Bright Quiz

The average quiz show is a combination of sciolism, whimsey, trick queries and old-hat puns. But flourishing in Baltimore now is a question-&-answer program designed to enlighten as well as entertain. Known as Quiz the Scientist, aired Tuesdays at 7:45 p.m. over WBAL, the Baltimore show publicizes the activities of the Maryland Academy of Sciences, was put together five months ago by Academy Director Dr. J. Wallace Page in collaboration with a WBAL continuity writer named Vera Johnson. Feature of Quiz the Scientist is its formidable permanent board, which includes such lights as Dr. Robert Williams Wood, famed prankster physicist of Johns Hopkins University (TIME, June 20, 1938), Dr. Louise Kelley, Professor of Chemistry at Goucher College, Dr. Reginald Van Trump Truitt, Professor of Zoology at University of Maryland, and Dr. Page. Last week WBAL was hopeful that inquiries from NBC would result in a network spot for the quiz.

No haphazard operation is Quiz the Scientist. The five or six questions discussed on the program are selected well in advance, and board members often write out their answers to make sure they won't fall into high-toned scientific lingo that would baffle the average listener. Inveterate ad libber is impish Dr. Wood, who likes to preface thoughtful discussions of taste with such of his verses as: "Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet and skunks are--phew!"

Quiz the Scientist pays listeners $1 for every question used, receives on the average about 80 a week. Typical query last week: Does a heavy weight drop faster than a light one? Other queries: What makes grass green? What causes the rainbow? What makes the sky blue? Not entirely academic, Quiz the Scientist has included tips from Dr. Kelley for housewives. Not long ago, she told how to clean silverware by using a 10-c- pie plate made out of tin. By putting the tin plate in a larger aluminum pan and adding warm salt water and soda, the silverware, Dr. Kelley pointed out, can be cleaned of tarnish by placing it in the water so it touches the tin plate. Promptly she was deluged with silver polish samples, which manufacturers begged her to use instead of her 10-c- pie plate.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.