Today’s Atlantic Trivia: Prescription Strength
In a recent article from The Atlantic, the discussion revolves around the value of knowledge and education, drawing on a historical anecdote involving Mark Twain. After receiving an honorary degree from Yale in 1888, Twain humorously advised the university to scale back its pursuit of knowledge, suggesting that students focus on practical learning rather than accumulating vast amounts of raw information that may never be utilized. He criticized the university’s astronomer for chasing after celestial phenomena, arguing that it was more prudent to make use of existing knowledge before seeking new discoveries. Twain’s tongue-in-cheek recommendations included discarding Greek studies due to their complexity and deeming mathematical research unworthy of a college’s dignity. While Twain’s speech was not taken seriously by Yale, it serves as a provocative reminder of the ongoing debate about the purpose and direction of education.
The article also highlights contemporary trivia questions from The Atlantic Daily, showcasing a blend of cultural references and current issues. For instance, one question addresses minoxidil, a common treatment for hair loss, particularly as societal perceptions shift, allowing more women to consider solutions for thinning hair. Another question touches on Lifetouch, the leading provider of school photographs, which, despite the ubiquity of personal cameras, remains a cherished tradition for families. Additionally, a question about the iconic detective Dick Tracy reflects on the evolution of technology and its impact on children’s toys, with commentary on how modern smartwatches are becoming more than just novelties. These trivia questions not only engage readers but also weave in broader themes about societal norms, the evolution of education, and the significance of preserving traditions in a rapidly changing world.
As the article concludes with a call for reader participation in trivia, it emphasizes the importance of curiosity and the pursuit of knowledge, even in light of Twain’s humorous skepticism. The juxtaposition of historical perspectives with contemporary issues invites readers to reflect on their own educational journeys and the value of both learning and questioning established norms. The Atlantic Daily continues to provide a platform for engaging discussions, blending humor, history, and current events, making it a thought-provoking read for those interested in the intersections of culture and education.
Updated with new questions at 5:15 p.m. ET on December 2, 2025.
I have much extolled here the value of new knowledge. Let us now hear a counterargument: Some months after Yale gave Mark Twain an honorary degree in 1888, the writer’s schedule cleared up enough for him to pull together a speech advising that the good people of the college learn less.
“I found the astronomer of the university gadding around after comets and other such odds and ends,” he wrote. “I told him it was no economy to go on piling up and piling up raw material in the way of new stars and comets and asteroids that we couldn’t ever have any use for till we had worked off the old stock.”
Greek would have to go “because it is so hard to spell with, and so impossible to read after you get it spelled,” and research in math “was not suited to the dignity of a college, which should deal in facts, not guesses and suppositions.”
Yale did not heed the advice, and I don’t think Twain would really have wanted you to, either. So please—guess and suppose away.
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Tuesday, December 2, 2025
Minoxidil is the active ingredient in many products that treat
what common condition
, known scientifically as alopecia?
— From Yasmin Tayag’s
“America Refuses to Go [REDACTED]”
The company Lifetouch is the largest U.S. provider of
what product
typically offered once an academic year, in early fall?
— From Annie Midori Atherton’s
“What’s the Point of [REDACTED] Anymore?”
What hard-boiled detective
sported a famous two-way wrist radio across America’s mid-century comic strips?
— From Ian Bogost’s
“Get Your Kid a Watch”
And by the way, did you know that Garry Trudeau, the creator of
Doonesbury
, won the 1975 Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning for his work with the comic strip? Gerald Ford, who was then president, said that year that “there are only three major vehicles to keep us informed as to what is going on in Washington: the electronic media, the print media, and
Doonesbury
, not necessarily in that order.”
Only one other comic strip—called
Bloom County
—has won the Pulitzer Prize; Garfield is going to have to bring some real nuance to his thoughts about Mondays if he’s ever going to compete.
See you tomorrow!
Answers:
Hair loss.
Yasmin reports on how the hair-loss-prevention industry, which has long focused on thinning in men, is ready to welcome the many Millennial women who are warming up to the idea of Rogaine. But there’s still a big stigma around seeking treatment.
Read more.
School photos.
The Photo Day tradition seems silly considering that every parent has a camera in their pocket now, but families still shell out for the (often ludicrously expensive) school shots, Atherton writes. They’re kitschy and awkward—but that might be the point.
Read more.
Dick Tracy.
Ian, who recently purchased a smartwatch for his youngest daughter, writes that the low end of the kid-watch market is full of useless “Dick Tracy novelties.” So he went full Apple, and he has found that the watch is the perfect training “phone” for his kid.
Read more.
How did you do? Come back tomorrow for more questions, or
click here for last week’s
. And if you think up a great question after reading an
Atlantic
story—or simply want to share a formidable fact—send it my way at
trivia@theatlantic.com
.
Monday, December 1, 2025
From the
edition of The
Atlantic
Daily
by David A. Graham:
William Shakespeare’s only son, who died at age 11, had
what name
—just a letter off from one of the bard’s most famous tragic heroes?
— From James Shapiro’s
“The Long History of the [REDACTED] Myth”
In AI-safety discussions, the likelihood that artificial intelligence causes global cataclysm is popularly expressed as
what statistical term
?
— From Charlie Warzel’s
“The World Still Hasn’t Made Sense of ChatGPT”
Germans sometimes call their country “
Das Land der Dichter und Denker
,” or the land of
what two vocations
—the former of which would apply to, say, Rilke, Schiller, and Goethe, and the latter to Hegel, Heidegger, and Arendt (or you right now)?
— From Isaac Stanley-Becker’s
“The New German War Machine”
And by the way, did you know that Shakespeare’s grave doesn’t bear his name? What it does bear is a curse. The engraving warns would-be tamperers, “Good friend for Jesus sake forbeare, / To dig the dust enclosed here. / Blessed be the man that spares these stones, / And cursed be he that moves my bones.”
Evidence suggests that the curse didn’t ward off everyone; ground-penetrating radar revealed in 2016 that Shakespeare’s skull is almost certainly missing. Of course, researchers could have opened the grave to make sure—but would you take that risk?
Answers:
Hamnet.
The myth that Hamnet’s death begot the tragedy of
Hamlet
has persisted for centuries, Shapiro writes, but the fact that it is compelling—see Chloé Zhao’s new movie,
Hamnet
—does not mean that it is true.
Read more.
p(doom).
Whether or not you use the term, you’ve probably considered the probability of AI-occasioned doom, Charlie writes as ChatGPT turns three. In fact, that mental precarity is already a big chunk of AI’s legacy, he argues, and the tech’s ever-evolving nature heightens the anxiety.
Read more.
Poets and thinkers.
To varying degrees over the decades, this self-conception has been about both taking pride in Germany’s intellectual tradition and renouncing the country’s militarism. As Isaac reports, this makes for a fraught transition as Germany gradually abandons pacifism and rearms against a destabilized world.
Read more.
Eric
Eric is a seasoned journalist covering General news.
