Beyond the answers - interesting background to this quiz

The border that shaped Central America

Guatemala is the only country that shares a border with both Mexico and Honduras, sitting at the narrow heart of Central America. It also borders Belize and El Salvador, making it a crossroads of the region. That geography has long made Guatemala a meeting point for trade routes, cultures and, at times, political tension.

Reaganomics and the fight over the economy

Ronald Reagan's economic programme of the 1980s, nicknamed "Reaganomics", centred on tax cuts, deregulation and reduced government spending. Supporters credit it with sparking growth; critics point to rising national debt and widening inequality. Few policies in modern US history have been argued over so fiercely.

The Volga and Europe's river hierarchy

The Volga is not just Europe's longest river - it is also the backbone of western Russia, winding through cities such as Nizhny Novgorod and Volgograd before emptying into the Caspian Sea. The Danube, by contrast, is famous for passing through more countries than any other river in the world. Both have shaped trade, settlement and folklore for centuries.

Cervantes and the first modern novel

Miguel de Cervantes published Don Quixote in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, and it is often called the first modern novel. Its hero, a minor nobleman who reads so many chivalric romances that he decides to become a knight, gave us the word "quixotic". The book has been translated into more languages than almost any other work of fiction.

Reading Rome's numbers

MXXV translates to 1025 - M for 1000, XX for 20 and V for 5. Roman numerals were the standard system across Europe for well over a thousand years before Arabic numerals gradually replaced them in everyday use. They survive today on clock faces, film credits and the names of monarchs and popes.