What is 'Survivorship Bias' and how did Abraham Wald famously apply it to WWII aircraft armor?

Focusing only on successful survivors while overlooking those that failed; Wald recommended armoring the areas on returning planes with NO bullet holes (engines/cockpit), because planes hit there never returned.

Who created the woodblock print 'The Great Wave off Kanagawa' (c. 1831) from the series 'Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji'?

Katsushika Hokusai (Japanese ukiyo-e master).

In Norse mythology, what is Yggdrasil and what are Odin's two ravens called?

Yggdrasil is the sacred cosmic ash tree connecting the Nine Worlds; Odin's two ravens are Huginn (Thought) and Muninn (Memory).

In Greek and Roman mythology, who are the twelve Olympian deities and their Roman equivalents?

Zeus (Jupiter), Hera (Juno), Poseidon (Neptune), Demeter (Ceres), Athena (Minerva), Apollo (Apollo), Artemis (Diana), Ares (Mars), Aphrodite (Venus), Hephaestus (Vulcan), Hermes (Mercury), and Hestia/Vesta or Dionysus/Bacchus.

What is the 'Straw Man' fallacy vs. the 'Steel Man' principle in argumentation?

A Straw Man distorts or exaggerates an opponent's argument to make it easier to attack; Steelmanning addresses the strongest, most charitable form of the opponent's argument.

What did Rosalind Franklin's X-ray diffraction 'Photo 51' reveal to James Watson and Francis Crick in 1953?

The helical B-form structure and dimensions of the DNA double helix.

During which three Mesozoic periods did non-avian dinosaurs live, and in which period did Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops exist?

Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods; Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops lived during the Late Cretaceous (~68–66 million years ago).

Who discovered penicillin in 1928, and who purified it for clinical antibiotic use?

Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin from Penicillium notatum in 1928; Howard Florey and Ernst Chain purified and mass-produced it.

What is the 'Sunk Cost Fallacy' (escalation of commitment) in behavioral economics?

Continuing an endeavor or investment because of previously invested resources (time, money, effort) that cannot be recovered, rather than evaluating future marginal costs and benefits.

What structural innovations allowed Gothic cathedrals (e.g., Chartres, Notre-Dame) to reach unprecedented heights with large stained-glass windows?

Pointed arches, ribbed vaults, and external flying buttresses that channel lateral thrust outward.

What are the three classical Greek architectural orders, and how are their capitals distinguished?

Doric (plain, sturdy cushion capital), Ionic (paired spiral volutes/scrolls), and Corinthian (ornate acanthus leaves).

Who painted 'Guernica' (1937), and what historical event did it protest?

Pablo Picasso; it protested the aerial bombing of the Basque town of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War.

What are the four Galilean moons of Jupiter discovered by Galileo Galilei in 1610?

Io (volcanically active), Europa (subsurface liquid ocean), Ganymede (largest moon in the Solar System), and Callisto.

Which two elements are the only liquids at standard room temperature and pressure (25 °C, 1 atm)?

Bromine (Br, atomic number 35, a halogen nonmetal) and Mercury (Hg, atomic number 80, a transition metal).

What are the five geologic mass extinction events ('The Big Five') in Earth's history?

Ordovician-Silurian (~444 Ma), Late Devonian (~372 Ma), Permian-Triassic ('The Great Dying', ~252 Ma), Triassic-Jurassic (~201 Ma), and Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg asteroid impact that ended non-avian dinosaurs, ~66 Ma).

Who painted 'The Starry Night' (1889) while staying at the asylum in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence?

Vincent van Gogh (Post-Impressionism).

What are the eight planets of the Solar System in order of increasing distance from the Sun?

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars (terrestrial planets), Jupiter, Saturn (gas giants), Uranus, and Neptune (ice giants).

What is the 'Availability Heuristic' as defined by Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman?

A cognitive shortcut in which people judge the probability or frequency of an event by how easily examples come to mind.

Who painted 'The School of Athens' (1509–1511) in the Apostolic Palace of the Vatican, and which two philosophers stand at its center?

Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio); Plato (pointing upward to the realm of Forms) and Aristotle (gesturing horizontally toward the empirical world).

