Trivia Blog

Landmark Quiz Delhi 2012 Prelims

2012-03-08T22:06:00.018-06:00

The Prelims of the first ever Landmark Quiz @ Delhi.

LQD 12 - PRELIMS

1. What is the top option one would get if one entered the question “why” on the Youtube search box? WHAT: What makes you beautiful one direction; WHERE: Where dem girlz at official video; WHEN: Whenever wherever Shakira; HOW: How to kiss.

Why this kolaveri di

2. Over 300,000 extras were used to shoot this scene, the most for any film according to the Guinness Book of World Records. Name the movie and the city.

Gandhi (funeral scene); Delhi

3. In October 1963 at a particular ceremony Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru said, “This _____ has been built with the unrelenting toil of man for the benefit of mankind and therefore is worthy of worship. May you call it a Temple or a Gurdwara or a Mosque, it inspires our admiration and reverence”. What was Nehru specifically referring to?

The Bhakra dam. The ceremony marked the dedication of the Bhakra–Nangal Project to the nation. This is the origin of the description of dams as “the temples of modern India”

4. This metallo-beta-lactamase-1 enzyme was first detected in a Klebsiella pneumoniae bacterial isolate from a Swedish patient of South Asian origin in 2008. It makes bacteria resistant to a broad range of beta-lactam antibiotics including carbapenems which are a mainstay for the treatment of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections. The discovery was reported in Lancet Infectious Diseases journal in 2010 by KK Kumaraswamy et al. What two-words in the name of this enzyme caused a furore in India?

New Delhi (New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase 1)

5. What international conflict began on March 20, 2003 and formally ended on December 15, 2011?

Iraq War

6. This prime mover in the Mahabharata has a real name of two words – the first relates to the fact that he is dark-skinned while the second word refers to his being born on an island between two streams of a river. By what name is he better known to us?

Vyasa (Krishna Dwaipayana)

7. Only two people have been recipients of both the Bharat Ratna and the Nishaan-e-Pakistan, the highest civilian awards in India and Pakistan respectively. Name both of them.

Morarji Desai and Nelson Mandela

8 The Burj Khalifa has now returned the location of Earth's tallest freestanding structure to the Middle East after nearly 700 years. The region last held the honour till 1311 AD when the Lincoln Cathedral in England was completed. Which structure's record did the cathedral beat?

Pyramids (of Giza)

9. In 2009 PM Gordon Brown of UK made this unusual apology, “Thousands of people have come together to demand justice for A____ T______ and recognition of the appalling way he was treated. While T______ was dealt with under the law of the time and we can't put the clock back, his treatment was of course utterly unfair and I am pleased to have the chance to say how deeply sorry I and we all are for what happened to him. So on behalf of the British government, and all those who live freely thanks to A_____'s work I am very proud to say: we're sorry, you deserved so much better.” Who was AT?

Alan Turing

10. Which characters are named Uys and Buys in Afrikaans, Tik and Tak in Arabic, Hernandez and Fernandez in Spanish, and Dupont and Dupond in the original French?

Thomson and Thompson

11*. Whose successful political campaign was accompanied by a catchy slogan, “ ______ nahin, Ganesh hain, Brahma, Vishnu Mahesh hain”? And fill in the blank.

Mayawati / Hathi nahin....

12*. AUDIO: (a) Name the group and (b) Which controversial 20^th century literary classic partly served as an inspiration and is also alluded to in this song?

Police / Lolita

13*. At around the same time another eminent architect, Le Corbusier was preparing the blueprint for a modern city, the German architect Otto Konigsberger had planned this city to be a well-planned city with wide roads and many gardens and parks. Which city?

Bhubaneshwar

14*. Eva married Adolph on April 29, 1945 at around 00.30 hours. For a short while she became the First Lady of the Third Reich till she and her husband ended their lives the next day at around 13:30 hours. Till then who played the role of First Lady when Hitler was unmarried?

Madga Goebbels

15*. "Overhead, without any fuss, the stars were going out." This understated but ominous description of the ending of the world appears in which award-winning science fiction short story?

The Nine Billion Names of God by Arthur C Clarke (Hugo Award for Best Short Story, 1954)

16*. In 1958 USA proved successful with its rocket science and launched the Explorer-1 satellite on the Jupiter-C rocket designed in part by Wernher von Braun. The satellite carried a radiation detector designed by a University of Iowa astronomer. While in orbit it detected swathes of charged particles around the earth that were discovered to contribute to the swirling lights of the polar auroras. Who was the astronomer who designed this detector?

James Van Allen who detected the eponymous Van Allen radiation belts

17*. This Google Doodle appeared on 1/8/2011 celebrating what has been dubbed as the world’s greatest show on earth, and Africa's greatest natural spectacle. What is this?

Wildebeeste migration. The great migration takes place between the open plains of the Serengeti and the Maasai Mara, where thousands of wildebeest migrate to greener pastures as the seasons change and the circle of life continues.

18*. What tropically growing plant was the main export to Europe in 1763 from Louisiana and was the main cash crop of that colony? Worm infestations at the end of the 18th century caused repeated crop failures and by 1800, planters turned to sugar, cotton, and tobacco.

Indigo. After slaves, indigo was the main export from Africa to the New World in the 18^th century.

19*. The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is the Longest mountain chain on earth (at 40 thousand kilometers). It is located along the middle of the Atlantic. Which country is the only part of this chain that is above water.

Iceland. The Andes form the longest exposed mountain range at 7,000 kilometers

20*. VIDEO: What catchy phrase was used to publicize this unusual match of 2007?

Battle of the Surfaces

21. Which common prefix seen in Indian restaurant menus, usually applied to describe mildly-flavored, rich, creamy gravies that may also contain nuts and dried fruits, refers to the fact they were originally designed for royal consumption?

Shahi

22. In 2005, there were calls to delete word “X” from our national anthem and substitute it with the word “Y”. The argument was that “X” was no longer a part of India after 1947. Opponents of this proposal held that “X” referred to a geographical feature and to a community's culture and that this community is an integral part of India's cultural fabric. The Supreme Court of India declined to change the national anthem and the wording remains unchanged. ID “X”and “Y”.

Sindh / Kashmir

23. In classical education the four difficult subjects were arithmetic, geometry, music and astronomy. The three relatively simple subjects were - logic, grammar and rhetoric. What were these three together called? (Clue: One quizzy word)

Trivia (or trivium)

24. Which 16^th century Vaishnava saint and social reformer was sometimes referred to by the names Gaura (Sanskrit for golden one) due to his light skin complexion, and Nimai due to his being born underneath a Neem tree?

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

25. The non-profit organisation “X” opened a petition proclaiming that a popular website “Y” "is a masterpiece of human creative genius and is also of universal human value". If successful, “Y” would become the first digital entry on a prestigious UNESCO roster of international cultural and natural wonders that includes Giant's Causeway, Stonehenge and Westminster Abbey. ID X and Y.

Wikimedia and Wikipedia

26. This city is associated with motorsport and gave its name to a unique type of race start where racers lined up across the street from their cars and ran across the street and jumped into their cars, get in, start the engines, reverse and begin the race, all without any assistance. This mad scramble in the beginning of each race became an iconic aspect of this race, which, however, was later discarded. Name this city.

Le Mans. The race is called The 24 Hours of Le Mans

27. White, Black, Javan and Sumatran are four of five currently existing species of what animal; and can you name the fifth type?

Rhinoceros, Indian

28. The U.N. estimates that 50 percent of the world's living standards are influenced by ________, which create sustainable ways to increase the standard of living for entire populations without over-exploiting natural resources. Therefore in autumn last year, just as global population reached 7 billion people, The UN declared 2012 as the International Year of the _____?

Cooperatives

29. The blackbuck, Indian gazelle and the wild ass which are fast vanishing in other regions of India are present in large numbers in the Thar Desert. The numbers are attributed to adaptation – they are smaller than similar animals elsewhere and they are nocturnal. What specific human intervention has contributed to their healthy population?

Bishnoi community

30. Starting his career at number 11, this player was part of the world record test partnership for the last wicket;. He later went on to open the batting and broke the record for the test opening partnership. He also set two records which will never get broken. Who was he?

Wilfred Rhodes. He took 4204 first class wickets and played his first test aged 21 and his last one aged 52 - the longest career ending as the oldest ever test player.

31. Walter Elias Disney started Disney Bros. with his brother Roy. What two personal changes did he do to appear more like a studio boss?

He shortened his name to Walt, and grew a moustache. His original family name was D”Isney – they immigrated from Kilkenny, Ireland.

32. In order to contain China’s ambitions in the South China Sea, the US is planning to increase its military presence in which Asian country?

Phillipines

33. This word first appeared in 1948 in a paper titled A Mathematical Theory of Communication by C.E. Shannon in Bell Systems Technical Journal. (This paper is one of the seminal works of modern information theory). The relevant sentence is, “The choice of a logarithmic base corresponds to the choice of a unit for measuring information. If the base 2 is used the resulting units may be called ________s, or more briefly ___s, a word suggested by J. W. Tukey.” Fill in the two blanks (the first blank represents two words)

Binary Digits / Bits

34. This hair style was originally sported by the Yale University rowing team in the 1890s and was later adopted by the US armed forces during World War II, and became a civilian fashion for men throughout the 1950s. What is its name that reflects its origin?

