Question for 4/30 - Dev

Sorry for the late post. Here is the question.

Rudyard Kipling once wrote to a magazine:

"I've just read that _____. Don't forget to delete me from your list of subscribers."

Identify what he was talking about. A similar thing happened to Lal Bihari, who famously, among various attempts to publicize his situation stood for election against Rajiv Gandhi in 1989 (and lost). He was awarded the Ig Nobel Peace Prize in 2003 for his '_____' activities, which should highlight a second (and ironic) connection to the thing we are talking about.

Question for 29th April, 2010

Identify the pics and and the person connecting them.

Question for April 28, 2010

As easy as the come. Identify the following list and name the last item,

1. Telstar
2. Telstar Durlast
3. Tango Durlast
4. Tango Espana
5. Azteca, Etrvsco
6. Questra
7. Tricolore
8. Fevernova
9. Teamgeist
10. X.

An amazing race for the clinically insane

X is an international event self-styled as 'an amazing race for the clinically insane'. The simpicity of Y, its high center of gravity, and the diversity of landscape requires smart and brave partcipants.

One of the more extensive and demanding routes taken under X passes through famous beach destinations such as Goa.

X and Y?

Question for Apr 26 - PS

X was a philosopher, playwright, diplomat, musician, and civil servant, and is considered one of the main founders of modern political science. Like Leonardo da Vinci, X is considered a good example of the Renaissance Man. Since the sixteenth century, generations of politicians remain attracted and repelled by the cynical approach to power posited in his works. Whatever his personal intentions, which are still debated today, his surname yielded the modern political word Y — the use of cunning and deceitful tactics in politics.

Question for Apr 23

The lady shown in the visual was a special guest at the 50th anniversary conference of the Society for Imaging Science and Technology (IS&T) held in 1997. The researchers were thrilled to meet her and get her autograph.

Identify the lady.

Question for 22nd April, 2010

What does the below graph represent?

Blast from the past- April 21, 2010

Connect the following three clues-


Harry and Louise

Question for April 20, 2010

X is a physical discipline of training to overcome any obstacles within one's path. A male practitioner is called a traceur, and a female, a traceuse. The two primary characteristics of X are speed and efficiency in overcoming obstacles with the implicit assumption that no injuries be suffered. Examples of moves in X are underbar, swing, speed vault, cat pass, dash vault, roll and precision. X requires no dedicated facilities for practice. Traceurs practice it in any urban setting they can find with each new practice session offering a different set of challenges. One of the fundamental aspects of X is its philosophy against competition, which according to a traceur, pushes people to fight against each other. An example of X was shown in the movie Casino Royale. Identify X.

Reader Question

This question is courtesy Varsha. Identify what the map depicts.

Identify the genre - Apr. 16th

X is a music genre. From its early development until the present, X has incorporated music from 19th and 20th century American popular music. Experts say that X differs from European music in that it has a "special relationship to time, defined as 'swing'", "a spontaneity and vitality of musical production in which improvisation plays a key role"; and "sonority and manner of phrasing which mirror the individuality of the performing musician".

The origin of the word X is one of the most sought-after word origins in modern American English. The word began as a West Coast slang term around 1912, the meaning of which varied but which did not refer to music at that time. In the sense of pep and enthusiasm, X continued in use in California for several years before being submerged by the music meaning of the word.

Question for April 15th, 2010

The following quotations/excerpts from letters were in reaction to the event X. Identify X and the speakers/writers.

"Your action is correct. Lieutenant Governor approves."

“We have to make it absolutely clear, some way or other, that this is not the British way of doing business."

“It seemed absolutely immoral, indecent, to use public school language, it was height of bad form."

"The time has come when badges of honour make our shame glaring in the incongruous context of humiliation, and I for my part, wish to stand, shorn, of all special distinctions, by the side of those of my countrymen who, for their so called insignificance, are liable to suffer degradation not fit for human beings."

