First in the World - Male and Female Questions and Answers

Correct Answer: Option D — Gro Harlem Brundtland Gro Harlem Brundtland is the correct answer because became WHO Director-General in 1998. Why the other options are incorrect: - Option A — Rabindranath Tagore: Rabindranath Tagore is instead associated with the fact that received the 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature for Gitanjali. This is a different world-first distinction from the achievement asked in the question. - Option B — Isabel Peron: Isabel Peron is instead associated with the fact that became President of Argentina in 1974 after serving as vice-president. - Option C — Roald Amundsen: Roald Amundsen is instead associated with the fact that led the Norwegian expedition that arrived at the South Pole on 14 December 1911. Exam Takeaway: Link Gro Harlem Brundtland with “the first woman to serve as Director-General of the World Health Organization” and remember the associated event or year.

Correct Answer: Option A — Marie Curie Marie Curie is the correct answer because won Nobel Prizes in Physics in 1903 and Chemistry in 1911. Why the other options are incorrect: - Option B — Marie Curie: Marie Curie is instead associated with the fact that shared the 1903 Nobel Prize in Physics and later won Chemistry in 1911. - Option C — Sirimavo Bandaranaike: Sirimavo Bandaranaike is instead associated with the fact that became Prime Minister of Ceylon, now Sri Lanka, in 1960. - Option D — Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay: Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay is instead associated with the fact that reached the summit together on 29 May 1953. Exam Takeaway: Link Marie Curie with “the first person to win two Nobel Prizes” and remember the associated event or year.

Correct Answer: Option B — Sally Ride Sally Ride is the correct answer because flew aboard Space Shuttle Challenger on STS-7 in June 1983. Why the other options are incorrect: - Option A — Junko Tabei: Junko Tabei is instead associated with the fact that reached the Everest summit on 16 May 1975. - Option C — Svetlana Savitskaya: Svetlana Savitskaya is instead associated with the fact that conducted a spacewalk outside Salyut 7 on 25 July 1984. - Option D — Karen Uhlenbeck: Karen Uhlenbeck is instead associated with the fact that won the 2019 Abel Prize for pioneering work in geometric analysis and gauge theory. Exam Takeaway: Link Sally Ride with “the first American woman to travel into space” and remember the associated event or year.

Correct Answer: Option C — Mae Jemison Mae Jemison is the correct answer because flew aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour on STS-47 in 1992. Why the other options are incorrect: - Option A — Maryam Mirzakhani: Maryam Mirzakhani is instead associated with the fact that received the Fields Medal in 2014 for work in geometry and dynamical systems. - Option B — Rosalyn Higgins: Rosalyn Higgins is instead associated with the fact that joined the International Court of Justice as a judge in 1995. - Option D — Alexei Leonov: Alexei Leonov is instead associated with the fact that left Voskhod 2 for the first extravehicular activity in March 1965. Exam Takeaway: Link Mae Jemison with “the first Black woman to travel into space” and remember the associated event or year.

Correct Answer: Option D — James Connolly James Connolly is the correct answer because won the triple jump at Athens on 6 April 1896. Why the other options are incorrect: - Option A — Neil Armstrong: Neil Armstrong is instead associated with the fact that stepped onto the lunar surface during Apollo 11 on 20 July 1969 UTC. - Option B — Elinor Ostrom: Elinor Ostrom is instead associated with the fact that shared the 2009 economics prize for analysis of economic governance. - Option C — Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit: Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit is instead associated with the fact that was elected President of the eighth UN General Assembly session in 1953. Exam Takeaway: Link James Connolly with “the first champion of the modern Olympic Games” and remember the associated event or year.

Correct Answer: Option A — Charlotte Cooper Charlotte Cooper is the correct answer because won the women's tennis singles event at the 1900 Paris Games. Why the other options are incorrect: - Option B — Valentina Tereshkova: Valentina Tereshkova is instead associated with the fact that flew the Soviet Vostok 6 mission in June 1963. - Option C — Selma Lagerlof: Selma Lagerlof is instead associated with the fact that was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1909. - Option D — Vigdis Finnbogadottir: Vigdis Finnbogadottir is instead associated with the fact that won Iceland's 1980 presidential election. Exam Takeaway: Link Charlotte Cooper with “the first individual woman Olympic champion” and remember the associated event or year.

Correct Answer: Option B — Jerrie Mock Jerrie Mock is the correct answer because completed a solo round-the-world flight in April 1964. Why the other options are incorrect: - Option A — Isabel Peron: Isabel Peron is instead associated with the fact that became President of Argentina in 1974 after serving as vice-president. This is a different world-first distinction from the achievement asked in the question. - Option C — Yuri Gagarin: Yuri Gagarin is instead associated with the fact that flew Vostok 1 on 12 April 1961 and completed one orbit of Earth. - Option D — Rabindranath Tagore: Rabindranath Tagore is instead associated with the fact that received the 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature for Gitanjali. Exam Takeaway: Link Jerrie Mock with “the first woman to fly solo around the world” and remember the associated event or year.

Correct Answer: Option C — Amelia Earhart Amelia Earhart is the correct answer because completed her solo transatlantic flight in May 1932. Why the other options are incorrect: - Option A — Marie Curie: Marie Curie is instead associated with the fact that shared the 1903 Nobel Prize in Physics and later won Chemistry in 1911. - Option B — Sirimavo Bandaranaike: Sirimavo Bandaranaike is instead associated with the fact that became Prime Minister of Ceylon, now Sri Lanka, in 1960. - Option D — Gro Harlem Brundtland: Gro Harlem Brundtland is instead associated with the fact that became WHO Director-General in 1998. Exam Takeaway: Link Amelia Earhart with “the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean” and remember the associated event or year.

Correct Answer: Option D — Charles Lindbergh Charles Lindbergh is the correct answer because flew from New York to Paris in the Spirit of St. Why the other options are incorrect: - Option A — Marie Curie: Marie Curie is instead associated with the fact that won Nobel Prizes in Physics in 1903 and Chemistry in 1911. - Option B — Svetlana Savitskaya: Svetlana Savitskaya is instead associated with the fact that conducted a spacewalk outside Salyut 7 on 25 July 1984. - Option C — Karen Uhlenbeck: Karen Uhlenbeck is instead associated with the fact that won the 2019 Abel Prize for pioneering work in geometric analysis and gauge theory. Exam Takeaway: Link Charles Lindbergh with “the first person to complete a solo nonstop flight across the Atlantic Ocean” and remember the associated event or year.

Correct Answer: Option A — Gertrude Ederle Gertrude Ederle is the correct answer because crossed the Channel in August 1926 and improved the existing men's record time. Why the other options are incorrect: - Option B — Sally Ride: Sally Ride is instead associated with the fact that flew aboard Space Shuttle Challenger on STS-7 in June 1983. - Option C — Alexei Leonov: Alexei Leonov is instead associated with the fact that left Voskhod 2 for the first extravehicular activity in March 1965. - Option D — Maryam Mirzakhani: Maryam Mirzakhani is instead associated with the fact that received the Fields Medal in 2014 for work in geometry and dynamical systems. Exam Takeaway: Link Gertrude Ederle with “the first woman to swim across the English Channel” and remember the associated event or year.