Note:  This will be the last news quiz of the 2022-2023 season.  News quizzes will resume in the fall.  Practice questions will still be uploaded through NSDA Nationals.

Here is this week’s news quiz.  Good luck!

1. Since 2009 what currency has been used as legal tender in Zimbabwe as a means to stem high inflation?

Spoiler
The U.S. dollar. Economists estimated last month that U.S. dollars were used in more than 75% of economic transactions, replacing the Zimbabwean dollar as the most-used currency in the country. The official exchange rate stands at 1,000 Zimbabwe dollars to one U.S. dollar. The Zimbabwean currency has been racked with massive inflation since the late 2000s. Last year, Zimbabwe reported an inflation rate of 280%, one of the highest in the world.

2. Which group recently issued a travel advisory against the state of Florida earlier this week?

Spoiler
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The NAACP argued in its statement that Florida has become “openly hostile toward African Americans, people of color and L.G.B.T.Q.+ individuals.” The advisory tells people to consider Florida’s existing policies when thinking of travel plans. The NAACP’s advisory mirrors those given by the League of United Latin American Citizens and Equality Florida.

3. Why did the European Union recently levy a $1.3 billion fine on Meta?

Spoiler
For breaking EU privacy laws by transmitting user data to servers in the United States. It is the largest fine to be levied by the European Data Protection Board, exceeding a $805.7 million fine that was imposed on Amazon in 2021.

4. Which nation is sending astronauts, including its first female astronaut, to the International Space Station?

Spoiler
Saudi Arabia. SpaceX launched a four-person crew (which includes two Americans) on a private flight to the International Space Station where they will stay for a week. Rayyanah Barnawi, who is a stem cell researcher, is the first woman from Saudi Arabia to go into space. This is the first time a Saudi national has been in space since 1985.

5. On what constitutional grounds is TikTok suing Montana?

Spoiler
The First Amendment. TikTok alleges that the state’s TikTok ban, which will go into effect on January 1 of next year, violates its right to “host, disseminate, and promote third-party speech created by others” and also infringes on the free speech rights of users by shutting down a forum for speech.

6. Who jumped into the Republican presidential race earlier this week?

Spoiler
South Carolina Senator Tim Scott. Scott assumed office in 2013, becoming the seventh African American to be elected to the Senate and was the first African American to be elected to the Senate from South Carolina. In his presidential campaign announcement, Scott pledged to have compassion for those who did not agree with his positions and highlighted his rise from poverty. Primary polls have yet to show Scott breaking double digits in terms of support.

7. Which party won the recent Greek elections?

Spoiler
The governing centre-right New Democracy party, which is led by Kyriakos Mitsotakis. It won 41% of the vote versus its centre-left rival Syriza, which won 20% of the vote. The size of the victory was not expected as New Democracy won all but one of Greece’s electroal districts. However, it will have to coalition with another party to govern as it fell five sheets short of winning an outright, governing majority.

8. In what city did the Group of 7 (G7) recent meet?

Spoiler
Hiroshima, Japan. The city was the site of the first atomic bomb blast in war during World War II. Japanese Prime Minsiter Fumio Kishida highlighted the dangers of nuclear war and world leaders visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum last Friday. Domestic critics argued that the G7 made no headway on abolishing nuclear arms.

9. What is the largest bank in the United States?

Spoiler
JPMorgan Chase. After acquiring the assets of First Republica Bank, JPMorgan Chase now owns more than $3.5 trillion in assets. While it has helped ease anxieties about the American banking sector, critics are arguing that it becoming too large, exacerbating a problem where some U.S. institutions are “too big to fail.”

10. Due to its feud with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Disney recently decided to scuttle what project?

Spoiler
Disney decided not to build an office complex in Orlando that was worth $1 billion. The project was supposed to create 2,000 new jobs. Disney has sued DeSantis, claiming a “targeted campaign of government retaliation” that ensued after the company opposed Florida’s Parental Rights in Education law that bans discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity through the third grade. That law has since been expanded to include all grades K-12.