Beyond the answers - interesting background to this quiz

A capital that is not the biggest city

Sacramento has served as California's capital since 1854, yet it is far from the state's largest city. That pattern is common in the United States: Albany, Harrisburg and Springfield are all state capitals that sit well outside their states' biggest metropolises. The choice is often about geography and politics rather than population size.

Mozart's last great opera

The Magic Flute premiered in Vienna in 1791, the year Mozart died, and he conducted the early performances himself. It blends fairy-tale spectacle with Masonic symbolism, and its Queen of the Night aria remains one of the most demanding soprano roles in the repertoire. Its popular success helped keep Mozart's name alive in the years after his death.

The river that shapes a nation

The Yangtze runs roughly 6,300 kilometres from the Tibetan Plateau to the East China Sea, making it Asia's longest river. It drains a huge basin that is home to hundreds of millions of people and supports farming, industry and transport. The Three Gorges Dam, built on its middle reaches, is the world's largest power station by installed capacity.

Why the cheetah wins the sprint

The cheetah can reach speeds of around 100 kilometres per hour in short bursts, far outpacing a lion or leopard. Its light build, long legs and flexible spine allow an enormous stride, while a long tail acts as a counterbalance during sharp turns. The trade-off is stamina: the chase lasts only seconds before the animal must rest.

Amsterdam and its museum quarter

The Van Gogh Museum sits on Museumplein in Amsterdam, close to the Rijksmuseum and the Stedelijk Museum. It holds the largest collection of Van Gogh's paintings, drawings and letters anywhere in the world. Much of that holdings comes from the artist's family, which preserved his work after his death in 1890.