Can bears swing upside down and what colour is electricity? The kids’ quiz

1. Esther, 6, asks: can bears swing upside down?

   1. Yes! They even sleep upside down like bats

   2. No, all bears are too big

   3. Some bear cubs can climb trees and hang, but adult bears are usually too big

   4. They only do it if they’ve eaten LOTS of honey

2. Joseph, 8, asks: what is the cleverest animal?

   1. Dogs can learn tricks

   2. Dolphins are great at working together

   3. Octopuses can escape from tricky places

   4. It depends! Many animals are clever in different ways, like chimps, dolphins, crows and octopuses

3. Bob asks: how do you change a lampshade to a ceiling lightshade?

   1. Flip it upside down and glue it to the ceiling

   2. You just balance the lampshade on the ceiling bulb and make a wish, so it stays on

   3. It doesn’t always work! But if your lampshade is an easy-fit one, often you can turn it upside down and fit it to the ceiling bulb holder

   4. You call a plumber to help you out – they’re always good with lights

4. Macsen, 7, asks: what is one less than infinity?

   1. Infinity minus one is zero

   2. The biggest number ever!

   3. You can’t take one from infinity because it isn’t a number – it goes on for ever

   4. It’s negative one

5. Alby, 5, asks: what colour is electricity?

   1. Yellow

   2. No colour

   3. Blue

   4. Red

Solutions

1:C - Bear cubs are curious and playful. They can climb trees and sometimes hang or dangle. But once they grow up, they’re usually too heavy to swing upside down., 2:D - There isn’t just one cleverest animal. Different animals are smart in different ways. Chimpanzees can use tools, dolphins communicate with clicks and whistles, crows can solve puzzles and octopuses can untie knots and are expert escape artists. We are still discovering all kinds of things about many animals and how clever they are., 3:C - You can’t always use a table lampshade as a ceiling shade, but many easy-fit designs work for both and are simple to install. Otherwise you’ll need a shade made for ceilings, called a pendant., 4:C - Infinity isn’t like normal numbers – it’s an idea that goes on for ever. If you take one away, it’s still infinity, because it never ends., 5:B - Electricity has no colour, though when it sparks it can appear blue or white as it passes through the air, or in neon signs it produces colours. Lightning is a huge bolt of electricity and is usually white.

Scores

1. 5 and above.

2. 4 and above.

3. 3 and above.

4. 2 and above.

5. 0 and above.

6. 1 and above.

Molly Oldfield hosts Everything Under the Sun, a podcast answering children’s questions. Do check out her books, Everything Under the Sun and the new Everything Under the Sun: Quiz Book.