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The Karnataka Quiz Associationpresents
MEGA-WHATS 2010
The 2nd National Open Quizzing Championships
MEGA-WHATS 2010
in association with QFI Chennai
Bombay Quiz Club, MumbaiBoat Club Quiz Club, PuneKutub Quizzers, New Delhi
SEQC, GoaHyderabad Quiz Club
Grey Cells, KeralaCoimbatore Quiz Circle
And the quizzing community in Kolkata
OPERATING RULESSection I: 30 questions, 1 point
each (30 points)Section II: 15 starred questions (15
points)Section III: 20 two-pointers, and some three-pointers (44 points)
Section IV: Ajaxed--Solve A to J. (10 plus bonus 2)
SECTION I30 questions
One point each
No half-pointsNo negative marking
1. In this 1976 biopic, Anthony Quinn played the protagonist's uncle and provided one of the many points-of-view in the film. The protagonist himself was never seen during the film—the closest the audience ever got was the sight of his sword upraised in battle. Either name the protagonist or the film.
ANSWER
The Message, based on the life of the Prophet Mohammad. Quinn played Hamza, the Prophet’s uncle. The film was directed by Moustapha Ben Akkad, who also made Omar Mukhtar.
2. Identify this lady whose death in 1964 inspired the tribute shown in the next slide.
ANSWER
Rachel Carson, author of Silent Spring.
3. Very often, the first part of this name is mistranslated as Ghost. That part of the name actually refers to Bhutan.
Gerald Fowler created something in 2010 that may have knocked this top-scorer from its position of eminence.
What?
ANSWER
Bhot/Bhut Jholokia. Bhot refers to Bhutan. Gerald Fowler’s Naga Viper, a hybrid, was found to be much hotter in 2010.
4. The ‘-s’ that ends this country's name was added by colonisers to mark the fact that they had unified three separate kingdoms into one colony. It is ruled by communists who trace their authority back to a guerilla movement led by a former Prince. Which country?
ANSWER
Laos.
5. A writer’s blog offers these words by way of introduction:
“My great claim to fame is that I'm from the town where they invented the BlackBerry. My family also believes (with some justification) that we are distantly related to Colin Powell. I invite you to look closely at the photograph and draw your own conclusions.”
Who? (Man on the right)
ANSWER
Malcolm Gladwell.
6. Identify the lady.
ANSWER
Betty Uber, after whom the Uber Cup (World Team Championships for Women) is named.
7. Probably invented in Persia, from where it travelled to both Europe and Asia. It was normally used for drawing water or grinding grain, and takes its familiar English name from the latter use.
What age-old example of technology, once famously mistaken for something else, are we talking about?
ANSWER
The Windmill.
8. The only problem with using X as a fuel is finding a consistent source. Although it is the second most abundant element in the universe, and very eco-friendly, it is a relatively rare and finite resource on Earth and must be extracted via low temperature gas liquefaction or recovered from natural gas. What?
ANSWER
Helium. Helium isn’t a fuel but a ‘lifting gas’ but we decided to take ‘poetic’ liberties on this one.
9. While visiting the Museu de la Ciència de Barcelona in 1988, he told its director that the Salvador Dali painting The Face of War (The Visage of War) had given him “the intuition about the transcendence of the ____ ____ when making intelligible the omnipresent similitude in the forms of nature”. Either tell us who this is or fill the blanks?
ANSWER
Benoît Mandelbrot.“Fractal geometry” fills the blank. (Accept “fractals”).
10. In British English, this term is used as an euphemism for toilet. The name means what it says only in American English, in that it has some connection with apparel.
In Indian English the same term has two lives– it describes a facility available at railways stations or could be used in the British sense. What term?
ANSWER
Cloak Room.
11. One-word connect.
ANSWER
Shotgun.
Shotgun HousesRiding ShotgunShotgun WeddingShatrugan ‘Shotgun’ Sinha
12. What is happening in this picture?
ANSWER
The shooting of the text-crawl which opens every Star Wars film.The Empire Strikes Back in this case
13. This is the premier Performing Arts Centre in Singapore—properly called Esplanade—Theatres on the Bay. Since that name is too much of a mouthful, most Singaporeans call it after the object it resembles. What name is this?