What are the six noble gases in Group 18 of the Periodic Table (excluding synthetic Oganesson)?

Helium (He, 2), Neon (Ne, 10), Argon (Ar, 18), Krypton (Kr, 36), Xenon (Xe, 54), and Radon (Rn, 86).

What is the 'Dunning-Kruger Effect' in cognitive psychology?

A metacognitive bias in which individuals with low competence in a domain overestimate their ability, while highly competent experts sometimes underestimate their relative skill.

Which metal has the highest melting point of all pure chemical elements (3,422 °C) and symbol W (from wolfram)?

Tungsten (W, atomic number 74).

In Ancient Egyptian mythology, which jackal-headed god weighed the heart of the deceased against the feather of Ma'at?

Anubis (with Thoth recording the judgment and Osiris presiding over the underworld).

Which planet in our Solar System is the hottest due to a runaway greenhouse effect with a dense CO2 atmosphere (~465 °C)?

Venus (despite Mercury being closer to the Sun).

What is the closest star system to the Sun (~4.24 light-years away)?

Alpha Centauri, specifically the red dwarf Proxima Centauri (4.24 light-years).

Classical & World Mythology, Art History Masterpieces, Periodic Table Elements & Science

Greek, Roman, Norse, and Egyptian deities, Renaissance and modern art masterpieces, classical architecture, chemical elements, planetary astronomy, and cognitive biases.

Level: intermediate
Languages: en → en
Cards: 32
Markdown: Classical & World Mythology, Art History Masterpieces, Periodic Table Elements & Science (.md)

Flashcards (32)

