On-air challenge: A 2024 year-end news quiz

1. [Fill in the blanks:] In October Claudia Sheinbaum became the first ____ president of ____.
2. Rachel Gunn aka Raygun, became a viral sensation last year as an Australian Olympian in what sport?
3. In November a piece of conceptual art titled “Comedian” was sold in a Sotheby’s auction for $6.2 million. It consisted of something duct-taped to a wall. What was it?
4. What presidential candidate was widely publicized last year to have once had a dead worm in his brain?
5. In April last year something rare happened in the U.S. between Texas and New England. What was it?
6. Bao Li and Qing Bao arrived from China this year. Where are they now?
7. In June China also made history by receiving a group of rocks from where?
8. What four-letter word defined as “characterized by a confident, independent, and hedonistic attitude” was named by Collins Dictionary as its “Word of the Year.”
9. What country became the 33rd member of NATO in March?
10. Last summer Danny Jansen became the first M.L.B. player in history to do what?

Last week’s challenge: Last week’s challenge comes from listener Bobby Jacobs, of Richmond, Va. Think of a famous singer — first and last names. Use all of the first name, plus the first three letters and the last letter of the last name. The result, reading left to right, will spell a phrase meaning “punctual.” What singer is this?

Challenge answer: Justin Timberlake —> just in time

Winner: Cricket Liu of San Jose, Calif.

This week’s challenge: This week’s challenge comes from our friend Joseph Young, and it’s a numerical challenge for a change. Take the digits 2, 3, 4, and 5. Arrange them in some way using standard arithmetic operations to make 2,025. Can you do it?

Submit Your Answer

If you know the answer to the challenge, submit it here by Thursday, January 9th, 2025 at 3 p.m. ET. Listeners whose answers are selected win a chance to play the on-air puzzle. Important: include a phone number where we can reach you.