Crew Cut (after the rowing crew)

35. VISUAL: Name this actor

Andrew Garfield (as Spiderman)

36. VISUAL: What is this celebration held on 14^th July commonly called in the English-speaking world? (two-words)

Bastille Day

37. VIDEO (Senorita): Which actor is making his debut as a singer in this song?

Abhay Deol

38. AUDIO: ID the artist and the original composer of this classic.

Jeff Beck / Puccini (Best Pop Instrumental Performance Grammy 2011)

39. VIDEO: Where was this shot (Kun faya kun from Rockstar)?

Nizamuddin Dargah

40. VIDEO (Arsenic and Old Lace): What two-word term describes this kind of delayed reaction to an unusual remark or circumstance, often used as a comic device in movies ?

Double take

All Previous Landmark Quiz Prelims

Landmark Quiz Pune 2012 Prelims

2012-03-08T09:45:00.000-06:00

Thanks to Dr. Navin for sharing the questions from the very nice Pune Landmark quiz prelims.

LQP 12 PRELIMS

01. This form of Vishnu emerged from the churning of the ocean of milk (samudra manthan) and is considered a “ratna” bearing another “ratna”. Name this form of Vishnu who is considered the god of a certain profession.

Dhanvantari

02. VIDEO: Whose portrait is being painted in this unusual manner?

Yao Ming (painted using a basketball as a brush)

03. The famous HOLLYWOOD sign in the iconic Santa Monica Mountains of Los Angeles has been unofficially altered many times. Which letter was dropped during the 1978 visit of Pope John Paul II to the city?

L (Holywood)

04. RR started his cartoon feature Champs and Chumps dealing with sports trivia in the New York Globe newspaper in 1918. He later changed the title when he included trivia on general topics in 1919. What was the new title of his feature?

Believe It or Not

05. The Greeks called it the Hyrcanian Ocean while Hindu texts referred to this place as Kashyap Sagar after the mythological sage. This geographical feature links the borders of Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan. What place?

Caspian Sea

06. What change did the original emblem of the Rolls Royce undergo following the death of Charles Rolls who was the first Briton to die in a flying accident?

It was coloured black from the original red.

07. The working title of which award was Eddie after its inventor? The final award is named after the invention.

Grammy

08. Which UNESCO World Heritage Site is located in both India and Bangladesh?

Sunderbans

09. What “strong gust of air” fought off a “typhoon” to bag 20 billion USD in February 2012?

Rafale

10. Who guest starred in the 500th episode of The Simpsons by telephonically recording his lines?

Julian Assange

11*. This best-selling reader-friendly series began in 1991with a book by computer science writer Dan Gookin. The book, with its characteristic standard format devised by Gookin, and cartoons by Rich Tennant, became popular due to the rarity of beginner-friendly materials for using “X”. While initially the series focused on software and technology topics (and still does), it now includes many general and diverse topics such as acne, chess, and fishing. Name this series and what is “X”?

For Dummies / DOS

12*. VIDEO: What is this genre of Hindustani semi-classical music called? ID the singer.

Thumri / Yesudas (Kaa karun sajni aaye na balaam - from Swami )

13*. According to Pliny the name of this fruit supposedly originating from Armenia comes from the fact that it ripened early (or precociously). He described it thus, “The Asiatic peach ripens at the end of autumn, though an early variety (praecocia) ripens in summer – these were discovered within the last thirty years ...” Name the fruit.

Apricot (Prunus armeniaca)

14*. The genus name of the Indian Rhino is “Rhinoceros”. The species name reflects its appearance and is the same as a another animal with the addition of the letters “____is”. What animal?

Unicorn (Rhinoceros unicornis)

15*. Centuries ago, when Arabia did not have formal schools, students went to masters who taught them. Upon completion of his study, the graduate then acted as a master with his own students. This word expressing this genealogy is derived from the Arabic word for “link”. This certification of a master having a verifiable chain of masters was the only acceptable document. What word is this that became familiar to us following an Amitabh Bachchan movie?

Silsila

16*. The Chemistry IgNobel Prize for 2011 went to Makoto Imai, Naoki Urushihata, et al, for determining the ideal density of airborne ______ to awaken sleeping people in case of a fire or other emergency, and for applying this knowledge to invent the ______ alarm. What popular condiment did they use as an alarm?

Wasabi (Japanese horseradish)

17*. According to Hindu mythology, when Kama, the god of love was burnt by the third eye of Shiva, Rati waited a long time for him. Then in her next birth, she assumed the name X and worked as a cook in the house of the asura Sambara. What name did she take in her rebirth, a name that is also now the name of a mammoth force in India?

Mayawati

18*. What two-word nickname for The Beatles at the height of their fame in the 1960s was coined by Tony Barrow, the head of The Beatles press office?

Fab Four

19*. The Government of India’s MSTC (Metal and Scrap Trading Corporation) conducted an e—auction worth Rs 133 crore last year on behalf of an unusual biological product mainly obtained from a place in South India. Together with other places producing this, the trade in this commodity reached Rs 700 crore last year. What product is this that is popular in the West in the fashion industry?

Hair (from Tirupati and other temples).

20*. At the Lahore Congress Session of 1929 a special theme song was chosen in honour of someone who was imprisoned at Lahore central Jail at that time. Which song and who was the prisoner?

Rang de basanti chola / Bhagat Singh

21. What is the nickname of New Zealand's rugby union team that is a minor variation of the nickname of their national basketball team?

Tall Blacks (from All Blacks)

22. What is the name of this sand tsunami sweeping across a city in Saudi Arabia?

Khamsin

23. VIDEO: What is this Finnair flight to India celebrating in January 2012?

Republic Day

24. The German equivalent of _____ was called Maerklin while the American version was called the Erector Set. By what name do we know this toy whose name is believed to have come from the concept of “creating while learning”?

Meccano (Make and Know)

25. AUDIO: Name this 90’s group and which 2011 comedy did they feature in with this hit single?

Wilson Phillips / Bridesmaids

26. In 2007 Apple Inc dropped what word from its name while unveiling a new product?

Computer (It launched the iPhone beginning its transformation as the world’s largest mobile ophone maker.)

27. Namche Bazaar is a small town in the Sagarmatha zone of Nepal. It is a popular destination for trekkers to the high Himalayas and is the last stop for internet access and stores catering to the trekkers’ needs. For what other important human reason is this stop important?

For altitude acclimitization (to combat altitude/mountain sickness)

28. VIDEO (from Rango): Identify the two animals.

Chameleon and Armadillo

29. In 1984 Nani Palkhivala wrote “the picture that emerges is that of a great country in a state of moral decay... The tricolour fluttering all over the country is black, red, and scarlet – black money, red _____, and scarlet________.” Fill in the blanks.

Tape / Corruption

30. What English dessert named after the county town of Shropshire, England, is made from dough that contains sugar, flour, egg, butter, and lemon zest? This popular cake / biscuit retains its original British name in India although they are a geographically indicated food of UK.

Shrewsbury biscuits

31. VISUAL: Here are two “works of art” – the left was meant to be art and the second was “created” for other reasons! ID the artists (Clue: the second is not a person and is a 2-word answer)

Christo / Election Commission

32. It is one of the world's most ancient techniques of meditation, which was apparently re-discovered by Gautama Buddha. It is a practice of self-transformation through self-observation and introspection. In English, this form of meditation is often referred to simply as "insight meditation". What form of meditation is this whose name is derived from the Pali language meaning “clear seeing” or “insight”?

Vipassana

33. VIDEO: Name this musical that features in the film The Iron Lady, and what classic literary work is referenced here in this dance?

King and I / Uncle Tom’s Cabin

34. The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon occurring in summer months in the polar regions, where the sun remains visible for a continuous 24 hours, mostly north of the Arctic Circle and south of the Antarctic Circle. What term sounding like a chess piece describes the night where instead of darkness, there is perpetual twilight?

White Night

35. The word nomophobia was coined during a study by the UK Post Office who commissioned a study to look at anxieties suffered by users of ____. The study found that 53% of users suffered from this phobia. What phobia is this?

Loss or nonfunctioning of mobile phones

36. VISUAL: Whose hands are these?

Warne and Muralitharan

37. Which was the fastest growing language on Twitter in 2011, growing at the rate of about 2000%!

Arabic (because of the revolutions in the arab speaking world and the use of social networking in these revolutions)

38. The sport of fencing gets its name from what word because sword play was considered an important survival skill on the battlefield?

Defence

39. This bestselling book made into a movie blockbuster had trouble with its title. The author initially thought up “The Silence of Death”, “White Death”, and “Leviathan Rising”. His father came up with “Wha’s That Noshin’ on My Laig” and “Cunna Linga Here No Longa” possibly in jest. Finally with 30 minutes before printing The author came up with “the name”. His father and publisher asked what it meant? “No idea”, he said, “At least it’s short”. Name the book.

