July 23 Weekly News Quiz: Space, Olympics, New Movies

Pegasus is spyware developed by the Israeli NSO Group that can be covertly installed on mobile phones (and other devices). Officially, it's intended for use against criminals and terrorists and made available only to the military, law enforcement, and intelligence agencies from countries with good human rights records.

Pegasus 2021 Fact

French media outlet Forbidden Stories has obtained a list of 50,000 cellphone numbers allegedly selected by NSO clients for potential surveillance, including allegations French President Emmanuel Macron's number was on the list and may have been targeted. Journalists were able to identify more than 1,000 individuals in 50 countries on the list, including 189 journalists, more than 600 politicians and government officials, at least 65 business executives, 85 human rights activists, and several heads of state, according to The Washington Post. NSO told BBC News the list is bogus. "Our customers have an average of 100 targets a year. Since the company's beginning, we didn't have 50,000 targets total," said a spokesman.

In 1993 New Zealand's Jane Campion became the first woman to win the Palme d'Or for “The Piano.”

2021 Palm d’Or News Facts

On Saturday, July 18, 2021, the movie “Titane” by Director Julie Ducournau won the 2021 Palme d'Or - the top award at the Cannes Film Festival. The film tells the story of a young female killer who has sex with cars after surviving a childhood crash, and critics have described it as one of the most shocking films ever shown at the festival. Ducournau is the second woman to receive the Palme d'Or and the first female to win it alone. US director Spike Lee prematurely revealed the award at the beginning of the ceremony.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos wanted to say thanks to the people who made his trip into space Tuesday, July 20, 2021, possible. “I want to thank every Amazon employee and every Amazon customer because you guys paid for all this,” the 57-year-old Bezos said during a news conference after becoming the second billionaire in just over a week to ride in his spacecraft.

How does Jeff Bezos finance Blue Origin?

Bezos said in April 2017 that he finances the rocket company by selling $1 billion in Amazon stock each year.

Jeff Bezos named Blue Origin’s New Shepard after Alan Shepard, America’s first astronaut.

How long was New Shepard in space?

The New Shepard flight lasted 10 minutes and 10 seconds — five minutes shy of Alan Shepard’s Freedom 7 flight in 1961. Shepard’s daughters, Laura and Julie, were introduced at a press event a few hours later.

Norway’s women’s beach handball team was fined by the European Handball Federation on Monday, July 19, 2021, after players wore shorts, instead of the required bikini bottoms, during a game over the weekend.

Handball sportswear fact

The International Handball Federation requires women to wear bikini bottoms “with a close fit and cut on an upward angle toward the top of the leg.” The sides of the bikini bottoms must be no more than four inches. On the other hand, men can wear shorts as long as four inches above their knees as long as they are “not too baggy.”

The Eiffel Tower was given the nickname The Iron Lady in 1925 and is still called this today.

Eiffel Tower Fact

Paris’ Eiffel Tower was ordered shut in October 2020 as France battled its second virus surge of the coronavirus pandemic. The monument reopened Friday, July 16, 2021, for the first time in nearly nine months.

You're looking at the first and only steel 3D-printed pedestrian bridge over a canal in the heart of Amsterdam's red-light district. The 12-meter (40-foot) bridge was created using a 3D printing technique that combines robotics with welding. Dutch Queen Maxima teamed up with a small robot Thursday, July 17, 2021, to unveil the 3D-printed bridge.

Amsterdam's 3D-Printed Bridge Facts

The 6-ton structure is loaded with sensors that researchers at Imperial College London use to monitor the bridge in real-time and measure how it reacts to pedestrians' use. It will remain in place for two years while the bridge that previously crossed the canal is renovated.

July 17, 2021, floodings in west Germany are Germany’s worst natural disaster in more than half a century.

Floods in Germany news fact:

On Sunday, July 18, 2021, German Chancellor Angela Merkel pledged quick financial aid and a redoubled political focus on curbing climate change. The death toll from floods in Western Europe climbed above 180.

The Havana Syndrome is a mysterious attack on U.S. diplomats, supposedly with sonic weapons, causing hearing loss, memory loss, and nausea. U.S diplomats in Cuba’s capital, Havana, reported the first instance of the attack in 2016.

Havana Syndrome 2021 Fact:

Up to 200 Americans have reported possible directed energy attack symptoms, including new cases in Vienna, according to an NBC News report, July 20, 2021. Officials with direct knowledge told the network there are now possible cases on every continent except Antarctica. Almost half of the potential cases involve CIA officers or their relatives, while about 60 involve Defense Department employees or relatives, and around 50 were linked to the State Department.

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon made their last big-screen cameo appearance on 2019’s Jay and Silent Bob Reboot. Now they’re co-starring in their first on-screen full feature collaboration since 1999’s Dogma (not counting Damon’s cameo appearance in Affleck’s Jersey Girl).

The Last Duel Details

The first trailer for Ridley Scott’s period drama “The Last Duel,” starring Matt Damon, Adam Driver, Jodie Comer, and Ben Affleck, was released July 20, 2021. The movie, set in 1386, sees King Charles VI (Affleck) demand that the knight Jean de Carrouges (Damon) settle a dispute with his friend and squire, Jacques LeGris (Driver), in a duel to the death. Watch the trailer.

Tokyo hosted the Olympic Games for the first time in 1964. 2021 is the second time Japan hosts the Olympic Summer Games. Japan also hosted the Nagano Winter Olympics in 1998. The 2020 Tokyo Olympics are also the first without spectators and the first to be played in an odd year.

Tokyo Olympics Bonus Fact

The 1940 Olympic Games were supposed to be held in Tokyo but were canceled due to World War II. Upon the return of the Olympics in 1948, London was chosen as host.

The 2024 Olympics will take place in Paris, while the 2028 Games will be in Los Angeles, and Brisbane, Australia, will host the Summer Games in 2032.

Brisbane Olympics news fact

On Wednesday, July 21, 2021, the International Olympic Committee officially selected Brisbane, Australia, to host the 2032 Summer Games. Australia previously held the Games in Melbourne in 1956 and Sydney in 2000.

When asked on Friday, July 16, 2021, if he had a message for platforms like Facebook where false information about the coronavirus vaccines has spread, President Joe Biden told reporters, “They’re killing people.” On Monday, July 19, 2021, Biden explained he meant his rhetoric to pressure the social platforms to take action.

Facebook Fake-News News Facts

A study by the Center for Countering Digital Hate, a nonprofit that studies extremism, has linked just a dozen accounts to most vaccine misinformation on Facebook. “Facebook isn’t killing people. These 12 people are out there giving misinformation. Anyone listening to it is getting hurt by it. It’s killing people,” Biden said.

According to a US government report published on Aug. 31, 2022, American life expectancy dropped for the second consecutive year in 2021, falling to about 76 years and 1 month.

Wasn't life expectancy on the rise?

For decades, US life expectancy has risen, hitting 78 years and ten months in 2019. In 2020, due to the Coronavirus pandemic, it dropped to about 77 years, four months - the most significant drop since WWII, according to a CDC report published on July 21, 2021.