World Book Trivia Challenge--10/1-firsts

Buckingham Palace has been the official royal residence since 1837. It was originally the home of John Sheffield, Duke of Buckingham, who lived there in the early 1700's.

British naval captain and navigator, was one of the world's greatest explorers. He commanded three voyages to the Pacific Ocean that greatly increased knowledge of the world's geography. Cook had an outstanding ability to accurately determine where newly encountered lands should be placed on maps. He also prevented on his ships the high death tolls from disease that had long been common on sea voyages. In addition, he was known for his peaceful relations with the peoples he came across on his expeditions.

Sir John Alexander Macdonald was the first prime minister of the Dominion of Canada. He is often called the father of present-day Canada because he played the leading role in establishing the dominion in 1867. Macdonald served as prime minister from 1867 until 1873 and from 1878 until his death in 1891. He held the office for nearly 19 years, longer than any other Canadian prime minister except W. L. Mackenzie King, who served for 21 years.

Marie Skłodowska Curie was a Polish-born French physicist famous for her research on radioactivity. She was the first woman awarded a Nobel Prize. In 1903, Marie and her husband, Pierre, received the Nobel Prize in physics for their study of radiation. In 1911, Marie Curie won the Nobel Prize in chemistry for her discovery of the new elements and her work in isolating radium and studying its chemical properties.

Baroness Bertha von Suttner was an Austrian novelist who is said to have influenced Alfred Nobel in his creation of the Nobel Prize for peace. Suttner was awarded the prize in 1905 for promoting pacifism and founding an Austrian peace society.

William Le Baron Jenney was an American architect and engineer. He designed the first metal-frame skyscraper, the Home Insurance Building in Chicago. It was built in 1884 and 1885 and torn down in 1931. To support the building's upper floors, Jenney's design used metal columns and beams, rather than traditional stone and brick. This method greatly reduced the weight of the building, making it possible to build taller structures.

New Horizons is the first space probe sent to study Pluto. The main goal of the mission is to explore Pluto and its large moon Charon. New Horizons will reach its closest point to Pluto and Charon on July 14, 2015, traveling by at great speed. After observing Pluto, the probe will continue on, and scientists hope that it will glimpse other objects as it leaves the solar system

Anne Bradstreet was the first important American poet. She is best known for "The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America," a collection of her poems. This work was the first volume of original poetry written in the American Colonies. It was published in London in 1650.

William Steinitz was the first undisputed world chess champion from 1866 to 1894. Steinitz lost his title to Emanuel Lasker in 1894.

Wallis Warfield Simpson, the Duchess of Windsor, was the wife of Edward, Duke of Windsor, who as King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom gave up his throne in 1936 to marry her. She was Time Magazine’s first female person of the year in 1936.