Jaws

40. The “In Memoriam” segment in film awards shows features those who had died the previous year. Which Indian film star featured in this segment at the BAFTA Awards ceremony 2012?

Shammi Kapoor

Landmark Pune quiz 2011 Prelims

For all Previous Landmark Quiz Prelims

Techfest National Open Quiz

2011-10-09T11:53:00.002-05:00

Techfest 2011-12 shall host the largest inter-institutional quiz in India, The “Techfest National Open Quiz 2011-12”. With a prize money of INR 1,00,000 for the grand finale and much more interesting prizes this quiz aims to bring together the best quizzers from across the nation. The quiz will be held at Pune, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Guwahati, Chennai, Hyderabad and Mumbai and the winners of all the cities will finally clash during Techfest 2011-12 to claim the title of the Techfest National Open Quiz Champions.

Quizmaster: Rohit Nair
Note about quizmaster: Rohit Nair, the young and popular Quizmaster, has hosted numerous quiz shows including multi city quiz events for Mahindra, Government of Karnataka, IBM among others. His distinctive style, humour and passion make his quiz shows memorable. Co-founder of Quizworks, he heads the Content Architecture, New Service Design and Online Initiatives there. Much admired by the youth, he is also a national winner of the Young Leader contest hosted by Career Launcher. His brain child Quizzing.in is the most visited quiz blog in India.

Flavour: General

Format: Written prelims; Stage Finals with 6 teams. Winners to be invited to Techfest, IIT Bombay in January for the Grand Finale. Two members per team compulsary; No cross institutional teams strictly; Registrations on www.techfest.org/tnoq and also on the spot registrations; No entry fees
Pune: 11 am, 15th October,College of Engineering, Pune

Ahmedabad: 3 pm, 18th October, IIM Ahmedabad

Delhi: 1 pm, 22nd October, St Stephens, Delhi

Guwahati: 11 am, 30th October, KBR Hall, Cotton College.

Chennai: 2pm, 1st November, Dr MGR University

Hyderabad: 3 pm, 3rd November, ISB Hyderabad

Mumbai: 2pm, 6th November, IIT Mumbai.

Contact

Phone: Rohan ( 98901 06884 ) Email: rohan.k[at]techfest.org
Arindam ( 97695 85892 ) Email: arindam[at]techfest.org

Prizes

Award and Certificate policy

The finals in Techfest during January shall carry prize money of INR 1,00,000
The winner of each city shall be provided both sides travel to come to Mumbai for the finals 6th-8th January for the finals.
City rounds in shall have prizes worth INR 10,000.
The grand finalist, semifinalists and all final round qualifiers of the city rounds shall be awarded certificates of excellence.

CUSAT Corporate Business Quiz

2011-10-08T09:49:00.000-05:00

The School of Management Studies, CUSAT, Cochin is organizing a
Corporate Business Quiz on Oct 15, 2011 (Saturday) at their campus.
The details of the quiz are as follows. Please visit their website
www.talentime.in for further details.

Date - 15 Oct 2011, Saturday
Time - Prelims - Sharp 2PM followed by finals
Teams of 2
No Cross-Corporate Allowed
Prizes - Rs. 40K Cash for I Prize, Rs. 20K Cash for runners up
Quizmaster - Mitesh Agarwal

For more info:
cquiz@talentime.in
www.talentime.in
Contact:
Sujith John:
+919496330879
Rachel Oommen :
8891726544
Nipin Joseph :
9846930507

QFI Open Sports Quiz Rejects III

2011-08-22T10:09:00.000-05:00

More questions that we rejected from the QFI Open Sports Quiz 2011.

Set III

1.This movie parodied two sensational news stories of the 1990s. One was the John and Lorena Babbitt incident. What was the other?

2.Vlissingen is a municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands. In the 17th century Vlissingen was a main harbour for ships of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). The anglicised name of the city was used to name a settlement in the New Netherland colony,when the Dutch West India company settled on the eastern side of Manhattan. What name was given to the settlement?

3. He was instrumental in integrating the game of golf, breaking the sport's color barrier in America by appearing under a sponsor's exemption in the 1952 San Diego Open. Identify the guy.

4. Over the last 30 years only 3 men have won a grand slam after turning 30. Two of them are Peter Sampras and Andre Aggasi. Who is the third?

5. O Sport, pleasure of the Gods,

essence of life, you appeared suddenly

in the midst of the grey clearing

which writhes with the drudgery of

modern existence, like the radiant

messenger of a past age, when

mankind still smiled. And the glimmer

of dawn lit up the mountain tops and

flecks of light dotted the ground in the gloomy forests.

This is a poem written by Georges Hohrod and M. Eschbach, which was awarded the gold medal in the sports literature competition in the 1912 Stockholm Olympiad. So basically who are the two people?

Answers to previous set

1. 50% Percent Field Goals, 40% Three Pointers, 90% Free Throws

2. SCRUM

3. Kentucky Derby

4. Lorz travelled by car, while the actual winner used perforance enhancing drugs that was overseen

5. Patiala, Nethaji Subhash National Institute of Sports

Sriram and Ajay got three questions right...

K-Circle TriQuizzer Championships 2011

2011-08-22T09:40:00.002-05:00

We at K-Circle have become aware of an epidemic on the rise, and we're concerned; Take this questionnaire to determine if you are at risk:

1. You have a fantasy of (someday) meeting three beautiful sisters called Fluorine, Chlorine and Bromine.

2. You know that Xeno is not a warrior princess.

3. You know that "Anna" no longer auto-completes to "Kournikova".

4. Hearing "Justin" causes you to gently enquire - "Bieber", "Timberlake", or "Time"?

5. You know that Kathakali is neither a North Indian dance nor a fierce goddess.

6. You have an opinion on Yann M'vila joining Arsenal.

ALERT: Scoring even two out of six means that you may be infected with a serious case of Communis Curisitas!!!

Fear not, help is close at hand.

We enlisted the help of some of Hyderabad's best quizmasters, for who else can scratch this itch?

With their help, we will host a special health camp where you can raise your eyebrows, scratch your chins, cradle your heads and drop your inhibitions!

Don't be afraid of the cure, the Tri-Quizzer is here:

The details of the event are as follows:

Date: September 3, 2011

Time: 9.30 A.M. to 2 P.M.

Venue: The Hyderabad Public School, Begumpet

Members per Team: Two members per team

Numbers of Teams per School: 10 teams per institution

Last Date for Registration: August 31, 2011

No Registration fee!

Please register online by sending a mail to kckcircle@gmail.com clearly specifying the Name of the Institution and the Names of Students representing the School at the competition. Registrations would be accepted on a first-come-first-served basis.

Landmark Quiz Chennai 2011 Prelims

2011-08-21T11:43:00.001-05:00

Thanks to Dr. Navin for sharing the prelims questions from the Chennai Edition of the Landmark Quiz 2011.

For questions from previous editions of the Landmark Quiz. -- click here.

LQC 11 PRELIMS – THE QUESTIONS

1. The Story of My Life, an autobiography by Helen Keller is dedicated to which eminent person who helped direct her education and considered himself foremost a teacher of the deaf?

2. In the cricketing Caribbean West Indies, which country though not an island forms part of this group?

3. What list is this and whose name fills the blank: _____ ➜ Albus Dumbledore ➜ Draco Malfoy ➜ Harry Potter

4. NASA launched which queen as the fastest manmade object in history on August 5th 2011 on a mission that will end in a high-speed crash into her husband about 630 million km away?

5. If India = Bharat and Japan = Nippon, Greece = ............?

6. It is called the Mehran in

Pakistan

and is the largest selling product of its type in the country. Its direct Indian equivalent is also the largest selling product of its kind in this country. What brand?

7. The Lokayukta Act 1984 was the first of its kind in

India

. It was the brainchild of which Chief Minister who was inspired by the successful working of the Swedish ombudsman?

8. The attacks on Krishna as a child by Putana, Trinavarta and other demons so frightened Yashodha that she insisted that the entire village move from Gokul to a more auspicious place downstream on the banks of the Yamuna next to a tulsi forest at the base of Govardhan hill. What place was this?

9. This word of Greek origin means “mound” or “built up”. It is used to describe a class of steroids that increase protein synthesis and build up cellular tissue especially in muscles. That it was a favourite ingredient in the diet of some Indian athletes came to light recently. What word is this?

10. Which river arises in the Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir, flows through the city of Jammu and then crosses into Pakistan to join the Chenab?

11.* 2011 saw unrest and the fall of governments in several Arab nations. The year has been compared to which year that saw revolution and overthrow of governments in several European countries starting with Paris and spreading to Munich, Berlin, Vienna, Milan and Venice? Your choices are: 1848, 1857, 1872, 1914

12. * Who uttered the famous phrase “poyekhali!” meaning “Off we go!” before embarking on a momentous journey?

13. * The H1N1 virus pandemic of 2009 influenced the world of gaming by inspiring characters in which game?

