2. Question 0
This practice is believed to date back to ancient Rome. Romans steered their
chariots with their ______, so they could use their weapons with the other.
This then carried over to medieval Europe and in 1773, the British government
established this practice as the law. However, France favoured the opposite post
revolution. This probably came about since Napolean was ______ and the
exact opposite of the English practice proved to be quite an intimidating
military tactic. The British and the French brought these practices to their
respective colonies. Today, around 76 countries in the world follow this
practice. What practice am I talking about?
4. Question 1
This locality was named after a mythological kingdom and now stands where
the Loharehri village once did. A few years ago, a small baoli was discovered
which has now been restored and could become a tourist attraction. It was
supposedly constructed by the Sultans of the Lodi Dynasty in the early 16th
century for the residents of Loharehri village. Although the baoli is not as
architecturally significant as other Baolis in this city, it is still regarded as one-
of-a-kind. The locality is also emerging as a cultural and educational hub, with
several colleges having their campuses here. ID the locality.
7. Question 2
• This position is not official and the person holding this position does not get
a salary, yet it remains a celebrated one. The position was initially known as
the ‘Republican Queen’ and came to be called what it is today, only during
the funeral of Dolly ____, who had previously held the position. As of
today, there have been 54 people who have held this position among which
only two were immigrants. What position am I talking about? Also, if one of
the immigrants was Louisa ______ in 1825, who was the other?
10. Question 3
• Weighing about 8.5 pounds, this article is made of solid bronze with a 24
carat gold coating. While it costs the issuing authority about $400 to
manufacture this article, the resale value is only $1 following a court ruling in
2015. It is highly unlikely that someone who possesses this article would
want to sell it though. This article is more commonly known by its nickname
– which was supposedly coined when a librarian at the issuing authority was
reminded of a certain relative when she first saw it – than its official name.
Identify the article.
13. Question 4
• An Irish immigrant was trying to woo an opera singer while living in a one-
bedroom apartment in San Francisco in the early 1900s. However, the moral
code of the time frowned upon an unmarried woman entering a man’s
bedroom. The man hence invented something converting his bedroom into a
parlor allowing him to entertain her. He got a patent for his invention –
which is named after him – as the ‘Disappearing _____’ in 1912. This
invention is of great use even today, especially in studio apartments. Identify
this invention?
16. Question 5
In almost all versions of this story and its movie adaptations in modern memory, this
article has been made of glass. However, this story has had several versions, with the
oldest dating back to 1697. There has been quite a bit of confusion regarding whether
the 1697’s version of the story mentioned this article to be made of glass or squirrel
fur, owing to a mistranslation. A famous storytelling duo state that this article was
made of gold. Some versions do not mention what the article was made of, except that
it was tiny and could not be used by anyone other than its owner. Other versions
mention it to be made of blue glass, red velvet, silver, silk and even diamond. What is
the article I’m talking about?
19. Question 6
• In 1972, X, when he first became a senator, received a letter from a man
from Mumbai named ______ claiming that he was related to X, albeit
distantly. The letter suggested that X and the man might have been related
because of their common great, great, great, grandfather who worked in the
East India Trading Company in the 1700s. A few years later, X claimed to
have found out about five such people in Mumbai with the same surname
who may be related to him but has not followed up on it. On his official visit
to India in 2013, he joked that he could probably run for office in India due
to this connection. Identify X.
22. Question 7
• Beginning from 1934, the Motion Picture Production Code had prohibited the use
of the word ____ in movies. However, in movies before 1930, the word was pretty
common. The code was amended a month and half before the release of this
famous 1939 movie allowing use of the words ‘hell’ or ____ when their use "shall
be essential and required for portrayal, in proper historical context, of any scene or
dialogue based upon historical fact or folklore...or a quotation from a literary work,
provided that no such use shall be permitted which is intrinsically objectionable or
offends good taste“. After the amendment, the board had no objection to the
movie’s very famous closing line. What famous line am I talking about?
23.
24. Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn!
- Rhett Butler, Gone with the Wind (1939)
25. Question 8
• This very common vegetable comes from the toxic nightshade family,
probably why Persian writers have blamed it for illnesses like leprosy and
black bile. It is known by several names around the world including Brown
Jolly in the West Indies, and its Italian name which translates as ‘mad apple’.
