On Sunday, Nov. 5, Daylight Saving Time will come to an end in many parts of Canada.
The fall time change comes when days are short and the sun sets early in the evening.
How much do you know about timekeeping, clocks and the way time is used in popular culture? Put your knowledge to the test with these 12 questions.
Good luck.
1. Which country has the most time zones?
a. Australia
b. France
c. Kazakhstan
d. Russia
e. United States
2. The Yukon Territory abandoned Daylight Saving Time in 2020. Which Canadian province does not use Daylight Saving Time?
a. Alberta
b. Manitoba
c. Nova Scotia
d. Quebec
e. Saskatchewan
3. The word “clock” has its origins in the medieval Latin word “clocca.” What is the meaning of the Latin word?
a. Bell
b. Measurement
c. Time
d. Sun
e. Universe
4. The three Back to the Future movies all deal with time travel. Which device houses the time machine in these movies?
a. Car
b. Multi-coloured circus tent
c. Railway caboose
d. Refrigerator
e. Telephone booth
5. Time is an American news magazine. When was it first published?
a. 1789
b. 1876
c. 1923
d. 1940
e. 2020
6. Which dystopian novel begins with the line, “It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.”
a. A Clockwork Orange
b. Brave New World
c. The Handmaid’s Tale
d. Nineteen Eighty-Four
e. Waterworld
7. Which band or singer is known for the 1989 song, If I Could Turn Back Time?
a. The Beatles
b. Cher
c. Def Leppard
d. Paul Simon
e. U2
8. In which movie does the main character keep repeating the same day?
a. The Day After Tomorrow
b The Day The Earth Stood Still
c. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
d. Groundhog Day
e. Independence Day
9. In 1908, a Canadian community was the first place in the world to use Daylight Saving Time. Which community pioneered the time change?
a. Abbotsford, B.C.
b. Brandon, Man.
c. Neptune, Sask.
d. Port Arthur, Ont.
e. Windsor, Ont.
10. The daytime television series, Days of Our Lives, has aired since 1965 and features the story of the Brady and Horton families. In which fictional Illinois city is this daytime drama set?
a. Bethel
b. Clock City
c. Hill Valley
d. Salem
e. Willows
11. How long is one million minutes?
a. A week and a half
b. Almost a year
c. One month short of two years
d. Almost a century
12. Which country or countries are associated with the cuckoo clock?
a. Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia
b. Germany, Austria and Switzerland
c. Indonesia
d. Peru
e. Russia
ANSWERS
1. b. While the vast majority of people in France use Central European Time, the country also has many overseas territories, including Saint Pierre and Miquelon, near Canada. France has 12 time zones, or 13 if the French claim in Antarctica is included. Russia and the United States each have 11 time zones, Australia has nine and Kazakhstan has two. Canada has six time zones.
2. e. The province of Saskatchewan is on Central Standard Time throughout the year. The only exception is Lloydminster and the surrounding area. Lloydminster is on the border of Saskatchewan and Alberta. Creighton, near the border with Manitoba, observes Daylight Saving Time on an unofficial basis.
3. a. The medieval Latin word “clocca” means “bell.”
4. a. In the Back to the Future movies, the time machine is in a modified DeLorean car. In the first movie, the device is powered by plutonium.
5. c. The first issue of Time was published March 3, 1923. The magazine is based in New York and was published weekly until 2020. Since 2020, it has been published twice monthly.
6. d. George Orwell’s novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four, begins with the clocks striking 13. When 24-hour time is used, 1 p.m. is written as 13:00.
7. b. If I Could Turn Back Time appears on Cher’s 1989 album, Heart of Stone. The song was written for Cher by Diane Warren. Heart of Stone is Cher’s 19th studio album.
8. d. The 1993 movie, Groundhog Day, is about a weather reporter experiencing the same day over and over.
9. d. Port Arthur, Ont. was the first community to use Daylight Saving Time. Today, Port Arthur is part of the city of Thunder Bay, Ont.
10. d. The ongoing drama is set in the fictional city of Salem, Illinois. More than 14,000 episodes of this drama have been produced over the years.
11. c. One million minutes is 16,666 hours and 40 minutes, which works out to 694 days and 10 hours. This is around a month less than two years.
12. b. The cuckoo clock is associated with the Black Forest area in southwestern Germany and is associated with Germany, Switzerland and Austria.
