20 Jan, 2016: Day 36

Question 1:
Who is known as the "father" of the country whose national drink is a strong alcoholic beverage made from pomace? Answer: Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

Start off by using pomace national drink. Right now we are looking for countries where Pomace is regularly consumed. The two candidates according to the search results are Italy (Grappa) and Turkey (Raki). Giuseppe Garibaldi and Giuseppe Mazzini seem to be the type of guys that would be partial to wine and then brandy. Mustafa Ataturk was seen as a more cosmopolitan man than his compatriots were, so it's worth throwing hazard to the wind. Using pomace national drink Ataturk confirms all suspicions this was answer Google is looking for, especially going beyond the first page.

Question 2:
Whose likeness reportedly served as the artist's inspiration for the figure of Plato in "The School of Athens"? Answer: Leonardo da Vinci.

Please see Day 8 for the explanation.

Question 3:
What college hockey player was assaulted on the ice in early 2009, resulting in the suspension of two Michigan State University players? Answer: Steve Kampfer.

I think it's unsportsmanlike for players to assault each other in match play, especially double teaming someone. I also find it troubling that Google should memorialize this incident with a question that doesn't allow it to fade away for the victim. How to get to his name? Type: 2009 hockey player assault "Michigan State".

19 Jan, 2016: Day 35

Question 1:
In 2011, who was the president of the club that was established to promote safety in the game of American football? Answer: Ron Jaworski.

It's important to note that we are talking about American (gridiron) football, not association football(the sport in which a number of North Americans call soccer). Start with the query american football safety club. What comes up are references to the Maxwell Football Club. Begin a new search, this time using Maxwell Football Club 2011 president. What emerges is ESPN's NFL analyst Ron Jaworski.

Question 2:
What region of the U.S. was the focus of ice-breaking operations by the U.S. Coastguard in 2011? Answer: Great Lakes.

Try U.S. Coast Guard ice-breaking operations 2011 in your search of recent Polar and Ice Operations.

Question 3:
John Madden favored what team for the 2012 NFC Championship game at Candlestick Park? Answer: San Francisco 49ers.

Use John Madden 2012 NFC Championship favorite to get Madden's hot pick of the NFC finals. BTW, the 49ers lost to the New York Giants by three points.

18 Jan, 2016: Day 34

Question 1:
What was the only bestselling novel by the author who gave Hemingway his letter of introduction to Gertrude Stein? Answer: Dark Laughter.

Let's start by inputing Hemingway meeting Stein letter introduction. In the search results there are many indicators towards the writer Sherwood Anderson's involvement between the two. Looking at Sherwood's biography tells Dark Laughter, published in 1925, was his only bestseller.

Question 2:
What modern dance company was founded by the co-director of the musical that premiered January 5, 1964, at New York City's Sanctuary Theatre? Answer: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

Please see Day 4 for the explanation.

Question 3:
What was the first name of the mother who, according to biographer Giorgio Vasari, sat for DaVinci’s 31 x 21 inch portrait? Answer: Lisa.

It was not that hard to guess Google was alluding to the Mona Lisa, and I guessed that is where I should start. But, just to make sure, let's try Da Vinci portraits mother "Giorgio Vasari". There's a image of the Mona Lisa with some search results referring to Vasari's research on the genius.

17 Jan, 2016: Day 33

Question 1:
What term is given to the border between the Central Alps and the Southern Limestone Alps? Answer: Periadriatic Seam.

Begin by inputting border Central Alps Southern Limestone Alps into the search field. Some the search results will contain the answer upon closer inspection.

Question 2:
On the flag of Angola, the symbol with a half circle shape is part of three symbols, collectively chosen to relate to the flag of what former county? Answer: Soviet Union.

This question would not be a challenge for those who were older than high school age after 1992. Begin by inputting flag angola meaning. If you dig around in the search results you'll see references to hammers and sickles, communist iconography from the Bolsheviks.

Question 3:
What is the stage name of the man who is the father of the actor who played the journalist Jane Craig was attracted to? Answer: Parkyakarkus.

"What was the pseudonym of the actor's father who had a crush on the female lead in Broadcast News?"

This is what Google wanted you to understand. If you have not noticed they presented a badly worded question. The obfuscatical leaps the writer took on this question tempted me to skip it if it was not for the fact they got it wrong.

In the movie Broadcast News Holly Hunter's character, Jane Craig, was the center of a love triangle between two men: Aaron Altman (Albert Brooks) and Tom Grunick (William Hurt). Both men were attracted to Craig, but Craig initially drawn to Grunick. The father of William Hurt worked in the US Department of State's Foreign Service. The correct answer, if you use my question, can be found on Aaron Altman's Wikipedia entry.

16 Jan, 2016: Day 34

Question 1:
Who is the mother of the Victoria's Secret model who married Kings of Leon co-founder Anthony in 2011? Answer: Laura Lyons.

There are a few twists and turns in solving this question. Let's start by inputting Caleb Followill married Victoria's into the search field. The results display Lily Aldridge. Replace the previous search with Lily Aldridge mother, the answer to the question being Laura Lyons, former Playboy bunny and Ms. February 1976.

Question 2:
Besides the Gorilla Press, what famous finishing move did the face-painted “Warrior” famously use on Hulk Hogan to end the match on April 1, 1990? Answer: splash.

Try "Ultimate Warrior" "Hulk Hogan" 1990 moves. Be prepared to dig once the results come back with search results. Somewhere you will find that after the Gorilla Press the Ultimate Warrior used the Ultimate Splash on Hogan, securing the win.

Question 3:
What was the birth name of the Renaissance man responsible for the “ornithopter?” Answer: Matterhorn.

Look up ornithopter. Once you find the researcher who worked on it during the Renaissance, then there's an issue. Take my name roughly placed in a historical context: Sean Mars de Troit. Translated, Sean, son of Mars of the Straits. My birth name would be Sean.