NewsTracker Answers for week of Apr 23, 2012

Q: Anglican church officials plan to spend $4.1 million to build a temporary cathedral to be made mostly out of cardboard tubes in Christchurch, New Zealand. Where is New Zealand on this map?

Circle the area on this map


Q: The Transitional Cathedral, described as weather and fire-proof, is projected to last for at least 20 years. It will be used while a permanent building is erected to replace the cathedral severely damaged last year by . . .

A. Earthquake

B. Bombing

C. Typhoon

D. Fire


A. A 6.3-magnitude earthquake, which leveled thousands of buildings in the city, badly damaged Christchurch cathedral, which was built in the late 19th century. New Zealand lies on the "Pacific Ring of Fire" where large numbers of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur.


Q: Which group of immigrants brought the Anglican Church to New Zealand?

A. Dutch

B. Polynesians

C. English

D. Spanish


C. Anglican and Episcopal churches are derived from the Church of England. This form of Christianity was spread around the world with the expansion of the British Empire. The British claimed sovereignty over the islands in 1840.


Q: Where did the name New Zealand originate?

A. Dutch

B. Polynesians

C. English

D. Spanish


A. A Dutch trader was the first European to sight the island in 1642. In 1645, Dutch map makers named the land Nova Zeelandia after the Dutch province of Zeeland. British explorer James Cook later anglicized the name to New Zealand.


Q: Descendants of the Polynesians who first settled the New Zealand call it Aotearoa. What are these native Polynesian people called?

A. Aussies

B. Samoan

C. Caledonian

D. Maori


D. Aotearoa, "the land of the long white cloud," is one of the last major land masses on earth to be inhabited by humans. Evidence suggests New Zealand was first settled by Eastern Polynesians between 1250 and 1300. In the Maori language, maori means "normal" or "natural." In legends, the word distinguished mortal human beings from gods.