ANSWER
The Durian.
14. The Ministry of Textiles in India has instituted an award since 2009 to encourage handloom weavers to carry on the tradition. Awards, each with a financial assistance of Rs. 10 lakhs, are given to 10 outstanding weavers. Who is this award named after?
ANSWER
Sant Kabir, who is believed to have been a weaver by profession.
15. It is formed by the accumulation of plant material in a water-saturated environment. The lack of oxygen and acidity of the water slows down decomposition, allowing it to form. The territories that hold this material store about 500 billion tonnes of carbon, twice as much as that held by all the trees in the world. Most of these reserves are in the Northern Hemisphere, with the exception of one huge tract in Tierra del Fuego in South America. The mining of this material is both big business (worth 400 million Euros annually in the EU) and an environmental threat. What material?
ANSWER
Peat.
16. The act, which may be inflected with emotions ranging from sincerity to remorse, is called Ojigi in Japan. The informal version is called Eshaku, and involves an angle of about 15 degrees. The more formal version is Keirei, and might require employing a 45 degree angle. Saikeirei, an extreme version involving some disrespect to gravity, is also known to exist. Pekopeko is the term applied to the repeated, energetic performance of the act. What act?
ANSWER
Bowing.
17. This team event in track cycling has rules similar to a relay race. A team mate may relieve another at any time during the race with a touch. This Olympic event is named after the venue where many of the initial races were run. It is also known as Course à l’Américaine in French and as Americana in Italian and Spanish. Identify.
ANSWER
Madison, named after Madison Square Garden in New York.
18. This bird is called Petronia xanthocollis, and takes its species name from the flash of yellow at the throat. In 2003, a tribute volume to a famous person X was brought out (by an Indian organisation), with the title Petronia. Who was the subject of this tribute?
ANSWER
Salim Ali. While still a child, he brought down a bird which he assumed was a sparrow. Closer examination revealed the yellow on its throat. Curiosity led him to the Bombay Natural History Society, and thus began his lifelong passion for ornithology.
19. The first mentions of X in India appear in the works of the Carnatic composer Purandaradasa. In a lyric that adroitly compares X to the deity: It reads: ‘Saviour of the poor, enhancer of good food, even to think of you is difficult…. I saw you green, then turning redder’. It was probably first brought by Portuguese ships landing at Kozhikode in the mid-1500s. What?
ANSWER
Chillies.
20. This font takes its name from the Latin for ‘broken’ and was devised in the 1500s. It eventually began going out of style across Europe during the 19th century, except in Germany, where it survived into the early years of the Nazis. Originally celebrated as truly representative of German culture, it suffered a reversal of fortunes after the Nazis found that people in conquered territories had trouble reading it. Martin Bormann then sent out a secret order banning their use in official communications because they were “Jewish letters”. Which font?
ANSWER
Fraktur.
21. Two views of the same piece of furniture. This one is perhaps not as famous as another associated with its owner. The title of one of the books brought out by Indian scholar T.G. Vaidyanathan refers to this item.
The owner had little aesthetic appreciation for the objects he collected for display. The archaeological work that lead to their discovery amidst the cities of the past served as a metaphor for his own work. When he left home in a hurry in June 1938, he actually had the objects photographed in order to put them back in the same order in his new home. Who?
ANSWER
Sigmund Freud’s Desk. TGV’s book is titled Vishnu on Freud’s Desk.
22. This animal, the sub-species of a larger family, takes its common name from the fact that its fur has some grey hair. Was given the name horribilis because the person classifying it misinterpreted the English word meaning ‘grey’ to mean ‘bloody’.
The biologist E.O. Wilson coined the term _____ ____ Effect to describe the fact that “while we may never personally glimpse certain rare animals… we need them as symbols. They proclaim the mystery of the world. Just to know that they are out there alive and well is important to the spirit, to the wholeness of our lives.” Which animal?