14. * According to a survey by Hohner, during the Great Depression in America, only two musical instruments saw a year-by-year increase in sales because they were inexpensive, compact and easy to learn, Which two instruments?

15. * Pierre Boulle, a Frenchman, used his wartime experiences to pen a novel which made into the film The Bridge on the River Kwai for which he won an Oscar. Another book by him proved so popular that it is now a film franchise with about seven films. Name the franchise. (explain like Harry Potter series etc)

16. * A European country has two elements in the Periodic Table named after it. Which two elements?

17. * In 2008 this country created a world first by legally recognizing Pachamama as having the “right to exist, persist, maintain and regenerate...” in their new constitution? Name the country and identify Pachamama.

18. * The winner of the British Open golf championship receives what trophy that might be useful to celebrate with? It replaced a previous trophy that was won outright in 1870 by a certain Tom Morris who won the Championship three years in a row. And what commonly worn personal object constituted that trophy?

19. * In a business or professional firm, the level of managers and other senior staff just below the topmost level of directors or partners is sometimes described by the phrase “ ______ layer” that is borrowed from cakes / confectionary. What word is this?

20. * Which district of Tamil Nadu gets its name from Sanskrit meaning “black mountain” from the numerous black granite hillocks that dot its landscape?

21. This small town on the rail route between Thirunelveli and Madras is named after a freedom fighter who shot dead Ashe, the Collector of Thirunelveli in 1911. Name the town and the freedom fighter.

22. The Prime Meridian passes through the following countries: UK, France, Spain, Algeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, Togo, and

Ghana

. Which is the only capital city through which it passes?

23. What does the Kimberley process certify? (2-keyword answer)

24. In

Czechoslovakia

it is called “prozvonit”. In Spanish the practice is called “dar un toque” (to give a touch). What is the common English term in

India

for this telecom practice?

25. Complete this classic quote: “In

Italy

for thirty years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder and bloodshed but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and the Renaissance. In

Switzerland

, they had brotherly love; they had five hundred years of democracy and peace and what did they produce? _______”

26. Bhimayana is a Sanskrit epic in 21 chapters and 1700 verses written by Prof Prabhakar Joshi. Who is it about?

27. This tree has been growing in

India

for over 2000 years. It is considered sacred – its leaves are used on auspicious occasions and its fruit eaten. Name this tree supposed to be the abode of Kama in mythology, and images of which have been found on the Sanchi Stupa.

28. This phrase means “to be in difficulty, and faced with a choice between two unsatisfactory options.” The phrase was literally true as the title of a 2004 autobiography made into a critically acclaimed film. What phrase is this?

29. In atomic theory only two fundamental particles have been named after scientists. Name both.

30. Jakob von Uexküll sold his valuable stamp collection to create this prize. He initially tried to interest the Nobel Foundation in this prize but the foundation decided not to associate itself with the new prize after controvery over the establishment of the Prize for Economics instituted by the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Nobel's name. The prize honours those "working on practical and exemplary solutions to the most urgent challenges facing the world today." What is the formal name of this prize that is awarded in the Riksdag (Parliament) of

Sweden

the day before the Nobel prizes?

31. VISUAL: Use the picture on your right to identify the actress (B&W pic) on the left.

32: VISUAL: Identify the two maps in this book cover.

33. VISUAL: Identify. This small African rodent could be considered misnamed until one sees it. It’s named after its resemblance to another animal.

34. VISUAL: Identify this jewellery craftsmanship used to create elaborate necklaces of the royal courts of Rajasthan. Which company made these pieces for the film in the visual?

35. AUDIO: This music features in the end credits of which recent popular film?

Kung Fu Panda – Two

36: AUDIO: Which English indie rock band is performing this cover version of whose original?

37: AUDIO: This song to inspire team and supporters of Bangladesh for ICC World Cup 2011 was itself “inspired” from a film song. Name the original composer and film in which it appeared.

38: VIDEO (From Source Code): Identify this striking work of art in the Millennium park in Chicago.

39: VIDEO: Name the person being portrayed in this scene from a TV docudrama proving Einstein’s theory of gravity.

40: VIDEO: This is an ad for which company based on superb adaptation of which great novel?

LQC 11 PRELIMS – THE ANSWERS

1. Alexander Graham Bell

2. Guyana

3. Elder Wand owners / Gellert Grindlewald

4. Juno spacecraft mission to Jupiter.

5. Hellas

6. Maruti 800 (both based on Suzuki Alto)

7. Ramakrishna Hegde

8. Vrindavan

9. Anabolic (or Anabolic steroids)

10. Tawi

11.* 1848

12.* Yuri Gagarin (April 12, 1961)

13. * Angry Birds. The virus causes swine flu. The swine became the enemy green pigs of the Angry Birds video game.

14. * Ukelele and Harmonica

15. * Planet of the Apes

16. * Gallium and Francium

17. * Ecuador / Nature or Environment. Pachamama is the indigenous word for all life. Chapter: Rights for Nature/Art. 1. Nature or Pachamama, where life is reproduced and exists, has the right to exist, persist, maintain and regenerate its vital cycles, structure, functions and its processes in evolution.

18. * Claret Jug / Belt (or Championship Belt)

19. * Marzipan. Some cakes have a layer of marzipan just below the icing.

20. * Krishnagiri

21. Maniyachi / Vanchinathan

22. London

23. Conflict (or blood) diamonds. These are diamonds that originate from a war zone and are sold to finance insurgencies, armies and warlords. The Kimberley Process ensures that diamonds originating from Angola, The Congo, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe do not finance rebel groups. Conflict diamonds without KP certification are 30% cheaper.

24. “Missed call”

25. The cuckoo clock. (Orson Welles’ film The Third Man)

26. Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar

27. Mango

28. Between a rock and a hard place (This is also the title of the autobiography of Aron Ralston, mountaineer, made into the film 127 Hours)

29. Bosons and Fermions (after Satyendranath Bose and Enrico Fermi)

30. Right Livelihood Award. Popularly known as Alternative Nobel. (Notable Indian winners include: Vandana Shiva, Rajni Kothari, Narmada Bachao Andolan, Swami Agnivesh, CHipko movement etc).

31. Jane Birkin. It is after her that the Birkin bag is named. The Birkin bag is a handmade purse by Hermès. The bag is a symbol of wealth due to its high price and elusiveness to the public. Its prices range from $9,000 to $150,000.

32. Punjab / Tamil Nadu

33. Elephant Shrew

34. Kundan / Tanishq

35. AUDIO: Kung Fu Panda – Two

36: Arctic Monkeys / Amy Winehouse (Song: You Know I’m No Good)

37: Yuvan Shankar Raja / Paiyya

38: Cloud Gate (by Anish Kapoor)

39: Arthur Eddington (He photographed stars behind the Sun during a solar eclipse and showed that the Sun’s gravity causes the light of the stars behind it to bend thus proving Einstein’s theory of relativity)

40: Apple / 1984

QFI Open Sports Quiz Rejects II

2011-08-18T11:49:00.000-05:00

1.The 50–40–90 Club is an informal term referring to a very exclusive group of National Basketball Association players. 50–40–90 indicates a great all-around performance and is considered as the ultimate standard. Since the 1979–80 season, the 50–40–90 shooting threshold has only been reached by five players: Steve Nash, Larry Bird, Mark Price, Reggie Miller and Dirk Nowitzki. In fact, Bird has done it twice and Nash has done it four times. So, what is 50-40-90?

2.The ESPN site for cricket is ESPN Cricinfo while the ESPN site for football is ESPN soccernet. What is ESPN's site for rugby called?

3. This event is advertised as "The most exciting two minutes in sports" and also as "The run for the roses". Which event?

4. The 1904 marathon in St. Louis were not ideal condition to race. The terrain involved a muddy course, a series of about eight hills for the 40-kilometer race and the weather nearing 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Frederick "Fred" Lorz , the winner of the marathon was denied the victory. In fact he was accussed of cheating and James Sullivan, the head of the 1904 Olympics banned him from amateur athletic competition for LIFE.

The eventual winner was Thomas Hicks , who crossed the finish line at 3 hours and 28 minutes - the longest finishing time in Olympic Marathon history (a dubious record that likely will never be broken). James Sullivan, the head of the 1904 Olympics however overlooked a unique fact while declaring Thomas Hicks as winner.

What unpardonable crime did lorz commit and what unique fact was overlooked in Hicks' case ?

5. This museum is housed in the Old Moti Bagh palace, is the only sports museum in the country. Some of the famous artifacts found in this museum are

* Adidas spikes worn by Milkha Singh in the 1960 Rome Olympic
* Major Dhyan Chand`s gold medal which he won at the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics,
* the hass — a doughnut shaped exercising apparatus weighing a solid 95 kgs — belonging to the
legendry Gama Pehalwan who used it for squats,
* shoes which P.T. Usha wore during her 1986 Seoul Asiad win
* The bat autographed by the Indian cricket team captained by Kapil Dev which won the Prudential
World Cup in 1983.

Id the city where it is situated and the famous institute housed along with this museum

Sriram Got 3.5 answers right...

