QUIZ16 October

For the pounce

#1. Russia • The game was created by Alexey Leonidovich

Pajitnov, with the assistance of Dmitry Pavlovsky and Vadim Gerasimov who ported it to an IBM PC, and was released on June 6, 1984. At the time, Pajitnov was working at the Dorodnicyn Computing Center, which was a part of a Soviet government funded research center in Moscow, called the Soviet Academy of Sciences. Because Pajitnov was working for the government and was using their equipment when he created it, they retained the rights to the game.

Recently, the students at MIT turned one of the sides of a building in their campus into a huge playable version of this game, using LEDs and programming, as a part of their student traditions. Almost all of us have played this game. Which game am I talking about?

ANSWER

TETRIS

#2. The world is changing

• About 700 years ago, almost everyone followed this tradition. It was designed to protect yourselves, by giving you access to your weapons quickly. This tradition went on to be legalized by Pope Boniface VIII in 1300 AD, who wanted pilgrims heading to Rome to adhere by this. However, during the French Revolution, the French public decided to overthrow this tradition, by following another one, which was exactly opposite to the original. This was enforced further by Napoleon in all the regions he ruled

During the world war, Germany did the same to Austria after it was annexed. The industrial revolution changed things in America too. And now almost entire Europe, with the exception of Britain follows the changed tradition. What tradition am I talking about?

ANSWER

Driving on the left side of the road

#3. The crazy cold war

• The project was labelled “A Study of ______ Research Flights” or “Project A119″ and was developed by the U.S. Air Force in the late 1950s. It was felt that this would be a relatively easy thing to do and would also boost public perception of how the U.S. was doing in comparison to the Soviet Union in terms of the space race. Carl Sagan was brought on board only for making sure..

that the cloud of dust created by the explosion would show the entire world the might of USA. The project was eventually cancelled by the Air Force in January 1959, seemingly out of fear of a negative public reaction and the risk to the population should anything have gone wrong with the launch. What was project A119?

ANSWER

Exploding a nuclear bomb on the moon so that the whole world can see. Basically an extension of the ‘Why not?’ philosophy.

#4. Sinister origins

• Gary Gilmore was an American criminal who gained international notoriety by demanding the death sentence for murdering two men. He was eventually executed in 1976, which was the first time anyone had been executed in 10 years. When given the option to select his way of execution, he chose being shot by a firing squad over being hanged, as he wanted no mistakes.

When he was being led to his death, he was asked if he had any last words. Though his last words were ‘Dominus Vobiscum’ ( Latin for ‘May the Lord be with you’) which he said to the priest; another set of words is often associated with Gilmore, which became the tagline of a really famous company. It was what he answered when the guards asked him if he was ready. The company in question, uses this tagline with their logo, as one of the most recognizable combinations in the world.

Hint: The company gave only 35$ to the creator of their famous logo. The company itself is valued in billions now, with their major

revenue coming from sports.

ANSWER

His last words were ‘ Let’s do it ’ The company in question is Nike.

#5

This monument was built originally as just the entrance to an international event. After that, it was never removed. First, it had an important role in radio communication, then it became a major tourist attraction. It was ‘never conquered by Hitler’, despite being in Europe.

The proposed designs for the building, the white portion is the

one that was selected

ANSWER

#6. By the order of Her MajestyBetween 1860 and 1916, the soldiers serving in the British army had to abide by a certain rule. Failing to abide by this seemingly non-trivial act could lead to imprisonment, a particularly unpleasant prospect in the Victorian era. It is during the imperial history of Britain that this seemingly odd uniform requirement emerged.

Initially adopted at the tail end of the 1700s from the French, among whom it varied depending on the type of soldier (sappers, infantry, etc.), it was all about virility and aggression, especially in India and Arab countries, where it was associated with power. It wasn’t all plain sailing though; back home British citizens were looking on it as a sign of their boys ‘going native’ and it was nearly stamped out completely. What was this rule?