Visual shows its historic range and present habitat.
ANSWER
The Grizzly Bear.
23. You could say he was the Alpha guy, the man who put the A in ABC, in a certain field—even though it took a 1973 judgment to establish that.
His claim to fame owes its origins to a flash of insight during a long drive in 1937. The idea was realised in 1939.
Identify this pioneer from the statue put up to him in Bulgaria, the country of his origin.
ANSWER
Atanasoff, of Atanasoff-Berry Computer fame.
24. This 7.5 inch bronze figurine, nicknamed ‘Bessie’, was created by Grizel Niven who studied under Henry Moore. She was also the elder sister of actor David Niven. Since 1996, it has had another claim to fame. What?
ANSWER
Given to the winner of the women-only Orange Prize for Fiction.
25. The Indian Ocean island of Aldabra in Seychelles is home to Geochelone gigantea, the closest known relative to X. This species owes its origins to almost the same evolutionary conditions as those that produced X. Having escaped mainland competitors and mainland predators, they were free to become enormous, moving into the large-herbivore niche normally occupied by moose, rhino and wildebeest. What is Geochelone gigantea’s closest known relative?
ANSWER
The Galapagos tortoise, Geochelone nigra.
26. This emblem represents the interdependence of nature and culture. While the central square symbolizes the results of human skill and inspiration, the circle celebrates the gifts of nature. The emblem is round, like the world. Designed by Belgian artist Michel Ollyf, it was adopted as the official emblem in 1978. What emblem?
ANSWER
The UNESCO World Heritage site logo.
27. This is an ad for a brand owned worldwide by Innovia Films Group. The 1900 invention on which it is based was inspired by an accident in a restaurant. Which brand?
ANSWER
Cellophane.
28. What “misfortune” connects Enrico Fermi’s weak interaction theory of beta decay, Cerenkov radiation, Hideki Yukawa’s meson, work on photosynthesis by Johann Deisenhofer, Robert Huber and Hartmut Michel, and Stephen Hawking’s black-hole radiation?
ANSWER
All were initially rejected by Nature.
29. The procedure shown here is usually to be completed within a 12-hour window, by hand. What?
ANSWER
Pollination of vanilla.
30. James Murray had this unique Scriptorium, with more than a 1000 pigeon holes, constructed in his house for which project?
ANSWER
Oxford English Dictionary.
SECTION IIKaroo Ya Maroo
Everything is succulent!
15 ** Questions
One point each
**1. Fermented ____ ____ , popularly known as Akhuni in Nagaland, Kinema in Sikkim, Turumbai in Meghalaya, and Hawaizar in Manipur, is a significant ingredient in North-East cuisines, used for aroma and pungency in various dishes.
What are we talking about?
ANSWER
Soya Bean.
**2. Portrait of Frederick Law Olmsted by John Singer Sargent. In 1858, Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition with their ‘Greensward Plan’ and the project was completed in 1873. Its value was appraised to be about $528 billion in 2005. What ‘project’?
ANSWER
Central Park, New York.
**3. Why did this surreptitiously-taken 2007 photograph make it to newspapers worldwide?
ANSWER
Purports to catch Banksy at work. This was the final result.
**4. This painting by Velazquez represents a Roman god. The island off Sicily in the next visual was named after this god, and that name later became generic. What name?
ANSWER
Vulcan; from whom we get the word Volcano. The island is still called Vulcano. The Romans believed that the eruptions were because Vulcan was hard at work.
**5. Student-chefs in France are normally apprenticed at the age of 16, and begin their careers with this specific job. Their big moment would come every Sunday as part of family meals. They needed to whip up some rice, with green beans, braised beef, veal or rabbit. The pressure was always intense, because this had to coincide with the main course. Their work did not end there—while the meal wound down, they were expected to spend time with the target group. Who did the student-chef typically cook for?
ANSWER
For the dogs that accompany the families that frequent restaurants in France.