Answers to Rejects Set I ( questions can be found here)

1. James Braddock felt that at the onset of WWII the fight might be viewed as US vs Germany and didn't want that. Second reason being, Joe Louis manager promised Braddock 10% of each fight Joe Louis would fight for the next 10 years.

2. 1 Hour Run

3. Caravaggio

4. PGN Notation for Chess

5. Rope Climbing

QFI Open Sports Quiz 2011: Rejects

2011-08-17T02:33:00.000-05:00

Will be posting a few set of questions , that we rejected from the QFI Open Sports Quiz Prelims/Finals this year. Have a go at these questions.. Answers will be posted in a day.

1.James Braddock , immediately after defeating Max Primavera had to defend his heavy weight boxing title against Max Schmelling under the Contract with Madison Square Garden. However , he chose to fight Joe Louis , reneging on the contract. There were two reasons for choosing to fight against Joe Louis, What were they?

2. While officially recognized by the International Association of Athletics Federations as a track event, it is rarely contested apart from occasional world record attempts. First recorded races dating back to the late 17th century, and the first officially recognized

world record was set by Alfred Shrubb in 1904. Currently the WR for men is at 21.285 by Halie Gebras Selasie and at 18.517 for women by Dire Tune. Which event are we talking about?

3. According to the Roman police logs. there was the little matter of the tennis game gone awry. Michelangelo Merisi - street brawler killed an opponent, “a very polite young man” named Ranunccio Tommasini with a sword after an argument over a bet of 10 scudi. Nobody knows why. Maybe a disputed point. Whatever, it was decidedly against the rules, and Michelangelo had to flee Rome as an exile, shortly after the killing in May of 1606, never to return.

Glad he didn’t take his paintings with him.

How do we know Michelangelo Merisi better?

4. Before X, every vendor had a different way of encoding. X was developed in 1993 by Steven J. Edwards, was discussed and disseminated via Usenet. It became an immediate success because, as a readable text format, it satisfied the needs of people as well as of computers. What is X?

5.In the 1924 Paris Olympics, there were a total of 23 perfect tens achieved, one of the highest tallies in Omypics history. Albert Seguin achieved a perfect ten in the Sidehorse Vault. The others 22 were from the same sport. Which, now defunct, gymnastic sport are we talking about?

QFI Open Sports Quiz 2011: Finals Anti-Clockwise

2011-08-16T05:24:00.000-05:00

Finals of the C-Cube QFI Open Sports Quiz 2011

The finals of the Quiz -- had 4 rounds -- Two normal infinite bounce -- 16 questions each and 2 written rounds with 8 questions each. Have not put in the questinos with the Videos.

Anti-Clockwise round

1. The 2012 London Olympics is scheduled to take place from 27 July to 12 August in order to coincide with the British Summer holidays. However, certain sections of the world have opposed strongly to the schedule due to a certain problem.

Which sections and why?

2. Bapu Nadkarni holds the test record for the most number of consecutive maiden overs bowled in an innings. However he doesn't hold the record for the most number of consecutive dot balls in a innings.

Who holds the record and why isn't Nadkarni the holder of this record?

3. This is about two terms X and Y used in two sports.

In the first sport, the X is the major way of scoring points, while the Y formally refers only to grounding the ball by the defensive team. Occasionally people refer to X as the Y, which is incorrect. The term X comes from the fact that originally, grounding the ball only gave the opportunity to score with a kick at goal.

In the second sport, the Y is the major way of scoring points. However, the actual mode of scoring is contrary to the event's name. The term X is used to denote an attempt to score extra points.

X in the first sport is analogous to Y in the second sport.
Identify X, Y and the two sports.

4. Ted Tinling was a revered Chief of Protocol for the ITF and a Director of International Liaison for the Women’s Pro Tour. He was the master of ceremonies for Wimbledon, a position he would hold from the late 20s until the late 40s, and a position he would eventually be asked to resign at the height of a scandal, which was related to another profession of his.

What was the scandal about?

5. When the sport originated, initially the ‘horse’ was used. However, after a series of accidents in 2000, citing safety reasons, it was decided that the horse would be replaced. The company Jansen Fritsen, had came up with an alternative in the mid 1990's. This was used for the first time in 2001, and it was found to be much safer.

What name was given to the alternative and what sport are we talking about?

6. In the contraption shown in the picture, the ball is placed at the specified notch and a known force is applied. The distance travelled is measured.

Where and why is the above process done? What is the device called?

7. With reference to the 2012 Olympics, what is named after this and why?

8. In the mid 19th century, women had become interested in the golf game, but the conservative social norms of the era deemed it unacceptable for women to publicly perform such violent movements that a golf swing requires. Thus, the Ladies' Putting Club of St. Andrews in Scotland, came up with a 18-hole course of putting greens, called “The Himalayas”.

How is “The Himalayas”, the first of its kind?

9. It was built by the former Caledonian Railway Company and opened in 1924, and is now owned by the international alcoholic beverage firm Diageo. It is known as the site of a landmark pact in 1977 which was made to reinforce commitments made in the Singapore Declaration of Commonwealth Principles in 1971.

Identify the place and the pact.

10. This is a motocoaster ride in DreamWorld at Queensland’s Gold Coast. Who designed the ride?

11. Bigfoot, introduced in 1979, is regarded as the original _______ ________, and it remains the most well-known moniker used in the United States. Originally used as a rolling billboard for the owner's (Bob Chandler) shop, Bigfoot slowly gained popularity through its 'special abilities'. In April 1982, it became recognised all over the country. This then led to an all new form of sports entertainment.

What was the new form of entertainment thus created?

12. Sometime around June 2000 , the authorities at Lord’s decided to hoist 3 long white banners between the tiers of the media space ship. The change was prompted by events of the previous 2 test matches that had been played at Lord’s and the fact that the upcoming series was against the West Indies who had Walsh and Ambrose in their bowling attack. What prompted this change?

13. In a unique case, in the 2003 Champions League, this club played the semi-finals and were awarded a victory on the basis of greater “Away” goals (scores of the first leg was 0-0 and second leg 1-1) despite scoring their only goal at their home stadium.

Which club and what was the reason for this anomaly?

14. The first time that the German national anthem was played in public after the Second World War was at the Wankdorf Stadium, nine years after the war ended.

Where is the stadium and what was the occasion?

15. The first race was held at Jerome Park race track in The Bronx on a track built by Winston Churchill’s grandfather. The oldest of the Triple Crown races for thoroughbred horses in America, it is often called the ‘Race for the Carnations’ because the winning horse is blanketed with white carnations.

Which race?

16. I will take Discus for $20,000. Weave a story around these two.

Answers

1. It coincides with the month of Ramadan. Hence, Islamic states are strongly protesting the dates as they feel their athletes cannot participate properly.

2. Hugh Tayfield has the record. Tayfield bowled eight-ball overs so even though he bowled more dot balls, the number of overs were lesser than 21.

3. X – Try

Y – Touchdown

First Sport – Rugby (Union / League)

Second Sport – American Football

4. Ted Tinling designed Gussie Moran’s highly controversial outfit which involved purple lace panties.

5. The event is the Vault. The apparatus being used nowadays is referred to as the ‘Tongue’.

6. To estimate the speed of a golf course.

The USGA specifies the following recommendation for golf course based on Stimpmeter measurement.

Slow greens: 4.5 feet

Medium greens: 6.5 feet

Fast greens: 8.5 feet

7. The official football for the London 2012 Olympics is called “The Albert” after the Royal Albert Hall.

‘Royal Albert Hall’ is Cockney rhyming slang for ‘ball’.

8. The first Miniature Golf course.

9. This is the Gleneagles Hotel.

The pact is the Gleneagles Pact against apartheid, which involved a sporting boycott of South Africa.

10. Mick Doohan

11. Bigfoot was the first ever monster truck.

12. The Chris Read Dismissal

13. AC Milan were playing Inter Milan in the semi-finals. Both the teams share the same stadium – the San Siro. So, the legs were assigned as ‘home’ and ‘away’ arbitrarily beforehand.

14. The stadium is in Bern.

The event was the “Miracle of Berne” in the 1954 FIFA World Cup.

15. Belmont Stakes

16. Krishna Poonia won the CWG 2010 Gold Medal for the Discus throw. Dani Samuels, the World Champion did not take part in the Games citing health reasons. Poonia however accused her of being scared.

As a result, Samuels has challenged Poonia to a $20,000 faceoff in the near future.

QFI Open Sports Quiz 2011: Finals Clockwise

2011-08-16T04:38:00.000-05:00

Clockwise round

1. Van Philips, an American inventor said, “It would be the most exciting thing to happen in my life, because the C shape was the first _____ in my mind”. Essentially, he devised this in 1984 by borrowing concepts from the movement of a cheetah, pole vaulting, the spring of a diving board and the C shape of a Chinese sword his father owned.

What highly talked about product did Van Philips invent?

2. Arthur Ehrat was infuriated by the excessive delays in the basketball game caused due to certain visually attractive ‘ungentlemanly acts’ committed by the players. Using a spring from a John Deere cultivator, he came with up an elegant solution, in the form of a new device.

