July 2 Weekly News Quiz: Hot Weather, Royal Memorial

Princess Diana’s memorial statue was unveiled on Thursday, July 1, 2021, in Kensington Palace, the official London residence of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William, and his wife, Kate Middleton.

How old would Princess Diana be in 2021?

The memorial, designed by British sculptor and coin designer Ian Rank-Broadley, has been commissioned to mark what would have been Princess Diana’s 60th birthday.

Serena Williams injured her ankle after slipping on the wet grass on Monday, June 28. Williams then had to retire from her first-round Wimbledon 2021 match. On June 13, 2022, Williams announced she would be returning to the 2022 Wimbledon tournament. On June 29, 364 days after her injury, Williams came within two points short of victory in her first Wimbledon 2022 match.

Slipping Wimbledon Fact

Williams's retirement came within an hour of Centre Court watching France's 33-year-old Adrian Mannarino also falling on the same baseline and retiring from his match against Roger Federer.

Gal Gadot welcomed her third daughter with her husband, Yaron Varsano, in late June 2021. On June 30, she took to Instagram to announce the news.

Bonus Question: What did Gal Gadot name her three daughters?

Gadot and Varsano named their oldest daughter Alma (Hebrew for damsel), their middle child Maya, and their newborn Daniella.

Natasha Romanoff is the fictional character portrayed by Scarlett Johansson in the Marvel Universe film franchise — known by her alter ego, Black Widow.

Black Widow 2021

Directed by Cate Shortland, the 2021 film Black Widow sees Johansson's character return to Eastern Europe to reunite with former spies she believed were her relatives. The film opened in cinemas on July 7, 2021, and two days later on Disney+.

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights is an autonomous judicial institution that rules whether a state has violated an individual's human rights in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Latin America LGBTQ+ News Fact

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights ruled on Monday, June 28, 2021, that the Honduran government was responsible for the 2009 killing of Vicky Hernández, a 26 years-old transgender woman, amid a wave of transgender killings that followed a June 2009 coup in which the country’s president was ousted from power. The court ordered the government of Honduras to continue its investigation into the case and enact measures to prevent violence against LGBTQ+ people, including allowing transgender people to officially alter their gender identity, which sets a legal precedent for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Android apps will be installable from within the new Microsoft Store via the Amazon Appstore in Windows 11, but not immediately at launch.

Portland International Airport in Oregon hit a new record high temperature of 115°F (46°C) on Monday, June 28, 2021., breaking Sunday’s June 27, 2021, record high temperature of 112°F (44°C) and Saturday’s June 26, 2021, of 108°F (42°C). Records began in 1940.

What was the last time Portland had record-breaking temperatures?

Before 2021 the warmest temperature on record at the Portland International Airport was 107°F (41.6°C) set in July 1965 & twice in Aug 1981.

A megadrought is a period of extreme dryness that lasts for decades. There may be occasional better, wet years within that period, but the dryness soon returns, and drought maintains its long-term grip.

Does the US suffer a megadrought?

For the US Southwest — including Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and parts of California, Colorado, and New Mexico — the megadrought has lasted two decades - as bad as or worse than long-lasting droughts in the region over the past 1,200 years.

A trillion is a million million, or ten to the twelfth power, which means it’s written 1 and 12 zeros.

Facebook's Trillion 2021 fact:

As of June 28, 2021, Facebook's value went over the $1-trillion-mark for the first time in its history.

On Thursday, June 24, 2021, U.S. President Joe Biden embraced a bipartisan Senate deal to spend $1.2 trillion over eight years on infrastructure projects, building roads, bridges, and highways, and helping stimulate the American economy. President Biden signed the $1 trillion infrastructure bill into law on Nov. 15, 2021.

Counting from Reservoir Dogs to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (starring Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio), Quentin Tarantino directed nine full-featured films.

Fun fact: Tarantino confirmed he plans to retire after making one more film - his tenth - while promoting his “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” novel on “Real Time With Bill Maher” on Friday. June 25, 2021.

Megan Thee Stallion was the big winner of the 2021 BET Awards, held Sunday, June 27, 2021, with four trophies: Video of the Year and Best Collaboration for WAP - a collaboration with Cardi B; as well as Viewer’s Choice Award for her collaboration with Beyoncé, titled “Savage (Remix),” and the trophy for a Best Female Hip-Hop Artist.

Queen Latifah at the BET 2021

Queen Latifah received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2021 BETs for her distinguished career as a Grammy-winning rapper, a Golden Globe-winning actor, and an Emmy-winning TV producer. The 51-year-old ended her thank you speech with “Peace! Happy pride!”.