**6. At the very moment of procreation, his mother asked his father if he had remembered to wind the clock. The distraction and annoyance led to the disruption of the proper balance of humors necessary to conceive a well-favored child. As a toddler, he suffered an accidental circumcision when his chambermaid let a window sash fall as he urinated out of the window because his chamber-pot was missing. Which literary character had to endure these misfortunes?
ANSWER
Tristram Shandy. (created by Laurence Sterne)
**7. This practice is favoured in the US by fundamentalists who want to ensure that their children don’t get to hear of Evolution or Sex Education. It was banned in Nazi Germany because Hitler’s people wanted to make sure that everybody got a good dose of their propaganda. This ban was never really repealed after the Nazis fell, with the result that some Germans move to England and other European countries where they may freely indulge. What practice?
ANSWER
Home-schooling.
**8. Published in the Daily Mail on 21 April 1934, it was supposedly done by Robert Kenneth Wilson, a gynaecologist, who didn't want his name to be associated with it. It gained popularity under the name “Surgeon’s ____”. In 1994, researchers revealed that it was a hoax perpetrated by Marmaduke Wetherell, a self-styled big game hunter who had been publicly ridiculed in the Daily Mail, which employed him. What was the subject of this hoax?
ANSWER
Lochness Monster.
Surgeon’sPhotograph
**9. The Andrews Raid was a daredevil stealth attack led by the Union soldier James Andrews during the American Civil War. In 1862, he and a bunch of volunteers infiltrated North Georgia and made off with Confederate property, stopping only to damage telegraph lines and make the movement of men and materials in the East Tennessee region impossible. William Fuller pursued them on foot, and was able to have eight of Andrews’ men arrested and executed. The eight who survived were awarded the first ever Medal of Honour by Abe Lincoln.
This event inspired a 1926 representation that initially met a lukewarm response before going on to become a much acclaimed cultural property. What did the Andrews Raid inspire?
ANSWER
The General by Buster Keaton.
**10. One of the reasons for the speedy construction of the Royal Observatory at Greenwich is believed to be a complaint made by the first Astronomer Royal, John Flamsteed, to Charles II. What did Flamsteed give as the reason for the disruption in his astronomical duties? Charles II couldn’t fix the complaint; so he sped up the work at Greenwich.
ANSWER
The ravens in the Tower of London, which served as the first observatory. Flamsteed complained that they would perch on and foul his telescopes.
**11. It was conceived in November of 1985 by San Francisco activist Cleve Jones. Since the 1978 assassination of Harvey Milk, Jones had helped organize the annual candlelight march honouring his memory. Jones asked participants in the 1985 march to put the names of friends they had lost on placards. At the end of the march, Jones and others stood on ladders taping these placards to the walls of the San Francisco Federal Building. The wall of names looked like a _____ ____ and that is how the idea for this artwork came into existence. The Washington, D.C. displays of October 1987, 1988, 1989, 1992 and 1996 are the only ones to have featured this artwork in its entirety. It was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 and remains the largest community art project in the world. What?
ANSWER
The AIDS Quilt
**12. This family of birds takes it name from the colour of the same name, which in turn takes its name from the robe/cassock associated with a position. Identify.
ANSWER
Cardinals.
**13. In 1718, French surgeon Jean Louis Petit developed this screw device for use in surgical procedures. The name he coined for it refers to the turning of the screw and survives to this day. What?
ANSWER
Tourniquet.
**14. In the Rotterdam Zoo, a health insurance company named FBTO distributes these glasses to visitors. For what special purpose are these used?
ANSWER
To ensure that visitors avoid eye contact with the gorillas in the zoo while watching them.
**15. Converse Shoes had X design these special sneakers for them in 2008. Either name X or put down his claim to fame.
ANSWER
Stanley Mouse, who designed posters and albums covers for The Grateful Dead.
SECTION IIIA Question of X and Y
20 questions
Each question has two parts and carries two points
One point per answer
1. Which country’s national flag is this? They account for nearly 20% of the world’s supply of what you see (towards the left) on the flag. What might that be?
ANSWER
Grenada. The flag shows an open nutmeg fruit.