What was the problem and what did Ehrat invent?

3. a.) Introduced the practice of naming a substitute referee (this eventually evolved into the practice of having a designated fourth official).

b.) Proposed that the pressure of the ball should be specified in the Laws of the Game. c.) Introduced the number board for substitutes, so that players could easily understand who was being substituted. All of these innovations were made by the same person. Identify him and arguably, what was his most famous contribution to football?

4. In which Olympic event would one see these being used?

5. Mr. R.D. Singh is a Dronacharya Award recipient. Although a good sportsman himself, he is more famous for his coaching exploits. How is his Dronacharya award one of a kind?

And hence, name the prodigy that he discovered in 1997 in school competition who later achieved fame in 2004.

6. The event which this movie is based on, is known by what moniker? What inspired this moniker?

7. Shown in the picture is the obverse design used for the Olympics Games medals from 1928 to 1968. From 1972, a small modification of the same design was used. However, a glaring error existed in the design and this was pointed out by the Australian paper, ‘O Kosmos’ before the 2000 Olympics and so the Sydney Olympic Authorities asked for a change in the design. However, the change was done only in 2004.

What was the error?

8. In 1908, a pub owner from Leeds, Yorkshire, by the name of Foot Anakin was taken to court for allowing this game in his establishment, because games of chance in public houses were earlier prohibited by legislation. He challenged this ruling by challenging one of the court officials to a game. The court official failed to win and so, the judge deemed it to be a game of skill rather than a game of chance. This ruling arguably was a turning point in the game's growth.

Which game are we talking about?

9. Fill in the blank and hence tell me where you would find the statue.

I remember Wembley, When ________ beat West Germany. Peters one and Geoffrey three, And Bobby got his OBE!

10. This trophy is named after a Scottish town, which is the birthplace of the sport. The town was once symbolically represented by the visual pun of a mason's hammer and the flower symbolizing Virgin Mary.

One of the key events that popularised the sport in England was a Middlesex charity event, where it was described as follows : "You see the field is so open that if a man gets away with the ball a full sized gallop is required to catch him and very often it... wasn't there." Identify the sport and the trophy.

11. Since the start of the 2009-10 season, during the home matches played at the Estadi Cornellà-El Prat, fans of the home club clap throughout the 22nd minute of the game.

Why do they do this?

12. During the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, Mark Webber retired during the race due to the electronic gearbox selecting two gears at the same time. The Red Bull camp initially claimed that the problem was caused due to a unique feature of the track. What reason did Red Bull give, that was later debunked by the Singapore authorities?

13. This 19th century pitcher, during a tryout, impressed the scouts with his pitching ability and (in his own words) “almost tore the boards off the grandstand with my fast ball. The fence looked like a tornado had hit them”.

How has he been known ever since this tryout and how does his name live on in sports?

14. Connect the following results.

15. The name of the place is not only an obvious allusion to the ‘melting pot’ of ideas that it aimed to become, but it also was to forge a bond with the city's specific history as the center of British steel making and the eighteenth century innovation that propelled it forwards. The history is related to a person by the name of Benjamin Huntsman, who has a tribute to him as shown.

Identify the place.

Answer

1. Van Phillips is the inventor of the C-Shape prosthetic foot which is now famously used by Oscar Pistorius. The design that Pistorius uses is called Cheetah.

2. He invented the breakaway rim in basketball to prevent backboard shattering.

3. Ken Aston, who introduced the red and yellow card concept.

4. Race Walking

5. He is the only person to receive a Dronacharya award for paralympic coaching.

The prodigy he discovered was Devendra Jajharia, who won the 2004 Athens Paralympics Gold Medal in the javelin throw.

6. Miracle on Grass and Miracle on Ice

7. The obverse features a colosseum which reflects a Roman tradition and not a Greek one. The design was changed to this :

8. Darts

9. Upton Park.

Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters were all players who represented West Ham United at the time they won the World Cup.

10. Melrose Cup. (Mell + Rose)

The sport is Rugby Sevens.

11. To honour Dani Jarque of Espanyol whose jersey number was 21 and who died on the field. The most famous reference to this was however, Iniesta's tribute during the World Cup

12. The Singapore Grand Prix is the only circuit to run above a tram line. As Webber passed through corner 13, a static electrical charge made the gearbox choose two gears simultaneously and hence he had to retire.

13. Cyclone ‘Cy’ Young, after whom the best pitcher award is named.

14. Both events involve stripping bronze medals off of athletes as they threw it away to show protest.

Ibragim Samadov of the 1992 Unified Team was stripped of his bronze medal after he “hurled his bronze medal to the floor” and stormed off.

Ara Abrahamian was stripped of his bronze medal in 2008 for similar reasons.

15. The Crucible Theatre, where the World Snooker Championships take place.

QFI Open Sports Quiz 2011 Prelims Questions

2011-08-16T00:42:00.000-05:00

Here are some of the questions from the prelims of the C-Cube QFI Open Sports Quiz.

0.9 different tyre manufacturers have provided tyres for the Formula 1 Teams. However , there is only one manufacturer who has never won a single Grand Prix. Which tyre manufacturer?

1. Among all the flag bearers for India at the Olympics, only two people have had the honor of holding the flag multiple times. One, is Balbir Singh Sr. who did it both at the 1952 Helsinki Games and the 1956 Melbourne Games.

Who is the other one, who has done it three times?

2.During the 2011 Cricket World Cup, there were only two teams that did not play a national anthem before their matches.
Which two teams?

3. It is a popular betting card game played in Tamil Nadu played by both adults and kids. While the adults bet money, the kids in general stake tamarind seeds, matchbox labels etc.

The objective of the game is to select a card from a fresh deck and determine , whether , the same number of a different suit , falls in the inner or the outer half when the cards are laid out in two stack , one by one. What is the name of the game that has become popular in another field recently?

4. In the 1811 edition of his chess treatise, Johann Allgaier introduced the 0-0 symbol. He used two variants of the symbol, "0-0r" and "0-0l".
What did this symbol denote? And what are the two variants?

5. The center of percussion is the point on an object where a perpendicular impact will produce translational and rotational forces which perfectly cancel each other out at a pivot point, so that the pivot will not be moving after the impulse.
With respect to sports, how is the centre of percussion commonly known as?

6. When Genoa won the Italian Serie A for a 9th time in the 1923-24 season, they decided to reward and celebrate themselves as champions by adding something to their jersey. This practice has been followed ever since.

a) What did Genoa add to their jersey?

b) What term originated thus?

7. During the 2007 Indian tour of England, only one person in the Indian team scored a century in the Test Series. Who?

8. This is an installation by Pierre Huyghe that uses lighting as a screen and includes a computer game program interface , joysticks and halogen lamps.

Name the installation, and what game are they playing?

9. “Over the Top” is an autobiography of a cricketer, who was imprisoned for embezzling funds from his employer while working as a car salesman. Who is he?

10. What was the inspiration for this outfit designed by Nike for Maria Sharapova’s 2006 US Open Campaign?

11. Metallica recently announced their first ever Indian concert to be held at Leisure Valley in Gurgaon on the 28th of October, 2011.

This concert is to help celebrate which other event in the vicinity?

12. The first ever instance of 2 people running a sub 4-minute mile happened in the 1954 British Empire Games in Vancouver. In a photo finish, John Landy lost to Roger Bannister. A statue of this event stands outside the stadium. What is believed to be the reason for his loss?

13. Born in Kottayam, Kerala and a former captain of the Indian National Women's basketball team, she recently became the first Indian ever to attend try-outs for the WNBA.

Identify this person.

14. Tex Robertson, an Olympic bronze medalist for the 1932 US Water Polo team , trained Adolph Kiefer to the 100m backstroke gold in the 1936 Berlin Olympics by inventing a maneuver that reduced time. Ever since , all swimmers have followed this technique. What maneuver did Tex Robertson invent?

15. With respect to the Olympics, what specific feat do these three athletes share?

16. Complete the analogy

: ?

17. Initially known as ‘Hazard’ in England, which game derives its popular name from the fact that players in New Orleans squatted like toads while rolling the dice on the ground?

18. “…. it all started with an educational channel here in Chicago where they asked me to do some science stuff. And I got tired. In those days you had very little budget-of just having a few pictures and having to do voiceovers: "If you look in the upper left hand corner, you'll see X,Y, Z." So I decided it would be very nice to be able to get my hands in the picture and draw on it.”

Leonard Reiffel talking about his 1960's invention, which won him an Emmy in 2004. So what did he come up with?

19. Often called a diva, she was known for her expressive dance , extremely difficult and innovative routines.

One of the long lasting images of her , is her leaving the Sydney Olympics gymnasium in tears , after crashing on the Vault Apparatus, due to an error by the authorities.

Identify this gymnast who has the unique distinction of having moves named after her in each of the seven disciplines of gymnastics in the Artistic Code of Points.