ANSWER

Keeping a moustache

#7. The blessing of the Pope

• The cultural influence of X is immense, what with it being created into movie, games, and associated with almost every children’s product, to even politicians quoting it. At one point, authorities in Italy were afraid that the Mafia were going to get in on the trading card business of X, due to the huge demands among the children in Italy. The demand for X reached a point where parents in USA, Italy

and other parts of Europe were worried it might be harmful for children, some even going as far as to calling it the work of the Devil. The Vatican gave its blessing to X just as its popularity is soaring in Italy. The trading-card and computer game is “full of inventive imagination,” said Sat2000, a satellite TV station run by the Vatican. The game did not have “any harmful moral side effects” and was based on “ties of intense friendship,” the station said. What is X?

ANSWER

Pokemon

#8. Children’s tune

• Popularised in recent years by TV comedy X, where the lyric is slightly amended, Y was written by Edith Newlin and copyrighted in 1937. Sources differ on the origin of the accompanying tune, with some suggesting it is an English, and some a Polish or Hungarian folk song. Intended as a calming and soothing song for quiet time, the piece was first published in Songs for the Nursery School, edited by Laura Pendleton McCartney. The show X amends the lyric slightly, transposing two words in the first line and two words in the third. Whether this is down to the faulty memory of a writer or a deliberate change remains unknown.

• In the show, the song is introduced as a calming and soothing song to one of its main characters.

ANSWER

The Big Bang Theory

#9. Connect

• LVC • Has 4 slides

• NO approximate answers

+50 -50

+35 -20

+25 -10

+10 -10

ANSWER

Michael Jackson

• MJ wanted to buy Marvel to play Spider Man in the movie

• Moonwalk• MJ’s famous dress in thriller• Over the years

#10. Guess who?

• The company X is officially the world’s largest tyre manufacturer, with around 318 million tyres made each year. The company’s name is derived from the Danish translation of ‘Play well’, and their flagship product is its namesake. The company was created by a Danish carpenter, who created an earlier, wooden version of their most famous product; a product which has even been sent to space multiple times. What is X?

ANSWER

LEGO

• Comes from the Danish phrase ‘Leg goldt’• The carpenter built wooden stackable blocks,

a precursor to LEGOs.• LEGO has been sent to space many times,

including a LEGOman, and a space shuttle made of LEGOs as a tribute to NASA’s defunct space shuttle program.

#11.

• King Harald Gormsson is famous for ruling Denmark and then Norway between about 940 and about 986, ultimately uniting all of Scandinavia. He was also the one who converted the Danes to Christianity. Like many medieval rulers, he also had a nickname: blátǫnn in Old Norse or Blåtand in Danish. Creators of X kept the English translation of the King’s name as the codename when they were developing X.

It was fitting since, like the King, they wanted to unite all devices under one umbrella. Later, when Intel could not come up with a better name for it, they decided to officially name it so. The now iconic X logo is actually a combination—officially known as a bind rune—of King Blatand's initials in Scandinavian runes.

ANSWER

Bluetooth

#12. The elusive ones

• The €500 notes are not really used in the EU. Due to their large value, EU generally produces really low numbers of it and monitors them to keep a tab on money laundering. The notes are called X by the European populace as a joke, as like X they are very rarely seen by common people, but they know that they exist. Incidentally, it is reported that X had a €500 note sewn into his clothes when he was killed. Who is X?

ANSWER

Bin laden

ANSWER

The Queen’s BatonGlasgow commonwealth games

2014

#14. Forgiveness

• The man in the photo along with Pope John Paul II is Mehmet Ali. He attempted to assasinate a famous person. Mehmet Ali shot his target 4 times, and almost killed him. He was jailed and sentenced to life imprisonment. The Pope however, stepped in and asked the Italian government to forgive him, even going to the extent of calling him ‘brother’ Mehmet was later forgiven and did not face any charges in Italy. Whom did he attempt to assasinate, and why did Pope John Paul II forgive him?