2.1. Always be on time.2. Never try to make any personal engagements. 3. Do as little talking as humanly possible. 4. Never be disturbed by anything. 5. Always do what you’re told to do as quickly as possible. 6. Remember to lean back in a parade, so that people can
see him.7. Don’t get too fat to ride three on a seat. 8. Get out of the way as quickly as you’re not needed
These were X’s rules for how to behave while occupying a non position Y. X occupied this position from 1933 to 1945. Identify X and Y.
ANSWER
X: Eleanor Roosevelt.Y: Being First Lady.
3. The location marked in red at the bottom takes its name from its position relative to Middletown, the other location marked in red. Which in the news location from 1979—the movie poster should be able to help? Also, name the film.
ANSWER
Three Mile Island where the 1979 nuclear meltdown happened. The China Syndrome, released a little before the accident, achieved some popular interest as a result.
4. X was a news-photographer who got the nickname he worked under from the fact that he arrived at crime-spots before the cops because spirits spoke to him through an Ouija board. Y is a 2002 movie which featured a character based on X.
ANSWER
X: Weegee (pseudonym of Arthur Fellig).Y: Road to Perdition.
5. Identify this structure. Which 1959 design was an attempt at upending this sort of structure?
ANSWER
X: Ziggurats.Y: Guggenheim Museum design by Frank Lloyd Wright.
6. X uncovered abuses in Belgian Congo and Peru and supported the Irish quest for independence. He was hanged for his pains. The novelist Y’s 17th work of fiction is titled The Dream of the Celt and is based on X. X and Y?
ANSWER
X: Roger Casement.Y: Mario Vargas Llosa.
7. X, the lady on the left was a Hollywood actress who romanced Howard Hughes and very nearly married him. On the right is an entertainer Y who dropped the name Eleanora to take on the actress’ name in tribute. Name both people.
ANSWER
X: Billie Dove.Y: Billie Holliday.
8. This group of leaders-emeritus–the Global Elders–comprises people like Mary Robinson, Nelson Mandela, Graca Machel, and most recently Pratibha Patil, India’s President. The idea for such a council came from a 1984 Nobel laureate. Ever since they began meeting, they leave a chair empty for the other laureate who is unable to join them. Name both people.
ANSWER
X: Desmond Tutu.Y: Aung San Suu Kyi.
9. A certain country has had several major events in its history happen on the same date. Three of those dates include
9th November 1923
9th November 1938
9th November 1989
Identify the country and at least 2 events.
Bonus point for anybody who can give us all three! (3 points in all)
ANSWER
Germany.
(Two out of three for full points. Bonus of 1 if all three are right.)The Beer-Hall Putsch in Munich;Kristallnacht—attacks on Jewish shops; and the collapse of the Berlin Wall.
10. The criteria applied:
stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy,
the rule of law,
human rights,
respect for and protection of minorities,
the existence of a functioning market economy as well as the capacity to cope with competitive pressure and market forces.
X: Criteria for what? Y: Known by the name of the city where this agreement was signed in 1993.
ANSWER
Copenhagen Criteria for joining the European Union.
11. The term X, meaning a theatrical production consisting typically of brief loosely connected often satirical skits, songs, and dances was given its French-sounding name by the impresario Y from whose biopic this still is taken. Y himself preferred the term Z for such entertainments. Name any two. Bonus for third ID.
ANSWER
X: Revue.Y: Florenz Ziegfeld.Z: Follies.
12. When X went into the footwear business in the 1980s, she used this portrait of her by Y as logo. Name X and Y.
ANSWER
X: Giuliana Benetton.Y: Andy Warhol.
13. These are three pictures of a famous Englishman on his last visit in the 1970s to his pet project in India. Name Englishman and project.
ANSWER
X: Charles Eames.Y: National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad (NID).
14. X is made of foamable ethylene vinyl acetate and pigment. The product is molded, then expanded up to 2.5 times upon demolding before contracting by a factor of .6.X was meant to help boating enthusiasts. X’s design was later adapted to provide comfort for people who are on their feet all day, while also protecting them from liquids and other spills.Sheri Schmelzer created the accessories Y for X while clowning around one day with her kids. It struck her that the design of X could be augmented by buttons, rhinestones, and fabric from a tailoring kit. She had seen a movie where Meg Ryan says to Tom Hanks, “I'm such a flibbertigibbet!”, and took her company’s name from this line. X and Y.
