NewsTracker Answers for week of Nov. 17, 2008

Q: An inmate escaped last week by mailing himself out of a German prison in a box. Where in the world is Germany?

Circle the area on this map


Q: The prison was near Duesseldorf in northwest Germany. Which country is on Germany's northwest border?

A. Austria

B. Poland

C. Netherlands

D. Switzerland


C. Germany is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands.


Q: The escaped inmate is a Turkish citizen. Many workers have moved from Turkey to Germany, attracted by Europe's largest economy. Which nation has Europe's second largest economy?

A. France

B. Italy

C. Russia

D. United Kingdom


D. The British have a gross domestic product (GDP) of $2.8 trillion compared with $3.3 trillion for Germany, according to the CIA World Factbook.


Q: While it has the largest economy in Europe, it has the second largest population. Which country has more people?

A. France

B. Italy

C. Russia

D. United Kingdom


C. Russia spans both Europe and Asia, but its population density is greatest in Europe. It has 140.7 million people compared with 82.3 million in Germany, according to the Factbook.


Q: East and West Germany were reunited in 1990. When was Germany divided?

A. 1918

B. 1945

C. 1961

D. 1975


B. After its defeat in World War II, Germany was partitioned by the Allies into four military occupation zones. The western sectors, controlled by France, the United Kingdom, and the United States were merged in 1949 to form one nation and the eastern Soviet zone became another.