Quiz of the week's news

7 days 7 questions

It's the Magazine's 7 days 7 questions weekly quiz - a chance to find out how much news from the past week you've read, heard and watched... and how much has stayed lodged in the old grey matter.

1.) Multiple Choice Question

Marvelous Malia and Sweet Sasha, dolls with the same names as the First Daughters, have been rechristened after Michelle Obama objected. What are the toys now called?

1. Mia and Sophie
2. Mariah and Sydney
3. Madison and Scarlett

2.) Multiple Choice Question

Careful now - there's been a lot of snow this week. What's this substance being scattered to prevent slippage?

1. Grit
2. Salt
3. Sand

Info

And while we're on the subject of a mighty institution brought to its knees by something so prosaic...

3.) Multiple Choice Question

...Google's search engine was crippled worldwide for an hour because of a rogue puncutation mark. Which one?

1. @
2. /
3. :
4. =

4.) Missing Word Question

Naked ramblers face Swiss *

1. cops
2. fines
3. Alps

5.) Multiple Choice Question

Liverpool v Everton. A crucial match that goes to extra time. Suddenly, an unscheduled ad break - during which Everton score the winner. The first company to get a plug in this unpopular ad slot?

1. Energy company e-on
2. TicTacs
3. Action for Children charity
4. Volkswagen cars

6.) Multiple Choice Question

Two vitamin-related findings this week - one that vitamin D may prevent multiple sclerosis, the other that babies born in summer grow to be taller and stronger. Thanks to which vitamin?

1. A
2. B
3. D
4. K

7.) Multiple Choice Question

Two live pigeons, tucked inside this man's pants as he flew from Dubai to Melbourne on Sunday. What did customs officials find in his suitcase?

1. Two eggs
2. Seeds
3. An undeclared aubergine

Answers

1. The dolls are now called Marvelous (sic) Mariah and Sweet Sydney - but the company, Ty, adds that the toys were not named after the Obama girls.
2. It's salt - rock salt has all but replaced traditional grit, made of sand and small stones, as the de-icer of choice. And much of it is naturally this browny-pinky-orangy shade. Which is not the technical description of its colour.
3. It was a forward slash. In a regular update of its list of risky sites, a staffer inserted a rogue / in a url, which meant all search results were flagged as potentially dangerous to users' computers on Saturday.
4. It's "fines" - authorities in the picturesque mountain region of Appenzell Innerrhoden plan to crack down on those found walking without clothes. Last year there was a sudden influx of nude hikers.
5. It was e-on, sponsors of ITV football, and then adverts for TicTacs, Action for Children, VWs and tiles. ITV boss Michael Grade has apologised for the glitch caused by the automated ad system.
6. It's D, crucial for bone-building, and called the "sunshine vitamin" as the body makes it from exposure to sunlight.
7. It's the eggs. The seeds were in his moneybelt, the aubergine in his pants. Australia has strict quarantine rules on the importation of wildlife, plants and food.

Your Score

0 - 3 : SAD sufferer

4 - 6 : Bit of a pallor

7 - 7 : Healthy sun-kissed glow

For a complete archive of past quizzes and our weekly news quiz, 7 days 7 questions, visit the Magazine page and scroll down. You can also do this quiz on your mobile device.

Find out how to get the BBC News website on your mobile device