This is Y.
ANSWER
X: Crocs.Y: Jibbitz, the things you stick into the holes in a Croc.
.
15. This British civil servant, born in Bhopal, has left 2 lasting legacies:
X: Started in 1888 at Shimla and Dagshai in Himachal Pradesh, it is considered to be the one of the oldest in its field.
Y: Established in 1893 and formalized as a single-page agreement containing seven short articles signed by himself and Amir Abdur Rahman Khan. Has been a subject of disputes ever since.
X and Y?
ANSWER
Sir Henry Mortimer Durand.
X: Durand Cup.Y: Durand Line. (Boundary between
Afghanistan and Pakistan)
16. Identify these real/reel life guys.
ANSWER
Dith Pran and Haing S. Ngor (who played Dith Pran in The Killing Fields).
17. Daisuke Inoue won the Ig Nobel prize for Peace in 2004 “for inventing ____, thereby providing an entirely new way for people to learn to tolerate each other”. During his acceptance speech at Harvard University, Inoue sang the lines from a 1971 song that originated as a jingle. Needless to say, Inoue’s song choice was apt and he received the longest standing ovation the Ig Nobels had ever seen. Name the invention X, the song Y and the product Z the song was used to endorse.
ANSWER
X: Karaoke.
Y: “I’d Like to teach the world to sing”.
Z: Coca Cola.
18. In 1621, Pierre Gassendi combined the names of these 2 mythological characters to coin something. Identify both. (Female on the left + Male on the right)
ANSWER
Aurora, the Roman goddess of dawn + Boreas, the Greek god of the north
wind = Aurora Borealis.
19. This mausoleum, of X, served as the model for the resting place for one of his descendants Y. Identify both X & Y.
ANSWER
X: Timur (Tamerlane).Y: Humayun.
20. The character Y has figured in a series of 21 novels. The idea that links the series came together at a lunch meeting between author and editor at The Red Devil, a New York restaurant. By 1963, he had written four novels featuring Y, whom he named X after a non-descript city in America—“because place-names are fun and easy to remember”. When the series began appearing in 1964, the character had undergone a name change, impelled by recent events, and was now named after an Air Force base in California. Three points if you can give the original name X, the name later chosen Y, and the author’s name Z.
ANSWER
X: Dallas.Y: Travis McGee.Z: John D. MacDonald.
SECTION IVA-J-Axed
Identify (A) to (J)One point per answer
The gentleman in red (A) presented the gentleman in black (B) with a key to (C).
It can be seen today at the location (B’s home) where they are standing (D). (A) said, “Give me leave, my dear General to present you with a picture of the _(C)_, just as it looked a few days after I had ordered its demolition, with the main key of the fortress of despotism. It is a tribute, which I owe, as a son to my adoptive father, as an Aide-de-Camp to my General, as a Missionary of liberty to its Patriarch.” (B)’s refusal to do something in 1796 led to (E), a customary policy (& later law) which is still followed. (F) is the only exception to (E).
(D) Is named after the Vice-Admiral whose enduring claim to fame came in 1740 when he ordered the dilution of his sailor’s rations. The English word (G) is believed to have been formed thus from his nickname. The practice that he introduced itself is believed to be the origin of another collective nickname (H). He took Portobello in 1727 as part of a unusually named war (I). The name (I) was coined by historian (J) in his History of Friedrich II of Prussia in 1858.
A-J-Axed• (A) – Marquis de La Fayette• (B) – George Washington• (C) – Bastille• (D) – Mount Vernon• (E) – Maximum of 2 elected terms for
US Presidents• (F) – Franklin D. Roosevelt• (G) – Grog• (H) – Limey• (I) – War of Jenkins’ Ear• (J) – Thomas Carlyle
Research and Contortions
Kiran Vijayakumar
Arul Mani
