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  | LITERARY BAD DAY FOR THE PLANET |  
   
 
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  | TRANSPORTATION, IN VARIOUS FORMS |  
   
 
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    | All hail Dana Owens, better known by this moniker, who was voted Most Popular at her New Jersey high school | 
    Queen Latifah
 
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    | A dried fruit, or to trim a tree to make it grow better | 
    to prune
 
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    | Set in Melbourne, Nevil Shute's 1957 novel "On the Beach" finds much of the world destroyed by this man-made disaster | 
    a nuclear war
 
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    | You'll find the Pompidou Centre not far from this big river | 
    (Ken: Yeah, it's in Paris.)
  the Seine
 
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    | In 1957 Eisenhower became the first sitting president to ride in one of these, boarding a Bell Ranger on the White House lawn | 
    a helicopter
 
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    | The last Western Hemisphere action of the Spanish-American War wasn't on Cuba but on this island | 
    Puerto Rico
 
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    | Hip-hip hooray for this superstar who got into the groove as a cheerleader at her Michigan high school | 
    Madonna
 
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    | To crush flat, or a racket sport mostly played indoors | 
    to squash
 
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    | In Neal Stephenson's "Seveneves", this mysteriously blows up into 7 pieces that rain bolides onto Earth | 
    the Moon
 
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    | Lake Nasser was created by impounding the waters of this river | 
    the Nile
 
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    | "With an air of infinite reluctance M. Poirot climbed aboard the train" in this novel | 
    (Teresa: What is the Orient Express?)
  Murder on the Orient Express
 
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    | The Chalmette Plantation was the site of this 1815 battle that took place a few weeks after the signing of a peace treaty | 
    the Battle of New Orleans
 
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    | All this singer-songwriter wanted to do was have some fun her senior year, which included drum majorette & prom princess | 
    Sheryl Crow
 
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    | To mend shoes, or to put together hastily | 
    to cobble
 
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    | Arthur C. Clarke's "The Star" is a sun that went supernova, killing a planet, & is this celestial object from the New Testament | 
    (Teresa: What is the Star of David?)
  the Star of Bethlehem
 
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    | This "colorful" river starts in New Mexico & flows across northern Texas to join the Atchafalaya near Baton Rouge | 
    the Red
 
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    | This automaker combined "ion" & "unique" to get its Ioniq line | 
    Hyundai
 
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    | The Second Punic War ended when this general went down to defeat at the 202 B.C. Battle of Zama | 
    Hannibal
 
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    | At L.A.'s Fairfax High, he showed a flair for poetry, later heard in his Red Hot Chili Peppers songs | 
    Anthony Kiedis
 
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    | To provide services, or, in cooking, to melt & clarify animal fat | 
    to render
 
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    | Early in this novel Prostetnic Vogon Jeltz informs humanity Earth will be destroyed for a hyperspatial express route | 
    The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
 
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    | Virgil loved this lake of northern Italy, calling it "the greatest lake" | 
    Como
 
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    | Let's transition to this brand's i2 SE personal transporter | 
    Segway
 
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    | A Spartan fleet crushed an Athenian one at the naval battle of Aegospotami, the last big battle of this war | 
    the Peloponnesian War
 
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    | A member of his Ohio high school drama club, he'd get roles on TV & in films, but he's better known for his own brand of honky-tonk | 
    Dwight Yoakam
 
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    | To adhere firmly & closely, or to split something along a line | 
    to cleave
 
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    | John Wyndham's novel about "The Day of" these meat-eating plants sees most of humanity blinded before being featured on the menu | 
    the Triffids
 
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    | This alliterative Swiss body of water is also known as Lac des Quatre Cantons | 
    (Teresa: Lake Geneva? What is Lake Geneva?)
  Lake Lucerne
 
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    | Joey, baby, don't get crazy in your kangaroo mama's pouch, also called this; you'll be toted around there for 7 to 10 months | 
    (Brian: You learn something new everyday.)
  the marsupium
 
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    | The New Model Army's victory at the 1651 Battle of Worcester put a finish to this conflict | 
    the Second British Civil War
 
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