20. Jimmy Hill , as the Manager of Coventry City Football Club , commissioned a change to the stadium for the benefit of the fans watching the game. However , this proved to be extremely unpopular, and had to be partially rolled back. However , The Taylor Report published in 1990 , advised the change suggested by Jimmy Hill to be made mandatory across all Premier league Stadiums. What was the change suggested by Jimmy Hill and what was the Taylor report?

21. For which sport is this the governing body? Also, what special attire does the world champion in this sport wear?

22. The Albert Reserve and Warehouseman’s cricket ground in St. Kilda, Melbourne is the home of the Victorian Cricket Team. It has hosted a number of First Class matches and ODIs including the Rose Bowl series in 2004 between Australia and New Zealand.

However it is also famous for hosting the first ever edition of another event at its premises in 1905. What was the event?

23. The left hand side of the image , shows the different sections under which Flipkart categorizes their books. What is the section that has been blanked out?

24. Xtreme Football League, was originally conceived to build on the success of the NFL. It was hyped as "real" football without penalties for roughness and with fewer rules in general and the Stadiums featured trash-talking public address announcers and scantily-clad cheerleaders. Which present day ‘entertainer’/ former federation owner was the person behind this initiative?

25. It is a small 15 Km long river in the province of Liege, which derives its name from the French words for “Red water”. The river lends its name to one of the best-known corners in Formula One as it is the point where the racetrack crosses the river for the first time.

What is the name of the river/corner and which is the circuit?

26. Whose bio reads thus?

The President of the Dominican Football Referees Association.

Became an official international FIFA referee in 1995.

First Dominican to referee a World Cup qualifier, which was between Guyana and Grenada in 1996.

Retired from FIFA in 1997.

27. By what common nickname are these intimidating sporting venues known?

28. If you were using this contraption , what game would you be playing?

29. Created by the Masterix Bandung company, this is made of 22-carat gold plated silver and stands on an octagonal base made of jati wood. The body of the cup is in the form of a shuttlecock and the handles are in the shape of stamens symbolizing the seeds of the sport.

What is mounted on the body of the cup and what is the name of the trophy?

30. Often called half and half, Innovative Flavors from Orlando , Florida licenses a beverage consisting of half iced tea and half Lemonade. The beverage is named after a person who ordered this drink after designing a course in Palm Springs in 1960s. What is the name of the beverage?

Tata Crucible 2011 Corporate Coimbatore Prelims

2011-07-25T00:59:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Arul Saravanan and Yogesh Pai for sharing the questions from the Coimbatore edition of the Tata Crucible Corporate Quiz.

1. English singer/composer, brain child behind rocket record co. in 1972. Has a unique record, they are the only co. that has a trade mark to a song , that was sung only once in public?
2. Which former airhostess was Lakme’s first Indian model?
3. Which co. did Sunil Mittal get into an agreement in 1983 to manufacture the co’s push button telephone models for the Indian market? Later the co. went onto forge alliance with Nokia.
4. Picture of this famous Huge Entrepreneur.

5. Whose Tagline goes “ No Flavour Finer” The product carries a G I Tag and makes India proud?
6. The Vanilla Beans are used in the Ice Cream Industry. Which Country produces 80% of the world’s Vanilla Beans output?(Clue – Children will know from Cartoons)
7. On 5th April 2011, who announced about his new IT Venture “Happiest Minds Technologies Pvt Ltd” ?
8. Picture of a Logo – whose? (Probably the Toughest question- QM)

9. What term now used in media comes from the name given by the London based pharmaceutical company Burroughs Well Co to the compressed Tablets ?
10. Which Asian Country with Voice based revenues of $ 5.70 Billion has overtaken India as the Call centre capital of the world ?
11. Who is the main Holding company of LMVH, owning 42.38% of its Shares and 59.30% of its Voting rights? (Clue – Huge Brand)
12. From the Education Sector. Old Company. Whose Logo?

13. First example of an Indian company hiring a local face to endorse its brand exclusively in another Country. Dabur has roped in which Pakistani cricketer for its brand – Hajmola?
14. Which nation gets its top level internet domain as .Ch ?
15. He has donated a majority of his company’s shares to M.I.T to fulfill his desire. Under the terms of the Gift, M.I.T cannot sell its shares & will not participate in its management or governance of the Company but can get annual dividend on its shares. Identify this gentleman.? (Huge Indian name)
16. Arabian Logo . Identify ? (New tourism destination in the middle east. Did not get effected by the recession)

17. Logo – Identify ? (Local Company)

18. Which electronic commerce company would be associated with Andrew Mason?
19. This Company is recognized as India’s biggest chain of Family Clubs by the Limca book of world records. They boast of having around 600 corporate members including Microsoft, Brooke bond Lipton, CMC,etc…..
20. Very much native Logo.

ANSWERS

1. Elton John
2. Maureen Wadia
3. Seimens
4. Cecil Rhodes
5. Darjeeling Tea
6. Madagascar
7. Ashok Soota
8. Competition Commission of India
9. Tabloid
10. Philippines
11. Christian Dior
12. Aptech
13. Shahid Afridi
14. Switzerland
15. Amar Bose
16. Abu Dhabi
17. Vasan Eye Care
18. Groupon
19. Country Club
20. Nigiris

HTNI #47

2011-07-20T10:28:00.002-05:00

It is a rare type of natural disaster in which carbon dioxide suddenly erupts from deep lake water, suffocating wildlife, livestock and humans. Such an eruption may also cause tsunamis in the lake as the rising CO2 displaces water. Only two such instances have been recorded in history -- Once in 1984 in Cameroon at Lake Monoun and the other being at the neighbouring Lake Nyos in 1986. What are these types of explosions called?

Answer to Yesterday's Question.

This is the Mascot of the FIFA Women's World Cup 2011 , named Karla Kick. Only Tezeshwar got this right.

The Tata Crucible Corporate Quiz 2011 : Preps -2

2011-07-20T02:42:00.001-05:00

1. The MeghaDhoot Awards are given to employees of which organization?

2. This two word term was coined by Rajagopala Chari and described it thus " It represents not only cynical but non truthful way of potential development. It provides way for political corruption and economic stagnation". What was the term?

3. Identify this person from the world of Tatas

4. Connect

5. Founded in 1885, it has been part of the Unicorn group since 1969. This company is based in Colwick, Nottinghamshire and some of its famous ambassadors have been Steve Waugh and Graeme Smith. Which Company?

Answers to Previous question set

1. TurboJet

2. Dilbert

3. Indian Statistical Institute and the person was P.C. Mahalanobis

4. Music/ appearance of A.R.Rahman in advertisements -- Toyota Etios , Airtel , Motorola

5. AIIMS

More Tata Crucible Preps from Previous years

The Tata Crucible 2009 Preps Series

The Tata Crucible 2010 Campus Preps Series

Review of Biz World By Ravi Handa and Avinash Maurya

2011-07-20T01:26:00.000-05:00

It is not often that you see new quiz books hit the market and it is even harder to find good quiz books on Business. I was therefore very interested in having a look at this book when I saw it on Flipkart and when Ravi mailed me asking , if I would review the book, I immediately agreed.

Before I got the reviewers copy of the book from the publisher , I decided that I would probably review the book on 3 or 4 criteria

1. Content of the book
2. Structure of the book
3. Would it keep both amateurs as well as seasoned quizzers interested
4. Does it do anything different from previously published quiz books. -- I was interested to see , what was new in the book that hadn't possibly been covered in the Derek O Brien Corporate Quiz Books or the Tata Crucible Quiz books.

What struck me when I first went through the book was the structure of the book. Unlike the Derek O brien books -- which had questions divided on topics/ Personalities , or a Tata Crucible Quiz book , which mimicked the structure of the quiz itself , it was a structure , that lent itself to a comprehensive study on brands and personalities.

About half the book is structured to facts about companies and tabularized based on the industry vertical that they would fall under. With information like -- when the company was founded , the name of the founders, the Head quarters , the present head and interesting pieces of trivia about the company , it provides a very easy way for the reader to scale his/her business knowledge. While one gets the feeling that the book caters in a large part to cracking big quizzes like Brand Equity and Tata Crucible , the amount of information in the book , definitely helps you prepare for all other type of biz quizzes as well.

The other half of the book is about questions that you tend to see in quizzes , like multiple choices and High funda questions. The High funda questions were of good quality and would keep even seasoned quizzers flipping through the pages with interest.

Final Verdict:

The book is innovative in the way the content is structured and provides a wonderfully easy way to scale the steep learning curve required for business quizzing. It combines this structure with the ones seen in other quiz books and provides some wonderful quiz questions , that would keep seasoned quizzers as well as amateurs glued to the book. All in all , it is a wonderfully curated book , that is worth the time and money.

HTNI #46

2011-07-19T00:50:00.000-05:00

The Emblem for this event, designed by advertising agency WVP , was presented by Steffi Jones and shows a stylized stadium with stripes in the national colours of Germany ( Black , Red , and gold) with a pictogram of the trophy in the upper right corner. The mascot for the event was developed by GMR marketing and represent the important attributes of passion , fun and dynamics. Which event and what is the name of the mascot?

Answer to previous question

Delhi Cottom Mills -- or DCM.. only the Biz God Prashanth got this right.