The English word used for the vegetable in India, is surprisingly not used in
any other English speaking country and neither is it derived from any Indian
vernacular language. Which vegetable am I talking about? (Brownie points
for guessing the root for the Indian English name)
28. Question 9
The basic qualifications required for this position is a professional background in the field – a
degree or equivalent – along with at least 5 to 7 years of experience. Apart from that, they look
for “characters who are extremely understanding, observant and passionate”. The selection
process is extremely rigorous and once chosen, the job requires a lot of travelling and
maintaining strict confidentiality. Employees are expected to travel the entire length and
breadth of their countries and sometimes abroad too. In the words of someone who retired
from the job, “we’re allowed to have another life and family, but it’s gruelling since we work
every day”. When asked, “how does one avoid being detected?” They said, “The vision of an
old bloke sitting in the corner in a grey suit looking a bit miserable is something that’s never
really happened. We are more often than not, in a group”. One of the attributes of an
employee which is now no longer necessary, was photographic memory, thanks to camera
phones. What coveted job am I talking about?
31. Question 10
During her school days, X excelled at creative writing and wrote poetry. When she was
imprisoned in 1932, she penned a collection of 10 odes that she entitled ‘Poetry from Life’s
Other Side’, which included ‘The Story of Suicide Sal’, a poem that mirrored her life. Two
weeks before she died, she gave a poem to her mother entitled ‘The Trail’s End’ which ended
like this:
“Some day they’ll go down together;
And they’ll bury them side by side,
To a few it’ll be grief—
To the law a relief—
But it’s death for X and Y.”
Identify X and Y.
34. Question 11
• In 1938, Albert Hoffman first synthesized X in a search for a blood circulation stimulant.
This however proved fruitless and hence was set aside for 5 years. Hoffman resynthesized X
in 1943 but ingested a small amount of it accidently and experienced its powerful effects.
On April 19, 1943, he intentionally ingested 0.25 mg of X and within an hour, experienced
sudden changes in perception. He asked his lab assistant to drop him home on his ______.
A doctor arrived and checked on him to find he had no physical abnormalities except
incredibly dilated pupils. Hoffman later wrote:
• "... Little by little I could begin to enjoy the unprecedented colours and plays of shapes that
persisted behind my closed eyes…exploding in coloured fountains, rearranging and
hybridizing themselves in constant flux ...”
• Identify X and how is Hoffman’s trip back home on 19 April, 1943 commemorated today?
37. Question 12
• While Harry and Meghan’s interview with Oprah opened up a can of worms,
it also led to a multitude of memes being circulated, to the point that they
were being overused. This threw light on a behaviour that was already very
common on the internet especially when depicting emotions such as extreme
joy, anger, annoyance, drama, gossip or sassiness. In essence, it is the online
version of something that began in the early 19th century as a form of
‘entertainment’ which famous people like Justin Trudeau and Robert
Downey Jr. have indulged in. What am I talking about?
40. Question 13
• Mordida is the Spanish word for ‘bite’, however in Mexican slang it also
means ‘bribe’. This particular tradition which happens in most parts of the
world today has its origins in a Mexican tradition. On the occasion, the
person’s hands are tied behind their back, while the others do ___________.
The guests then shout ‘Mordida!’ Another theory suggests that this tradition
may have originated among the Romans, where throwing the ____ at the
bride on the wedding day was supposed to ensure her fertility while the
guests consumed only the crumbs. What tradition am I talking about?
43. Question 14
• X’s family used to be very wealthy and owned a successful construction
business but they lost all of it in the Great Depression. X later grew up in a
federal housing project and hence wasn’t allowed to keep pets. X therefore
kept turtles as pets and played with them along with toy castles. The turtles
had a short life span and died soon. However, X liked to imagine that the
turtles were trying to gain power over the castles and in that attempt, killed
each other off in ‘sinister plots’. Today, X is popular for his famous work Y.
Identify X and Y.
44.
45. X – George R. R. Martin
Y – The Song of Ice and Fire
46. Question 15
• The usage of X as opposed to the British Y is not exactly an American innovation.
However, both X and Y have been used for a long time. If it had been borrowed
from French, Y was used, whereas if it had been adopted directly from Latin, X was
used. The influence of a certain American publication standardised the use of X
while the British publications kept it open and allowed the use of both X and Y. It
was only in the 90s, that Y began to be prescribed by British editors. Some have
theorised that when the British saw Americans use only X, they become convinced
that it was un-British and stuck with the use of Y. It was the belief that anything
that is compulsory in America must be avoided. What is X and Y? Give funda.
47.
48. Words ending with –ise and –ize in British and
US English respectively
49. Question 16
Chindogu is a Japanese term used to classify a
category of articles. One example of which is
Tomatan (pictured), a wearable robot which feeds
tomatoes to the person. It was introduced by a juice
maker Kagome aimed at helping marathon runners
because tomatoes combat fatigue. Other examples
include a hair guard for people eating noodles and a
solar-powered torch. What is this category of
articles? Give funda.
52. Question 17
X is a British musical comedy with book, music
and lyrics by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss. The
musical was first presented by Cambridge
University students at the Edinburgh Festival
Fringe in 2017, after which it has had
professional productions in various places
including Broadway. It’s a modern retelling of
the stories of X women (who had something in
common) in the form of a pop concert.
