Do flamingos have a favourite leg to stand on? The kids’ quiz

1. Emily, 12, asks: do flamingos have a favourite leg to stand on?

   1. Yes, just like people are left-handed or right-handed

   2. They have no preference

   3. Only when they’re young

   4. No, they only stand on one leg by accident

2. Rosa, 5, asks: is infinity a number?

   1. Yes! It’s just a bit smaller than infinity plus one

   2. No, it means something that could go on for ever

   3. Yes, that’s why its symbol is an “8” on its side

   4. It’s actually two numbers

3. Toby, 10, asks: why do mobile phone numbers always start with 07?

   1. No numbers start 07!

   2. It was the phone inventor’s favourite number

   3. Seven phone satellites orbit the planet

   4. Only UK mobile numbers start with 07, so you know where in the world the phone number is from

4. Mara Lise, 9, asks: why can’t you eat before having surgery?

   1. It’s just a tradition

   2. You must always eat before surgery!

   3. Without an empty stomach, the anaesthetic might make you sick

   4. In case surgeons are allergic to your last meal

5. Fox, 11, asks: why is it colder on mountains when we are closer to the sun?

   1. All mountains have really good air conditioning

   2. Even on top of the tallest mountain, the sun is still 150 million kilometres away

   3. Underneath the first layer of mountain is a layer of ice

   4. The wind makes it cold

Solutions

1:B - Studies show flamingos don’t seem to prefer one leg over the other, but they do switch legs, especially to rest muscles and keep warm., 2:B - Infinity is not a number, it’s a way of showing something can go on for ever. For example, there’s no number that’s one less than infinity. This means it breaks the rule of arithmetic, so it can’t be a number. The infinity symbol is ∞., 3:D - Only numbers in the UK begin with 07, so you know where in the world the mobile number is from. This was introduced back in 1999 – adding the extra 7 also meant there were more possible telephone numbers as the UK was running out of available numbers!, 4:C - Before some surgeries you can’t eat anything at all, not even small sweets or snacks. This is because the anaesthetic, which puts you to sleep, might make you sick if you’ve eaten anything., 5:B - Being on top of Everest only brings you a bit less than 9km closer to the sun – there’s still 150 million kilometres to go! And the higher up you go, the lower the atmospheric pressure, which leads to a fall in temperature.

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.