Historians believe Homer was from Ionia because a. the original texts were found there b. the dialect of the writing originated there c. the stories are set there
Homer’s birth year is hard to determine because a. most calendars from that time period were destroyed b. time was not commonly documented yet c. different sources from the time name different years
Homer is often depicted as a. a blind man b. a faceless figure c. a child
Discussion/essay questions
Do you think it is important to know the real author of a piece of literature? Why or why not?
Transcript
Homer was an ancient Greek poet known for his epics, the Odyssey and the Iliad. The stories are some of the earliest foundations of European literature. However, historians know very little about Homer himself. The dialect of the original texts makes it likely that he was born in Ionia, which is now in Turkey. His birth year is hard to determine because he lived before time was commonly documented. Historically, many artists and writers have depicted him as blind, but there is little evidence of this. There is even debate about whether Homer existed at all. Some people believe that the Odyssey and the Iliad were written by two different people using the same pseudonym. Some others believe that Homer simply compiled stories from oral traditions.
The treasure is supposedly buried in a. Virginia b. Florida c. Georgia
Thomas Beale supposedly created a. the pamphlet b. the ciphers c. the map
The key to the decoded cipher was a. the Constitution b. the Bible c. the Declaration of Independence
Discussion/essay questions
Linguists have found that the writing style of the decoded message is similar to the writing style of the pamphlet. This has caused many people to believe that the author of the pamphlet made up the story. What do you think?
Transcript
The Beale ciphers are coded messages that supposedly reveal the location of buried treasure in Virginia. The ciphers were first published in 1885 in a pamphlet written by an anonymous author. According to the pamphlet, the person who wrote the code was an explorer named Thomas Beale, who had hidden a large amount of gold, silver, and jewels. This stash would be worth millions of dollars today. Beale supposedly left behind three ciphers that explained the treasure and its location. The author of the pamphlet decoded one of the ciphers after discovering that the United States Declaration of Independence was the key. The other two ciphers are still unsolved. Though people have been fascinated by the ciphers for many years, there is little historical evidence of the treasure.
Conan Doyle’s character Sherlock Holmes first appeared in a. a novel b. a short story collection c. a children’s book
The first short story collection about Holmes was published in a. 1887 b. 1892 c. 1894
Conan Doyle resented the popularity of the Holmes stories because a. he hated writing detective fiction b. he never wanted to be famous c. he thought his other writing deserved more attention
See answers below
Discussion/essay questions
Why do you think people enjoy mystery stories?
Transcript
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes is a mystery story collection written by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Holmes is considered one of the most iconic detective characters in history. The character first appeared in Conan Doyle’s 1887 novel, A Study in Scarlet. Conan Doyle later published several short stories about Holmes in magazines. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes was published in 1892, the first of five Sherlock Holmes story collections. Although the detective stories were very successful, Conan Doyle resented their popularity. He believed that his other writing deserved more acclaim. In an 1894 story, he killed Holmes so he could move on to other work. However, his publishers eventually convinced him to resurrect the character. Throughout his life, Conan Doyle published a total of 62 stories about Sherlock Holmes.
On November 24th, 1971, a from Portland to Seattle was hijacked by a man named Dan Cooper, who had brought a bomb on board. He demanded that the flight crew get him four parachutes and $200,000 in . Once Cooper received the ransom, he asked the to take him to Mexico City. In the middle of the flight, he jumped out of the with the money. He was never seen again. Although he had used the alias “Dan Cooper”, a misinterpretation caused the to call him “D. B. Cooper”, the name that most people know him by today. In 1980, some bills from Cooper’s ransom were found near a river, which caused many people to believe that he didn’t survive the jump. However, the case is still unsolved.
Comprehension questions
[wp_quiz id=”20868″]
Discussion/essay questions
Do you know of any other unsolved mysteries?
D. B. Cooper’s case quickly drew the attention of the public. Why do you think people are so interested in unsolved cases?
Transcript
On November 24th, 1971, a flight from Portland to Seattle was hijacked by a man named Dan Cooper, who had brought a bomb on board. He demanded that the flight crew get him four parachutes and $200,000 in cash. Once Cooper received the ransom, he asked the pilot to take him to Mexico City. In the middle of the flight, he jumped out of the plane with the money. He was never seen again. Although he had used the alias “Dan Cooper”, a misinterpretation caused the media to call him “D. B. Cooper”, the name that most people know him by today. In 1980, some bills from Cooper’s ransom were found near a river, which caused many people to believe that he didn’t survive the jump. However, the case is still unsolved.
Dark energy is a force that exists throughout the universe. It is believed to make up about 68% of everything that exists, and it affects the way the universe is expanding. have known about the expansion of the universe since 1929. But for many years, most believed that the force of gravity would eventually slow down this expansion. However, in the 1990s, a team of astronomers that the universe was actually expanding than it had been years before. They came to the conclusion that there was another force, called dark energy, that was causing the expansion to accelerate. Dark energy is even than gravity, and scientists still don’t know much about it. It has often been called the universe’s greatest mystery.
Comprehension questions
[wp_quiz id=”20679″]
Discussion/essay questions
There is a lot to learn about the universe. If you could ask an astronomer any question, what would you ask?