ID X and what it is based on?
Two verses from the opening number of the
musical:
All you ever hear and read about
Is our ex and the way it ended
But a pair doesn't beat a royal flush
You're gonna find out how we got, unfriended
Tonight we're gonna do ourselves justice
'Cause we're taking you to court
And every Tudor rose has its thorns
And you're gonna hear 'em live
In consort
55. Question 18
The Grimpoteuthis, lives in extreme depths in oceans
around the world – up to 13,000 feet below sea
level. These differ from other members of their
genus because they don’t produce ink and have
webbing between their arms, making them look like
umbrellas when swimming. Their oversized fins
which look like their ears aid in changing direction.
Their common name derives from its resemblance
to a character from a 1941 Disney movie. What are
they commonly known as?
58. Question 19
China has adopted this practice, almost nonsensically considering the huge geographic
area it covers. This has been done to supposedly reinforce national unity. The effect of
adopting this practice is that a portion of population leads life normally. While the rest
of the population, lives out of sync. Rightly so, one province has been staging a silent
rebellion to Beijing’s adoption of this practice. This province of China has also had a
long history of ethnic and political rivalry. While people in most parts of the country
live out of sync with nature, the people in this province rebel by simply adjusting their
lives to their geographic location. What practice am I talking about? ID the province
rebelling it.
59.
60. China adopting a uniform time (Beijing Time: UTC
+ 08)
Xinjiang province
61. Question 20
This expression is used to describe something that is excellent or extremely useful.
While the expression makes it sound like the thing mentioned might be a very old
invention, in reality, it only started in 1928. In fact, so many other useful and
pathbreaking inventions occurred much before the article mentioned. The expression
may have come into use based on an advertising slogan for the product as a way of
hyping it by the first commercial manufacturer of this pre-wrapped article. What is
interesting is that, this article was banned in the US, for a short period of time in 1943
as a wartime conservation measure. What is the expression I’m talking about?
[Brownie points for giving the name of the first commercial manufacturer]
64. Question 21
• Keeping up with the Americans’ ridiculous practice of measuring things using any
unit except the standard ones is the Waffle House Index. As the name suggests, it is
named after the Waffle House restaurant chain and its reputation for having great
______ preparedness. This index has three levels: green, yellow and red. The green
level is when the restaurant is running at full capacity and serving all the items on its
menu. The yellow level is when the restaurant has been slightly affected, working on
low supplies and hence can serve only essential items on its menu. The red level is
when the restaurant has been severely affected and is hence, closed. This informal
metric was so coined when two Waffle House restaurants remained open after the
major event that happened in Joplin, Missouri in 2011. What is the Waffle House
Index used to measure?
67. Question 22
• 1 qrt alcohol
• 80 drops orange oil
• 120 drops lemon oil
• 40 drops nutmeg oil
• 20 drops coriander oil
• 40 drops neroli oil
• 40 drops cinnamon oil
• ______ was addicted to heroin after getting stabbed by a sabre
during the Civil War. He started making various remedies to try
and help him with his addiction. His most popular remedy before
he invented A was a concoction of wine, caffeine and cocaine.
However, one of the three items was made illegal. He later came
up with the recipe for A. The ingredients mentioned on the left is
the flavouring required for making A which is still commercially
popular. However, the flavouring consisting of these ingredients is
not usually revealed and is labelled as _______ 7X.
• A small amount of the flavouring is added to the preparation of a
syrup which is then diluted in water in the ratio 1:5 to give the
final product A
• ID A.
70. Question 23
• Although touted to be the national dish of Britain, this delicacy X is not native to
Britain (like a lot of other things :P). It is supposed to have become popular in
Britain in the 1960s owing to migrant chefs. X actually derives from or is almost
similar to another dish Y which is popular in another part of the world. Y was
invented in the 50s when chefs in a restaurant noticed that another popular dish Z
when left over became too dry to be eaten the next day and decided to re-cook Z
with a tomato and butter based gravy. Y, now is also found in pizza toppings and
fillings for wraps, rolls and pies too. Moreover, Z also lends its name to X.
• Identify X, Y and Z
71.
72. X – Chicken Tikka Masala
Y – Butter Chicken
Z – Chicken Tikka
73. Question 24
Frank Sinatra passed away at the age of 82 on 14 May 1998. Ambulances in
California are said to take around 7 minutes to arrive after the 911 call is made.
However, when Sinatra needed to be taken to a hospital, the ambulance made it
in record time because the roads were almost empty. He was taken to the
Cedars-Sinai Hospital at 9 pm but passed away two hours later. But, people had
two things to be disappointed about the next morning. One was Sinatra’s death.
What was the other thing which was also why Sinatra could make it to the
hospital so quickly?
