Prelims & Answers

Rules

1. 35 questions, some multi-part, no negs.

2. 11-20 are starred and will be used to break ties. If still tied, sudden death!

3. BLOCK CAPITALS, please. If we can’t read it, it’s wrong!

4. Last names enough unless specified, minor spelling goofs OK.

5. Switch off all devices. Except brain.

6. Quizmaster is God. His decision is final, binding, and uncontestable

Question

These are the introductory lines to a TV serial

about the life of who? Who is the

speaker/director?

01

Mirza Ghalib, Gulzar 01

Question

Over the last few weeks, the new Greek

government has been trying to get its European

creditors to cut it some slack. Their last offer was

rejected by the German government, and a

leaked letter compared the offer to a “____

____”, a much used phrase which represents

Greek cunning and treachery. FITB.

02

Question

Who are referred to as “Zonians”? Senator John

McCain is an example.

02

Question

During his visit to Japan, Modi inked a pact for

developing his culturally significant Lok Sabha

constituency of Varanasi with which Japanese

city?

03

Kyoto 03

Question

This is the poster of a

Rachmaninov concert

held to commemorate

what (specific) event?

04

9-11 attacks on World Trade

Center

04

Question

In September 1990, LK Advani embarked on his

poisonous and historic Rath Yatra, which caused

riots and violence in its wake. The India Today

cover of October 1990 was titled, “_______ __

____” , a play on the name of which Academy

Award winning 1981 movie?

05

Chariots of Fire 05

Question

Which is the longest river to flow entirely in one

country?

06

Yangtze 06

Question

The phrase ____ ____ appears over 80 times in

the Bible (for example, “____ ____ but God…”

etc.) When Admiral John Fisher was created 1st

Baron Fisher of Kilverstone, he took the motto

“Fear God and ____ ____” on his coat of arms.

The two words joined together give rise to the

name of which innovation which changed the face

of naval warfare?

07

dreadnought 07

Question

R. Prasannan writing in The Week:

“From Burkina Faso in Africa, [P.V.Narasimha Rao]

announced polls in J&K. Deve Gowda held them,

but he told Kashmiris that he would keep _____

___ in Karnataka. He mistook a press query on

_______ to be about ______ ___, a minister in his

party’s government in Karnataka.” Fill in the

blanks.

08

Anantnag, Anant Nag 08

Question

This word was originally a generic name for any

compound containing a rare oxygen-oxygen single

bond. These compounds are known for their

bleaching effect on natural dyes. It is now used to

refer to one particular such compound known for

it bleaching ability, which in turn lead to a

phrase. What is the word?

09

peroxide 09

Question

“Never cut a bamboo joint.”

“Never chase a dragon.”

“Don’t go fishing when your house is on fire.” These

are all examples of aphorisms created to help one

excel at something, and were used to program Crazy

Stone. The last one, for example, was interpreted as,

“…prioritize local responses over global search.”

What would you be doing if you used these sayings?

10

playing Go 10

Question

ID the band. Whose name comes next in the song?

11

Police, Nabokov 11

Question

A couple of days after this match ended, what

change was done to the scorecard? [Need (i) a

name (ii) what was before (iii) what came after

(iv) a score. ¾ will fetch you half points.]

12

Question 03

12

Phil Hughes

retired hurt

not out

63

Question

The ____ Islands Act of 1856 is legislation passed

by the US Congress that enables citizens to take

possession of certain islands containing ______,

as long as they are unoccupied and not within the

jurisdiction of other governments. This was so

that the US could easily stake claim to a then

valuable ornithogenic resource. Fill in the blank.

13

Guano 13

Question

Some 8,000 helium balloons perched on 3.6 m

poles and stretching for 15 km were released one

by one on 9th November 2014 to commemorate

what?

14

Question 14

Question 14

Question 14

14 Berlin Wall coming down

Question

By day it’s like any other paved bike path. But at

night, 50,000 stones coated in a phosphorescent

paint and solar-powered LEDs light cyclists’ way.

What is designer Daan Roosegaarde’s inspiration

for the design?

15

Question 15

Question 15

15 Starry Nights

Question

A crucial part of this finished product from

Benares is narkat, a grassy weed. It is procured

from particular pond in Old Bhojpur, a village in

Buxar District. It is cut once a year and dried until

they are brittle, pale brown, hollow sticks. Then,

typically hundreds are tried and discarded, before

a concert worthy piece can be found. What

product?