Question for April 14, 2010

The origin of the game X is uncertain, though it is most likely German or Scandinavian in origin. The game became popular in France in the early 19th Century reaching England and America in the latter half. X was first mentioned in literature circa 1765. The earliest known recording of a game of X occurred in 1783 in the German game anthology Das neue Königliche L'Hombre-Spiel.

There is an old tradition in the German or Scandinavian countries to use "X" as a guide to what the near future has to offer, a kind of "luck" meter. This belief assumes that a person’s "luck" will vary from time to time and important matters should not be initiated or conducted when the conditions are not favorable. If there are no winnings in the game for a number of tries it spells caution in what you do. If a win at the first try times are good and “luck” smiles at you, thus the immediate future can be used for important decisions. Timing the game is a further indicator of the strength of the outcome.

For a "standard" game of X the number of winnable games is between 82-91.5%. The number of unplayable games is 0.025% and the number of games that cannot be won is between 8.5-18%. However, the theoretical odds of winning a standard game of X are currently unknown. It has been said that the inability for theoreticians to calculate these odds is "one of the embarrassments of applied mathematics”. What is X.

One for every hundred - April 13, 2010

About 300,000 little-seen workers (Y) perform a vital role (X) for the Indian capital. Most Indian cities have no formal system of X. In many cities Y provide the service. According to some estimates Y provide the service for 80% of Mumbai. Y are not paid by the state, relying instead on donations from the communities they serve and on meager profits from the sale of discarded items.

For every hundred residents of Delhi, there is one person engaged in X.

X and Y?

Question for Apr 12 - PS

Happy monday morning!

Today's question: what does this graph represent?

Question for Apr 9

The visual shows a snippet from a Government of India press release. Identify the competition.

Question for 8th Apr, 2010

There are 2 countries in the world whose capital cities are named after US presidents. One is of course USA (capital: Washington D.C). Which is the other country? Why is the capital city named so? Bonus points for giving me the name of the capital.

Flattened and Bulged- April 7th 2010

Humans have known for many centuries now that the earth's shape is not quite spherical. Due mainly to centripetal acceleration, which causes the earth to flatten out near the poles and bulge near the equator, the Chimborazo in Ecuador is at the top of a list of places. If the earth were more like a sphere, another more well known place X would have been at the summit. What criterion is this list based on and what is X?

Question for Apr 6, 2010

Under the program, some of the eligibility criteria were (X is the product under consideration):

• X must be less than 25 years old when it is handed in
• Only the purchase of a new X or 5 year minimum lease on a new X qualify
• The old X must have been registered and insured continuously for the full year prior to being returned
• The program was only valid from July 1, 2009 until August 24, 2009
• The X that was returned cannot be reused
• The new X should not cost more than $45000

Identify the program.

QOTD - 5th April - Hari

Borrowed from another quiz blog* I follow. Sorry, I couldn't come up with my own Q due to lack of time.

Here goes....

This is a clip from the 1960 movie La Dolce Vita. A character in this movie lent his name to a famous word used very frequently these days.

* Courtesy: CBE Quiz circle (http:://cbequizcircle.blogspot.com)

The disaster of 1883 - Question for Apr. 2nd.

The following is just one of the effects of the 1883 event, that occurred in Indonesia. Identify the event:

The event darkened the sky worldwide for years afterward, and produced spectacular sunsets throughout the world for many months. In 2004, researchers proposed the idea that the blood-red sky shown in Edvard Munch's famous 1893 painting The Scream is also an accurate depiction of the sky over Norway after the event.

Munch said:

"Suddenly the sky turned blood red ... I stood there shaking with fear and felt an endless scream passing through nature."

Question for April 1st, 2010

What connects -

Musendrophilus, a night-singing tree mouse discovered by the famous naturalist David Attenborough in 1975 in Sheba Islands, a cluster of islands in the Pacific.

and

Kwotes, a seabird belonging to the guillemet family, found only in two islands of the Indian ocean, Caissa Superiore in the north and Caissa Inferiore in the south.