ANSWER

Pope John Paul II

• Following the shooting, Pope John Paul II asked people to "pray for my brother [Ağca] ... whom I have sincerely forgiven."

#15. Versatility

• X was used for a whole lot of different purposes by different people. The Romans used to collect it in vats and use it for whitening their teeth. It was so commonly used that it was taxed by a Roman Emperor. The Chinese on the other hand used it to make gunpowder. It has also been used as a mordant in the dyeing process, and at one point it was so common that small towns in England had to import it from London and Newcastle, where it was produced in larger quantities.

ANSWER

Urine

#16. Changing names

• Farrokh Bulsara was a Gujarati born in Zanzibar. He did his education in British Bombay, where he became interested in music, inspired by Cliff Richard and Lata Mangeshkar. He changed his first name to make himself more appealing. He later changed his last name too, and became the lead vocalist of what he called as ‘the bitchiest band in the world’ According to one account, he also once cross-dressed Princess Diana and took her to a men-only bar. What do we better know him as?

ANSWER

Freddie Mercury

#17. What have all these guys won?

ANSWER

The Grammy

#18. Strange symptoms• The X Syndrome (also known as Argyria or

Argyrosis) is a condition caused by inappropriate exposure to chemical compounds of the element silver or to silver dust. The main symptom of the X Syndrome is a blue or bluish-grey discoloration of the skin. In animals and humans, silver accumulates in the body. Chronic intake of silver products will result in an accumulation of silver particles in the skin. These particles in the skin darken with exposure to sunlight, resulting in the irreversible blue or bluish-gray discoloration of the skin.

ANSWER

The Smurf Syndrome

#19. Carelessness

• Since X have been created, they have been tested multiple times. Despite their huge cost, their are only two incidents when they were used to great success, back in the 1940s. USA though, has a tendency to drop them accidentally. In the past, over 30 times, they have been dropped or left activated, while in transit. These incidents are called ‘Broken Arrow’ incidents. What are X?

ANSWER

Nuclear warheads

#20. Doing it by the definition • During the Reagan administration, there was a

huge public outrage over the definition of X. USDA standards at the time required that a reimbursable lunch consist of five items: meat, milk, bread, and two servings of fruit or vegetables. Many kids refused to eat the veggies and the stuff wound up as "plate waste." Would-be realists on the panel reasoned that if they could count X as a vegetable they could meet federal standards without having to throw away so many lima beans, thereby saving money while having no impact on the kids.

• X was something that was part of the meal anyway. However, the change in its definition was seen as an attempt to take food away from the children. The change was soon rescinded.

ANSWER

KETCHUP

ANSWER

ANSWER

Internet.org

What changed?• The Last Judgement by Michelangelo covers the wall behind the

alter in the Sistine Chapel. The work depicts the second coming of Christ and, although the artist is clearly inspired by the Bible, it is his own imaginative vision that prevails in this painting. The picture radiates out from the center figure of Christ, and Michelangelo has chosen to depict the various saints included in the work holding the instruments of their martyrdom rather than the actual scenes of torture. When executing his "Last Judgement" it would seem that Michelangelo had been given artistic licence to paint scenes, not only from the Bible, but also from mythology. This shows great faith in the artist by his patron, Pope Paul III. Unfortunately it was decided that works of art in sacred places had to be proper and a pupil of Michelangelo, Daniele da Volterra, was commissioned to modify the artwork. Da Volterra's intervention earned him the nickname of the maker of _________.

ANSWER

He covered their privates.

What do these eskimo words mean?

• kaniktshaq, qanik, anijo, hiko (tsikoin some dialects), tsikut, ; hikuliaq, quahak, kanut pugtaq, peqalujaq, manelaq, ivuneq, maneraq, akuvijarjuak, kuhugaq, nilak, and tugartaq.

ANSWER

Snow