanem was killed in a car bombing. For ten points each –
(10) Ghanem was the eighth member of the Phalange Party to be killed since 2005 in this country that borders the Mediterranean Sea.
ANSWER: Lebanon
(10) The assassinations in Lebanon are related to the ongoing United Nations investigation of the 2005 killing of this former Lebanese prime minister.
ANSWER: Rafik Hariri
(10) Ghanem was openly critical of this neighboring country suspected of masterminding Hariri’s assassination.
ANSWER: Syria
4. For ten points each, identify the country to which the following islands belong.
(10) Hokkaido and Shikoku.
ANSWER: Japan
(10) Celebes, Lombok, and Komodo.
ANSWER: Indonesia
(10) Negros, Palawan, and Cebu.
ANSWER: Philippines
5. Answer these questions relating to a fact about measurement in quantum mechanics for ten points each.
(10) Name this principle that places a lower bound on the product of the errors in measurement of position and momentum for a particle.
ANSWER: Heisenberg uncertainty principle
(10) The lower bound given is by the uncertainty principle is this constant divided by 4 Pi.
ANSWER: Planck’s constant
(10) The proof of the uncertainty principle uses this mathematical theorem which states that the dot product of two vector is less than or equal to the product of their norms.
ANSWER: Cauchy-Schwarz-Bunyakovsky inequality
6. In 1918, Vladimir Lenin replaced his policy of “war communism” with this policy that re-allowed limited private industry. For ten points each –
(10) Identify this Soviet economic strategy.
ANSWER: New Economic Policy (accept NEP; accept Novaya Ekonomicheskaya Politka)
(10) The New Economic Policy lasted until 1929, when it was replaced by the first of these.
ANSWER: five-year plans
(10) This Georgian-born Soviet leader implemented the First Five-Year Plan in 1929.
ANSWER: Josef Stalin
7. Scientifically, metals can be much more than just hard, shiny, expensive hunks of stuff; name actual defining properties of metals for ten points each.
(10) Chemically defined metals are usually quite shiny and possess the metallic variety of this property, which describes how light interacts with solid surfaces.
ANSWER: luster
(10) Metals are also quite stress resistant and can be drawn into thin wires because of this mechanical property.
ANSWER: ductility
(10) Finally, metals can be pounded extensively without cracking since they possess this mechanical property.
ANSWER: malleability
8. Answer the following questions about nutrient cycles important in ecology for ten points each.
(10) This element is incorporated into ecosystems through photosynthesis and re-released by cellular respiration.
ANSWER: carbon
(10) Symbiotic bacteria on the roots of some plants are responsible for the namesake "fixation" of this element.
ANSWER: nitrogen
(10) Found in pure form in white, red, and black allotropes, this element is introduced into ecosystems by weathering of rocks and eventually leaches into the water table.
ANSWER: phosphorus
9. Identify the following African-Americans who did notable things in early America for ten points each.
(10) He was probably a sailor, but is better known for being killed in the Boston Massacre.
ANSWER: Crispus Attucks
(10) This mathematician, astronomer, and almanac-writer helped design Washington, D.C.
ANSWER: Benjamin Banneker
(10) This slave led a namesake 1800 rebellion in Virginia.
ANSWER: Gabriel Prosser
10. The construction of this planned capital on the Neva River Delta was overseen by Dutch and German engineers. For ten points each –
(10) Identify this then-capital city founded in 1703.
ANSWER: St. Petersburg
(10) This Russian czar founded St. Petersburg and moved his capital there in 1712.
ANSWER: Peter the Great (accept Peter I)
(10) St. Petersburg was built on land conquered from this country, which formally ceded the land by the Treaty of Nystad.