Transcript
Dark energy is a mysterious force that exists throughout the universe. It is believed to make up about 68% of everything that exists, and it affects the way the universe is expanding. Scientists have known about the expansion of the universe since 1929. But for many years, most believed that the force of gravity would eventually slow down this expansion. However, in the 1990s, a team of astronomers observed that the universe was actually expanding faster than it had been years before. They came to the conclusion that there was another force, called dark energy, that was causing the expansion to accelerate. Dark energy is even stronger than gravity, and scientists still don’t know much about it. It has often been called the universe’s greatest mystery.
Why do you think it was so important to ancient Egyptians to honour their dead rulers? How is this different from the ways people acknowledge death today?
Transcript
The Egyptian pyramids are some of the most fascinating structures in the world. Although they are popular tourist attractions today, the pyramids were originally built as tombs for ancient Egyptian kings. At the time, it was customary to mummify dead rulers and bury them with their possessions. However, many pyramids have been robbed throughout history, and most are empty today. The first known pyramid was built around 2600 B.C, for a king named Djoser. The largest and most famous Egyptian pyramids – the Great Pyramids of Giza – were built between 2500 and 2400 B.C, and there is still a lot of mystery surrounding their construction. It would have been very difficult to build such massive structures without modern technology. Historians believe that at least 20,000 workers were needed to complete the Great Pyramids.
Do you like to read mystery novels? Why or why not?
Transcript
Agatha Christie was a famous mystery writer. She was born in Torquay, England in 1890. Throughout her life, Christie published 66 novels, as well as some short stories. Many of them followed Hercule Poirot, Christie’s most famous detective character. Christie’s life became especially interesting to the public when she mysteriously disappeared in 1926. She was found at a spa 11 days later, where she was staying under a pseudonym. Christie’s husband later told the press that she’d had temporary amnesia. However, many people believed that there was more to the story. After Christie returned home, she rarely spoke about her disappearance, but she continued to write mystery novels up until her death in 1976. Her stories have since sold over 100 million copies.
The Voynich Manuscript is a mysterious that was written in Europe back in the 15th century. The manuscript was named after Polish bookseller Wilfrid Voynich, who brought it to public attention after he purchased it in 1912. The Voynich Manuscript contains bizarre of mysterious plants and constellations, and the text is written in an unknown language that humans have still not been able to . The author of the text is also unknown. Some theories suggest that the manuscript was written by aliens, while other people believe that it was simply written as a guide to medicinal plants. It is likely that the alphabet used in the text is a code, and that the manuscript was originally written in a known European language. However, no one knows what the original language is. Recently, have turned to artificial intelligence to help them decipher the text, but so far, its meaning is still unclear. The Voynich Manuscript is currently kept at Yale University in the United States.
Comprehension questions
[wp_quiz id=”19391″]
Discussion/essay questions
Do you think that we will ever be able to decipher the Voynich manuscript? Why or why not?
Transcript
The Voynich Manuscript is a mysterious text that was written in Europe back in the 15th century. The manuscript was named after Polish bookseller Wilfrid Voynich, who brought it to public attention after he purchased it in 1912. The Voynich Manuscript contains bizarre drawings of mysterious plants and constellations, and the text is written in an unknown language that humans have still not been able to translate. The author of the text is also unknown. Some theories suggest that the manuscript was written by aliens, while other people believe that it was simply written as a guide to medicinal plants. It is likely that the unfamiliar alphabet used in the text is a code, and that the manuscript was originally written in a known European language. However, no one knows what the original language is. Recently, researchers have turned to artificial intelligence to help them decipher the text, but so far, its meaning is still unclear. The Voynich Manuscript is currently kept at Yale University in the United States.
While it is very likely that Amelia Earhart crashed in the Pacific Ocean, no one knows for sure what happened to her. Do you have any other theories about why her plane disappeared?
Transcript
American pilot Amelia Earhart was born on July 24, 1897. She became interested in flying after her first airplane ride at age 23. She began to take flying lessons in 1921, and earned her pilot’s license in 1923. In 1928, Earhart was a passenger on a historic flight across the Atlantic Ocean. The flight took over 20 hours, and after the plane landed, Earhart quickly became famous. Determined to prove that she was a capable pilot herself, Earhart made another trip across the Atlantic – this time as the pilot of the plane. She completed this flight in 14 hours, which was a new record. After her solo flight across the Atlantic, Earhart made several other historic flights, including the first solo flight from Hawaii to California. In 1937, Earhart decided that she wanted to fly around the world. She departed from Miami, Florida, and travelled nearly 40,000 kilometres before her plane mysteriously disappeared. Earhart was never found. The most common explanation is that she crashed in the Pacific Ocean after her plane ran out of fuel.
The Haunted Vending Machine in Seattle, Washington
Comprehension questions
[wp_quiz id=”19244″]
Discussion/essay questions
Many people believe that this machine was operated by a ghost. Do you believe in ghosts? Why or why not?
Transcript
For over 15 years, there was a mysterious vending machine on a street corner in the city of Seattle. The machine looked like it was very old, and no one knew exactly where it came from. Each button on the machine was labelled “mystery”, and putting in the right amount of money would cause it to dispense a random can of pop. Some of these were drinks that had been discontinued for decades, which made residents and tourists very curious about where they came from. No one was ever seen restocking the machine. Two years ago, it disappeared from its spot on the street. In its place, there was a note that said “went for a walk”. The machine still has not been found.
