7 questions on Mastermind

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A BBC Mastermind contestant has got the show's lowest ever score, getting a total of just five points. Software analyst Kajen Thuraaisingham, 28, said: "It wasn't my night."Could you do better? Here are seven general knowledge questions he failed to answer correctly.

1.) Multiple Choice Question

One incorrect answer was miles off the mark (1,762 miles in fact). So which US state has a capital called Pierre?

<ol><li>Montana</li><li>South Dakota</li><li>Vermont</li><li>Idaho</li></ol>

2.) Multiple Choice Question

He thought he was on it, but the Maillon Faible is the French television version of which British quiz show?

<ol><li>The Weakest Link</li><li>Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?</li><li>Family Fortunes</li></ol>

3.) Multiple Choice Question

He did give an answer but it was wrong, so what do you call a device capable of storing electricity, consisting of conducting plates separated by a layer of insulating material?

<ol><li>A generator</li><li>A transformer</li><li>A battery</li><li>A capacitor</li></ol>

4.) Multiple Choice Question

It's not a compulsion to give the wrong answer, so what do people suffering from trichotillomania have an impulse to do?

<ol><li>Pick at their skin</li><li>Wash their hands frequently</li><li>Pull out their hair</li></ol>

5.) Multiple Choice Question

This was another pass for Mr Thuraaisingham - in Greek mythology, what did Prometheus steal from the gods?

<ol><li>A spark of fire</li><li>One of their wives</li><li>A golden bow</li></ol>

6.) Multiple Choice Question

Mr Thuraaisingham is no fan of Chopin, as he couldn't name the form of dance the composer's Heroic in A-flat major Opus 53 is in. Can you?

<ol><li>Mazurka</li><li>Polonaise</li><li>Minuet</li><li>Waltz</li></ol>

7.) Multiple Choice Question

He perhaps wanted to crawl under a rock after this performance, but which insects get their name from an ancient superstition that they crawl into the ears of sleeping people?

<ol><li>Scarab beetles</li><li>Earwigs</li><li>Ants</li><li>Itch mites</li></ol>

Answers

<ol><li>It's South Dakota. Mr Thuraaisingham incorrectly said Vermont - its capital Montpelier is 1,762 miles (2,835km) from Pierre.</li><li>It's The Weakest Link, but Mr Thuraaisingham incorrectly said Mastermind.</li><li>It's a capacitor. Mr Thuraaisingham wrongly said it was a battery.</li><li>Those with trichotillomania pull out their hair. Mr Thuraaisingham passed on this question.</li><li>It's a spark of fire. He was punished by being chained to a rock where an eagle ate his constantly replenished liver.</li><li>It's a Polonaise. Mr Thuraaisingham passed on this question.</li><li>It's earwigs. Mr Thuraaisingham wrongly said ants after failing to spot the little clue given in the question.</li></ol>

Your Score

0 - 3 : You are the weakest link

4 - 6 : No deal

7 - 7 : Mastermind

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