What is the scientific name for brain freeze?

Sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia

Ice Cream Quiz: Gelato, Cones, Flavors and Frozen Facts

This ice cream quiz serves up frozen facts, from Italian gelato and America's love of vanilla to the cone at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair, stretchy Turkish dondurma, Indian kulfi, sorbet, liquid nitrogen, brain freeze and Vermont's Ben & Jerry's. Ten questions.

Start Ice Cream Quiz

🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 90 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 90s

Varieties
Which country is home to gelato?
Flavors
Which flavor is often named America's most popular ice cream?
History
At which 1904 event did the ice cream cone become widely popular?
Türkiye
Which stretchy Turkish ice cream, thickened with salep and mastic, is famous in Kahramanmaraş?
India
Which dense Indian frozen dessert is made by slowly cooking milk and freezing it without churning?
Varieties
Which ingredient does sorbet leave out that ice cream contains?
Science
Which liquid is used to freeze ice cream almost instantly in some shops?
Science
What is the scientific name for brain freeze?
Brands
In which U.S. state was Ben & Jerry's founded in 1978?
Celebrations
Which month is National Ice Cream Month in the United States?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Which country is home to gelato?
Answer: Italy
Gelato is churned more slowly than ice cream, so it has less air, and it is usually served slightly warmer, which makes the flavors stronger.
Q2: Which flavor is often named America's most popular ice cream?
Answer: Vanilla
Surveys of ice cream makers regularly put vanilla at the top, followed by chocolate. Vanilla is also the base for many sundaes and milkshakes.
Q3: At which 1904 event did the ice cream cone become widely popular?
Answer: St. Louis World's Fair
Several vendors claimed to have invented the cone at the St. Louis World's Fair, where waffle makers helped ice cream sellers who ran out of dishes.
Q4: Which stretchy Turkish ice cream, thickened with salep and mastic, is famous in Kahramanmaraş?
Answer: Dondurma
Dondurma is so chewy it can be cut with a knife. Street sellers are famous for playing tricks on customers with long metal paddles.
Q5: Which dense Indian frozen dessert is made by slowly cooking milk and freezing it without churning?
Answer: Kulfi
Kulfi is often flavored with cardamom, saffron and pistachio and is frozen in cone-shaped molds. It has been made since the Mughal era.
Q6: Which ingredient does sorbet leave out that ice cream contains?
Answer: Dairy
Sorbet is made from fruit juice or purée, sugar and water, without milk or cream. Sherbet, in contrast, contains a little dairy.
Q7: Which liquid is used to freeze ice cream almost instantly in some shops?
Answer: Liquid nitrogen
Liquid nitrogen is about minus 196 °C and freezes ice cream so quickly that ice crystals stay tiny, making it very smooth. The clouds of vapor make a show.
Q8: What is the scientific name for brain freeze?
Answer: Sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia
When something cold touches the roof of the mouth, blood vessels quickly narrow and then widen, triggering a short headache. Pressing your tongue to the roof of your mouth can help.
Q9: In which U.S. state was Ben & Jerry's founded in 1978?
Answer: Vermont
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield opened their first shop in a renovated gas station in Burlington, Vermont, after taking a 5-dollar ice cream-making course.
Q10: Which month is National Ice Cream Month in the United States?
Answer: July
President Ronald Reagan named July National Ice Cream Month in 1984, with National Ice Cream Day on the third Sunday.

Ice Cream Quiz – The Coolest Treat on Earth

Ice cream is one of the world's favorite desserts, enjoyed in cones, cups, sundaes and shakes on hot days and cold ones. People have made frozen treats for centuries, from flavored snow and ice in ancient Persia and China to the creamy desserts served at European royal courts. Freezers made ice cream an everyday pleasure in the twentieth century.

Every region has its own style. Italian gelato is dense and intense, Turkish dondurma is so stretchy it can be pulled like taffy, Indian kulfi is rich and slow-frozen, and Japanese mochi ice cream wraps a scoop in soft rice dough. Sorbets skip the dairy altogether and focus on fruit.

Science plays a big part in making good ice cream. Churning adds air and keeps ice crystals small, sugar lowers the freezing point so the ice cream stays scoopable and fat gives a creamy feel. Modern shops even use liquid nitrogen to freeze ice cream in seconds, creating a smooth texture and a dramatic show.

Ice cream has also built famous businesses and traditions. The cone became popular at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair, Ben & Jerry's started in an old gas station in Vermont, and the United States celebrates a whole month for ice cream every July.

This quiz scoops up the history, science and variety of ice cream around the world.

What This Quiz Teaches

This quiz is perfect for dessert lovers, curious cooks and anyone planning an ice cream road trip.

How gelato differs from ice cream
Where the ice cream cone became popular
What makes Turkish dondurma stretchy
How kulfi and sorbet are made
Why liquid nitrogen and brain freeze happen
How Ben & Jerry's began

Quick Facts About Ice Cream

Mint chocolate chip ice cream was created in England in 1973 for a competition celebrating Princess Anne's wedding.
Ice cream sundaes may have been named because they were first sold on Sundays.
Neapolitan ice cream combines chocolate, vanilla and strawberry.
Some astronauts have enjoyed real ice cream on the International Space Station.
Soft serve is served at a slightly warmer temperature than hard ice cream.
Pistachio is one of the most popular gelato flavors in Italy.