#	Front (Term / Question)	Back (Definition / Answer)
1	Who discovered radium and polonium and remains the only person to win Nobel Prizes in two different sciences (Physics 1903, Chemistry 1911)?	Marie Skłodowska-Curie.
2	Which chemical element has atomic number 79, symbol Au (from Latin 'aurum'), and is a noble transition metal?	Gold (Au, atomic number 79).
3	Who formulated the laws of planetary motion (elliptical orbits, equal areas, harmonic law) based on Tycho Brahe's observations?	Johannes Kepler.
4	What is 'Survivorship Bias' and how did Abraham Wald famously apply it to WWII aircraft armor?	Focusing only on successful survivors while overlooking those that failed; Wald recommended armoring the areas on returning planes with NO bullet holes (engines/cockpit), because planes hit there never returned.
5	Who created the woodblock print 'The Great Wave off Kanagawa' (c. 1831) from the series 'Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji'?	Katsushika Hokusai (Japanese ukiyo-e master).
6	In Norse mythology, what is Yggdrasil and what are Odin's two ravens called?	Yggdrasil is the sacred cosmic ash tree connecting the Nine Worlds; Odin's two ravens are Huginn (Thought) and Muninn (Memory).
7	In Greek and Roman mythology, who are the twelve Olympian deities and their Roman equivalents?	Zeus (Jupiter), Hera (Juno), Poseidon (Neptune), Demeter (Ceres), Athena (Minerva), Apollo (Apollo), Artemis (Diana), Ares (Mars), Aphrodite (Venus), Hephaestus (Vulcan), Hermes (Mercury), and Hestia/Vesta or Dionysus/Bacchus.
8	Who composed 'The Well-Tempered Clavier', the 'Brandenburg Concertos', and the 'Goldberg Variations' during the Baroque period?	Johann Sebastian Bach.
9	What is the 'Straw Man' fallacy vs. the 'Steel Man' principle in argumentation?	A Straw Man distorts or exaggerates an opponent's argument to make it easier to attack; Steelmanning addresses the strongest, most charitable form of the opponent's argument.
10	What did Rosalind Franklin's X-ray diffraction 'Photo 51' reveal to James Watson and Francis Crick in 1953?	The helical B-form structure and dimensions of the DNA double helix.
11	During which three Mesozoic periods did non-avian dinosaurs live, and in which period did Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops exist?	Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods; Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops lived during the Late Cretaceous (~68–66 million years ago).
12	Which chemical element has the highest electronegativity on the Pauling scale (3.98)?	Fluorine (F, atomic number 9).
13	Who discovered penicillin in 1928, and who purified it for clinical antibiotic use?	Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin from Penicillium notatum in 1928; Howard Florey and Ernst Chain purified and mass-produced it.
14	Which moon of Saturn is the only moon in the Solar System with a dense nitrogen-rich atmosphere and liquid methane/ethane lakes?	Titan.
15	What is the 'Sunk Cost Fallacy' (escalation of commitment) in behavioral economics?	Continuing an endeavor or investment because of previously invested resources (time, money, effort) that cannot be recovered, rather than evaluating future marginal costs and benefits.
16	What structural innovations allowed Gothic cathedrals (e.g., Chartres, Notre-Dame) to reach unprecedented heights with large stained-glass windows?	Pointed arches, ribbed vaults, and external flying buttresses that channel lateral thrust outward.
17	What are the three classical Greek architectural orders, and how are their capitals distinguished?	Doric (plain, sturdy cushion capital), Ionic (paired spiral volutes/scrolls), and Corinthian (ornate acanthus leaves).
18	Who painted 'Guernica' (1937), and what historical event did it protest?	Pablo Picasso; it protested the aerial bombing of the Basque town of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War.
19	Who composed the 'Nine Symphonies' (including the 'Eroica' No. 3, 'Fate' No. 5, and 'Choral' No. 9), bridging the Classical and Romantic eras?	Ludwig van Beethoven.
20	What are the four Galilean moons of Jupiter discovered by Galileo Galilei in 1610?	Io (volcanically active), Europa (subsurface liquid ocean), Ganymede (largest moon in the Solar System), and Callisto.
21	Which two elements are the only liquids at standard room temperature and pressure (25 °C, 1 atm)?	Bromine (Br, atomic number 35, a halogen nonmetal) and Mercury (Hg, atomic number 80, a transition metal).
22	What are the five geologic mass extinction events ('The Big Five') in Earth's history?	Ordovician-Silurian (~444 Ma), Late Devonian (~372 Ma), Permian-Triassic ('The Great Dying', ~252 Ma), Triassic-Jurassic (~201 Ma), and Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg asteroid impact that ended non-avian dinosaurs, ~66 Ma).
23	Who painted 'The Starry Night' (1889) while staying at the asylum in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence?	Vincent van Gogh (Post-Impressionism).
24	What are the eight planets of the Solar System in order of increasing distance from the Sun?	Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars (terrestrial planets), Jupiter, Saturn (gas giants), Uranus, and Neptune (ice giants).
25	What is the 'Availability Heuristic' as defined by Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman?	A cognitive shortcut in which people judge the probability or frequency of an event by how easily examples come to mind.
26	Who painted 'The School of Athens' (1509–1511) in the Apostolic Palace of the Vatican, and which two philosophers stand at its center?	Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio); Plato (pointing upward to the realm of Forms) and Aristotle (gesturing horizontally toward the empirical world).
27	What are the six noble gases in Group 18 of the Periodic Table (excluding synthetic Oganesson)?	Helium (He, 2), Neon (Ne, 10), Argon (Ar, 18), Krypton (Kr, 36), Xenon (Xe, 54), and Radon (Rn, 86).
28	What is the 'Dunning-Kruger Effect' in cognitive psychology?	A metacognitive bias in which individuals with low competence in a domain overestimate their ability, while highly competent experts sometimes underestimate their relative skill.
29	Which metal has the highest melting point of all pure chemical elements (3,422 °C) and symbol W (from wolfram)?	Tungsten (W, atomic number 74).
30	In Ancient Egyptian mythology, which jackal-headed god weighed the heart of the deceased against the feather of Ma'at?	Anubis (with Thoth recording the judgment and Osiris presiding over the underworld).
31	Which planet in our Solar System is the hottest due to a runaway greenhouse effect with a dense CO2 atmosphere (~465 °C)?	Venus (despite Mercury being closer to the Sun).
32	What is the closest star system to the Sun (~4.24 light-years away)?	Alpha Centauri, specifically the red dwarf Proxima Centauri (4.24 light-years).