The Tata Crucible Corporate Quiz 2011 : Preps -1

2011-07-18T08:41:00.000-05:00

As with every other year, plan to do a set of preparatory quizzes. However unlike the previous years, it wouldn't be one question per hour.. It is more on the lines of how the Tata Crucible Quiz itself is presented , with 1 connection , 1 Visual and 3 Dry questions. The answers will go up one day after the questions. Do send your feedback/ questions to yagnyesh@gmail.com

1. If the Petrol with Energy Boosters from HPCL is called Power, what is the diesel equivalent?

2. He is an electrical engineer from MIT and has a rare medical condition characterized by an extreme intuition about all things mechanical and chemical since christmas 1992. His father lives in a 24 hour all you can eat restaurant. Who is this person?

3. Identify this person , and what institution did he create?

4. Connect these 4 logos to a person

5. It was built with a grant from the government of New Zealand and foundation stone for academic building was laid by Queen Elizabeth II. Its president is always the union minister of health. Which Institution?

HTNI #45

2011-07-11T04:42:00.000-05:00

From the Brink of Bankruptcy is a new book by Vinay Bharath Ram about a company that he headed during the 1990s. Which compan'y story is it?

Answer to previous question

Sergio Tacchini -- the Sports Clothing designer is the correct answer.

Emil and Ramki get it right.

Tata Crucible 2011 Corporate Schedule

2011-07-09T01:54:00.000-05:00

Date	Day	City	Track	Time	Venue	Address	Contact Person & Address
23-Jul-11	Saturday	Coimbatore	Non Tata Track	2.30 PM	The Residency	# 1076, Avinashi Road, Coimbatore - 641 018	Mr Kashi Ph: 93457 06911
24-Jul-11	Sunday	Cochin	Non Tata Track	5.00 PM	The Gateway Hotel	Marine Drive, Ernakulam 682 011	Mr. Anwar Ph: 96059 66318
30-Jul-11	Saturday	Nagpur	Non Tata Track	2.30 PM	The Pride Hotel	Opp Airport, Wardha Road, Nagpur - 440 025	Mr Prashant Koparkar Ph: 98221 93655
31-Jul-11	Sunday	Indore	Non Tata Track	2.30 PM	Anand Mohan Marthur Subha Graha	MR - 10, Sukhliya, Vijayanagar, Indore - 452 010	Mr.J B Sahu Ph: 93025 30423
06-Aug-11	Saturday	Hyderabad	Non Tata Track	2.30 PM	RNR Auditorium	Opp. Lotus Pond Road, No. 12 MLA Colony, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad - 500 034	Mr. Rahmath Ali Khan Ph: 97002 14233
07-Aug-11	Sunday	Bhubaneswar	Non Tata Track	2.30 PM	May Fair Convention Centre	8-B,Jayadev Vihar, Bhubaneswar - 751 013	Mr.Sambit Mohanty Ph: 94372 08345
20-Aug-11	Saturday	Guwahati	Non Tata Track	2.30 PM	Srimanta Sankaradev Kalashetra	Panjabari, Guwahati - 781 037.	Mr. Surajit Khund Ph: 94351 46433
21-Aug-11	Sunday	Kolkata	Tata + Non Tata Track	1.00 PM	Taj Bengal	Alipore, Kolkata	Mr. Duke Ph: 98838 57766
27-Aug-11	Saturday	Ranchi	Non Tata Track	10.30 AM	St. Xaviers College	Purulia Road, Ranchi	Ms. Manisha Ph: 91227 16327
28-Aug-11	Sunday	Jamshedpur	Tata Track	10.30 AM	Ravindra Bhawan	Sakchi, Jamshedpur	Mr.Umesh Kumar Singh Ph: 094311 78038
04-Sep-11	Sunday	Bangalore	Tata + Non Tata Track	2.00 PM	St. John's Auditorium	Annexe III, opposite to the Koramangala B.D.A. Complex, Koramangala, Bangalore - 560 034.	Ms.Satyavati Rao Ph: 98450 56834
10-Sep-11	Saturday	Chennai	Tata + Non Tata Track	2.00 PM	Chinmaya Heritage Centre	Tapovan Hall, # 2, 13th Avenue, Harrington Road, Chetpet, Chennai - 600 031	Mr.Giridharan Ph: 98411 67685
17-Sep-11	Saturday	Pune	Tata + Non Tata Track	2.00 PM	Tilak Samarak	Sadashiv Peth, Pune	Mr.Amit Ph: 93705 05040
18-Sep-11	Sunday	Mumbai	Tata + Non Tata Track	2.00 PM	Y B Chavan Auditorium	Nariman Point, Mumbai - 400 021	Mr.Mervyn D'Souza Ph: 98709 21814
19-Sep-11	Monday	Ahmedabad	Non Tata Track	5.00 PM	IIM - Indian Institute of Management	(Ravi Mathai Hall), Vastrapur, Ahmedabad - 380 015.	Ms.Nikky Ph: 98986 19221
22-Sep-11	Thursday	Panjim	Non Tata Track	5.00 PM	National Institute of Oceanography, Cardium Auditorium	Dona Paula, Goa - 403 004	Mr.Ashish Rane Ph: 98231 10601
24-Sep-11	Saturday	Lucknow	Tata + Non Tata Track	1.00 PM	Taj Residency	Vipin khand, Gomti Nagar, Lucknow - 226 010.	Mr Abhishek Ph: 98397 72400
25-Sep-11	Sunday	Delhi	Tata + Non Tata Track	1.00 PM	Taj Palace Hotel	2, Sardar Patel marg, Diplomatic Enclave, New Delhi 110 021	Mr Abhishek Ph: 98397 72400
26-Sep-11	Monday	Chandigarh	Non Tata Track	5.00 PM	Taj Chandigarh	Block No. 9, Sector 17-A, Chandigarh - 160 017.	Mr.Sunil Ph: 98150 01654
02-Oct-11	Sunday	National Finals			Taj Mahal Palace and Towers	Appolo Bunder, Colaba, Mumbai - 400 001

HTNI #44

2011-07-06T04:14:00.002-05:00

He became a professional Tennis player at the age of 17, and became the Italian Tennis Champion defeating the pre-eminent Italian Player of his time Nicola Pietrangeli. He is however better known as the founder of a company formerly known as Sandys S.P.A. Who is this person?

Answer to Previous Question

This was the first time a Landlocked country had won the America's Cup. Thus the 2007 America's Cup was held in Valencia after Alinghi auctioned the rights to host the America's Cup from Switzerland.

Only Ramki got this.

KenQuiz 2011: Team Nexus Prelims

2011-07-05T20:48:00.001-05:00

Attended a super quiz by Venky , Navin and Kivi at the Sasken Campus.

First: JK & Mitesh
Second: The BoiledBeans Guys
Third : Thejaswi Udupa and Anustup

Thanks to Venky for sharing the quiz.

Sasken kenquiz prelims july 2011

View more presentations from Venkatesh S

K-Circle Open Quiz 2011

2011-07-05T05:10:00.000-05:00

Dear trivia junkies,

Zen masters say,"let the mind be Open, but not so as to let ideas slip through."

Fashionistas say,"let the slip be Open, and let the mind get ideas!"

Quizmasters say: "Let there be the Open!"

Welcome to "Swami & Friends' present: K-Circle Open Quiz 2011"

Date : 31st July 2011

> Teams of three

> Bhaskara Auditorium, B M Birla Science Centre, Near Birla Mandir, Adarsh Nagar, Hyderabad-500063. For those who didn't know, Birla Science Center is the complex below the Birla planetarium!

> QMs: Swami & Friends- Josyula 'JK' Krishnamurthi, Alagar 'Cut-off' Samy, E M 'Buggy' Bhargava & Anil 'Cheshire Cat Smile' Kumar

> Attractive cash prizes!

Rest assured you will NOT be disappointed!

HTNI #43

2011-07-05T01:04:00.000-05:00

In 2003 , The alinghi SUI -64 , a yacht owned by Societe Nautique de Geneve challenged the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron for the America's cup and won the races as well. This however resulted in a first for the America's Cup in 2007. What first occurred in 2007 and why?

Answer to previous question

Mussolini

Santhosh , TriviaStar , Ramki got it right.

KenQuiz by Sasken

2011-06-16T21:32:00.000-05:00

Team Nexus (Vivek Karthikeyan, Navin Rajaram and Venkatesh S) are hosting the kenQuiz - Tech Quotient Quiz powered by Sasken.

Highlights below:

The quiz is on all things technology!
There is an online edition beginning tomorrow morning (June 16 till June 29); the winning team from this gets direct entry into the finals.
The offline prelims (from which 7 more teams will be chosen) and finals are at the Sasken HQ in Domlur, Bangalore on Saturday, July 2, 2011, starting at 0930 Hrs.
The quiz (online and offline) is open for corporates in teams of 2; team members can be from different companies, and from any industry
Please refer to kenquiz.sasken.com for more details and for the online quiz; the site will be live from tomorrow (June 16) morning