Is it a little strange that some people have a worryingly detailed knowledge of celebrity gossip, chart music, football teams etc....but do not have the slightest clue about more serious real world issues? All those minor subjects like economics, politics, geography, maths etc that actually dictate whether people have food, healthcare, housing, employment etc. I have plenty to learn myself, but even so, I was surprised how many people struggled to successfully answer the quiz below! Give it a try if you are feeling brave, takes approx 3 minutes and do NOT use calculators, maps, internet etc. It is multiple choice and I have amended some of the options to make it more fun.


Question 1: What is the name of the lake between Geneva and Montreux?
a) Lac Suisse
b) Lake Nir
c) Lago di Como
d) Lac Leman


Question 2: Approximately, what is the current international price of crude oil per barrel?
a) 80 US$
b) 150 US$
c) 19 US$
d) Free, as long as you return the empty barrel to OPEC afterwards


Question 3: Approximately, what was the international price of crude oil per barrel 5 years ago?
a) 112 US$
b) 30 US$
c) difficult to say because in 2002 oil was only traded via the barter system
d) 6 US$


Question 4: Where in Switzerland does Nestle have their corportate headquarters?
a) Geneva
b) Zurich
c) Vevey
d) Verbier


Question 5: What is the current target interest rate set by the Swiss National Bank?
a) 2.75%
b) 5%
c) 6.25%
d) depends on how nicely you ask them


Question 6: Approximately, what is the distance by major road between Plainpalais (Geneva) and Paradeplatz (Zurich)?
a) 240km
b) 280km
c) 320km
d) 360km


Question 7: If you deposit 1,000 US$ in a bank account today at a fixed interest rate of 6% per year, no withdrawals, what will be the amount in the account at the end of 5 years?
a) 1,000 US$
b) 1,300 US$
c) 1,338 US$
d) 1,666 US$


Question 8: Millions of people live in the city of Karachi, but in which country is it located?
a) Pakistan
b) India
c) China
d) Bangladesh


Question 9: What is the correct mathmatical answer when 100,000 is divided by 0.4?
a) 40,000
b) 144,444
c) 240,000
d) 250,000


Question 10: What is capital gains tax?
a) Tax paid by people who gain the benefits of living in any capital city
b) Tax credit to companies who gain from increasing their capital expenditure
c) Tax paid by people selling an eligible asset that has increased in value since purchase
d) Tax credit for companies who locate their offices in any capital city


Question 11: The city of Baku in Azerbaijan is located near which sea?
a) Aegean Sea
b) Caspian Sea
c) North Sea
d) Black Sea


Question 12: What is a collateralised debt obligation (CDO)?
a) Collection of debts which are packaged together and then sold to investors
b) Form of financial engineering that is contributing to the global credit crunch
c) Mentioned in newspapers but many people do not understand or know how to value them
d) All of the above
philSep 18, 2007 @ 19:50