Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

WEEKLY NEWS QUIZ:

This week: Tarkanian turns up in NYT, and what are kids snorting?

Danny Tarkanian Interview

Steve Marcus

In this file photo, Danny Tarkanian, Republican than a candidate for Congress, responds to a question during an interview at the Railroad Pass Casino Thursday, Oct. 20, 2016.

The Senate election in Alabama, net neutrality and the Republicans' tax plan dominated the news this week. Here's a chance to test your knowledge about other happenings.

• Nevada Republican Senate candidate Danny Tarkanian turned up in a New York Times story saying that which of the following groups considered him an “intolerable” general election candidate and would actively oppose him in the primary?

A. The American Civil Liberties Union

B. Mitch McConnell and his allies

C. The Center for American Progress

Answer: B. The story, published after the Alabama Senate election Tuesday, was headlined “Alabama loss exposes Republican fissures amid a Democratic surge.” An excerpt: “With their majority reduced to a single seat, Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Senate majority leader, and his lieutenants remain uneasy about what anti-establishment forces could do in next year’s primary races and have identified at least two additional campaigns where they believe Bannon-backed candidates could weaken the party.

“McConnell’s allies plan to intervene as aggressively as needed in Arizona, where Kelli Ward, a far-right former state legislator, is seeking the seat that will be vacated by Sen. Jeff Flake, and in Nevada, where Danny Tarkanian, a perennial candidate who has branded himself as a Trump cheerleader, is challenging Sen. Dean Heller in a Republican primary race.”

• Fill in the blank in this headline Tuesday from The Motley Fool: Why _______ Is the Hottest Casino Stock

A. Wynn Resorts

B. Penn Gaming

C. Caesars Entertainment

Answer: A. The financial services company reported that shares of Wynn stock were up 84 percent in 2017 and 131 percent since the start of 2016. Key factors are an increase in VIP gaming in Macau, an area in which Wynn excels, and the growth potential the company is enjoying after opening Wynn Palace in Macau last year, recently starting construction of Wynn Boston Harbor and working toward an early 2018 start on construction of its development on the grounds of the current Wynn golf course.

• True or false: The Reno Aces minor-league baseball team got its shorts in a knot this week after it was announced that Las Vegas’ WNBA team would be called the Aces.

Answer: True. The Reno Aces posted several snitty tweets after the announcement, pointing out that they’d had their name for several years. Sample: In response to a tweet from KLAS-TV sports anchor/reporter Kevaney Martin saying, “Las Vegas: home of the Aces!,” the Reno Aces tweeted, “nah. Reno has been the home of the Aces for 10 years. #JustGoogleIt.”

• In a new study, the Center for American Entrepreneurship found that what percentage of the top 35 companies on this year’s Fortune 500 list were started by immigrants or their children?

A. Less than 20 percent

B. About one-third

C. More than half

Answer: C — 57 percent.

• It was announced this week that the 500th episode of “Pawn Stars” would air in January on History. Which of the following TV series aired more episodes than the Las Vegas-based reality show?

A. “Bonanza”

B. “Dallas”

C.“Law and Order”

D. None of the above

Answer: D. “Bonanza" aired 430 episodes in 14 seasons starting in 1959, “Dallas” aired 357 episodes in 14 seasons starting in 1978 and “Law and Order” — the original series — aired 456 episodes in 20 seasons starting in 1990.

• Fossils of an ancient penguin were found this week in New Zealand. How tall was the bird?

A. As tall as a crested penguin

B. As tall as an emperor penguin

C. As tall as a Pittsburgh Penguin

Answer: C. Well, sort of. The bird would have been about 5 feet 10 inches when swimming, with its neck stretched out and its beak pointed forward. Standing on land, it would have been 5-3. Pittsburgh Penguin Sidney Crosby is listed at 5-11. Emperor penguins are about 4 feet tall, and crested penguins are about 2 feet tall.

• On Thursday, the Sheriffs Association of Texas replied to a tweet from the Philadelphia Police Department by saying, “It might take us a while to get there, but let us know if y’all need someone to show you how it’s done.” What was the Sheriffs Association talking about?

A. Providing training for Philadelphia’s new mounted police squad

B. Corralling a runaway cow

C. Buying boots

Answer: B. Twice, Philadelphia police had to find a cow that escaped from a church’s live-animal Nativity scene. “If you're in the area of 4th and Market, beware of traffic delays. A cow is loose. Again. No, we can't believe we're tweeting this either,” the police department tweeted.

• On Tuesday, the FDA issued a warning about the dangers of sniffing which of the following substances?

A. Bath salts

B. Nutmeg

C. Chocolate

Answer: C. The warning was related to a powdered snortable raw chocolate that is on the market. The product, which also contains energy drink ingredients, supposedly gives the user a blast of brain-boosting energy. The FDA says it can trigger asthma attacks and cause other medical problems.