16

shehnai 16

Question

Whose biography, in the form of a graphic novel?

17

Question 17

17 Anne Frank

Question

To celebrate its 350th anniversary in 2010, the

Royal Society of London asked British astronaut

Piers Sellers to carry a “piece of history” with him

into space. This is ironic, since the source of this

object is supposed to have led to the discovery of

something that is guaranteed to be absent in the

International Space Station.

What did Sellers carry with him?

18

Sliver of the apple tree under

which Newton sat and

discovered gravity

18

Question

Legend speaks of a long running feud between

two families in 1492. At one point, the Earl of

Ormond, took refuge in St Patrick’s in Dublin. The

Earl of Kildare was then filled with regret and

tried to make peace. To prove that his desire for

reconciliation was genuine, he cut a hole in the

door and did something that has since then given

rise to an English phrase. What phrase?

19

Question 19

he “chanced his arm”

19

Question

Whose style is being imitated?

20

Jane Austen 20

Question

A poignant image that brings out the stark

contrast between a hard life in Africa on one side

of the fence and the lure of Europe on the other,

this photo from 2014 shows migrants caught

between which two countries?

21

Question 03

21

Spain & Morocco

the only European and African countries that share

land borders

Question

Bird A used to be called the _______ kite in India,

because its diet included household refuse and

carrion. The name was thankfully changed for

reasons of political correctness and sensitivity.

Bird B is even now called the _______ mynah,

thanks to its distinctive appearance. There have

been calls to change this name as well, because

of its caste connotations. Fill in the blanks.

22

Question 22

A B

22

A = Pariah Kite

B = Brahminy Mynah

Question

The Lancet published a paper in 2014 titled

“Chronic subdural haematoma secondary to

_______”. It reports on a man who complained of

a constant worsening headache for two weeks. He

had no history of head injury, but did report

attending a Motorhead concert four weeks earlier,

and the illness was traced to this event. Fill in

the blank.

23

headbanging 23

Question

If you’ve ever travelled by Indian Railways,

you’ve seen these signs maybe thousands of

times. They serve as a warning, and require

action to be taken.

What do the warn about? What action is to be

taken?

24

Question 24

Whistle

Level Crossing

24

Question

Article 366(2) of the Indian Constitution defines an

___ ___ as “a person whose father or any of whose

other male progenitors in the male line is or was of

European descent but who is domiciled within the

territory of India and is or was born within such

territory of parents habitually resident therein and

not established there for temporary purposes only”.

Fill in the blanks.

25

Anglo Indian 25

Question

The translucent _________ minnow [next slide is

a freshwater fish discovered in Myanmar. It gets

its name from a distinctive facial feature.

Fill in the blank.

26

Question 03

Dracula 26

Question Though it has become “an identity statement, a

declaration of ____ swagger”, its origins are fairly

mundane. In 1985, the ____ Department of Transportation

created this phrase as part of a campaign against littering

on the state’s highways. It is in fact a registered

trademark which the state tries to defend, and many

famous natives have appeared in public service

announcements and made this statement including

Matthew McConaughey, Chuck Norris, and Stevie Ray

Vaughan. What phrase?

27

Don’t Mess with Texas 27

Question

Libra the constellation is supposed to represent

the shape of a pair of scales. Consequently it has

long been associated with all things related to

measures. This led to the origin of 2 commonly

seen abbreviations.

Which 2 abbreviations?

28

lbs for ‘pound’

£ as the pound currency symbol

28

Question

In a new book released recently, Carine says the

reason for her brother’s act was actually

problems at home. The book is a sort of sequel to

a best selling 1996 book, which itself has its

origins in a 1993 Outside magazine article titled

“Death of an Innocent.” ID the 1996 book, which

was also a 2007 movie by Sean Penn.

29

Question 29

29 Into the Wild

Question

In test cricket, the most common dismissal entry

on scoreboards reads “run out”. What comes

second? Be specific i.e. we are not looking for “c.

& b.”, but something more exact, such as “c. &

b. Lara”.

30

b. Muralitharan 30

Question

Who is making a cameo appearance?

31

Bertrand Russell 31

Question

ID the art form.

32

daastaan-goi

32

Question

In which town was this song shot?

33

Orchha 33

Question

Watch the beginning of this scene. The camera

pulls back, and we get to see a tribute. To what?

34

34 Nighthawks

Question

Who is being depicted in this somewhat unusual

performance?

35

Lady Macbeth 35

Finals bloodbath shortly!