Do bees have bums and how do boats float? The kids’ quiz

Illustration: Hennie Haworth/The Guardian

1. Rowan, 4, asks: do bees have bums?

   1. Bees don’t need bums – they absorb all the nutrients they consume

   2. Yes, they poo out of them!

   3. Bees have three bums

   4. Bees don’t live long enough to poo, so don’t need a bum

2. Elizabeth, 8, asks: how do boats float?

   1. They’re made of balloons

   2. Lots of fish carry them through the water

   3. Boats float when the boat’s density is less than the density of the water the boat pushes out of the way

   4. Nobody knows

3. Wolfgang, 7, asks: what’s the earliest example of a house?

   1. It’s tricky – but it could be a stone circle built 1.8 million years ago in Tanzania

   2. In 1200BC, built by the Olmecs in Mexico

   3. In 1000BC, built by the Nok people in Nigeria

   4. In 750BC, built by Celts in Britain

4. Tommy, 7, asks: why are treats so yummy?

   1. We evolved to like sugar

   2. Sugary treats are a good source of energy

   3. Treats can increase our blood sugar levels, which our brain enjoys and craves more of

   4. All of the above

5. Maximillian, 8, asks: what was the first shark that existed?

   1. Sharksillius, 500 million years ago

   2. Cladoselache, 380 million years ago

   3. Aquaraptor, 10 million years ago

   4. Didanduli, 200 years ago

Solutions

1:B - Bees have bums! They get rid of their waste outside the hive, while they fly. , 2:C - How boats float involves density (how much space an object takes up compared with how closely packed its molecules are), displacement and buoyancy (the ability of an object to float). When a boat sits in the water, it pushes water out of the way. The boat stays afloat because it’s less dense than the water it has moved out of the way, or displaced., 3:A - Experts struggle to agree on what we call a house! If it’s a stone circle, it was 1.8 million years ago in Tanzania. The first structure that looked like a shelter was built in Zambia, nearly half a million years ago., 4:D - We evolved to enjoy sugar because it’s a good source of immediate energy. We are hardwired to seek it out, in case we get chased by something! Sugary snacks spike our blood sugar and give our body a rush., 5:B - The Cladoselache were the first group that evolved to look like sharks today. They might have been part of a different species, but we can’t be sure. They had torpedo-shaped bodies, forked tails and dorsal fins.

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 Everything Under the Sun: Quiz Book, as well as her new title, Everything Under the Sun: All Around the World.