QUEST-ion: the Open Sci-Tech Quiz held under Celesta 2022: the annual Techno-Management Fest of IIT Patna. The Prelims were held on 2nd April 2022 and the Finals were held on 3rd April 2022.
3. RULES
● 20 questions in the quiz. Each question carries 10 points.
● Marks division will be mentioned in case a question requires multiple answers.
● Please fill in your answers in the G-Form only. Please don't type out the answers
in the YouTube live-chat.
● We will have a re-run at the end. Form closes 1 minute after the re-run ends.
● Q5, Q10, Q15 and Q20 are star marked questions. They will be used to settle
ties.
● No Googling. It would lead to disqualification.
● Happy Quizzing!
7. 2)
X along with a French music icon dropped a red-hot techno track in 2016. The song,
called Exit, contained clips of warning of the dangers of privacy interference:-
“Technology can actually increase privacy. The question is
Why are our private details that are transmitted online
Or why our private details that are stored on our personal devices
Any different than the details of the private records of our lives
That are stored in our private journals
I think, you know
The same that you don't care about the right of privacy
Because you got nothing to hide is no different than saying
You don't care about freedom of speech
Because you got nothing to say”
Who is X, who became famous for something different in 2013?
13. 4)
X is an English Estate which served to facilitate “communication” during the Second
World War. A large number of employees used to work here in shifts round the
clock.
Today it hosts a museum and showcases a number of exhibitions related to the
history of this place and the role it played, receiving hundreds of thousands of
visitors each year.
Google released an Easter Egg theme, wherein a Google search for this place very
aptly results into a text puzzle (unique every time) which then solves itself to reveal
the name of X.
What is the significance of this
place X?
16. 5)
In the Soviet Union, post WWII, state censorship was in full effect and sneaking in any
American record was next to impossible. However, some fans found an alternate way.
Accidentally discovered by a frontman of a British band in a flea market, bootleg recording
of the banned music was made available on discarded Y.
Y was an ideal choice for makeshifts records, as the old silver nitrate layer, was soft enough
to cut a pattern through it, but was firm enough to hold the shape. Secondly, hospitals had
to dispose off Y within an year due to their highly flammable nature. Hence, it was available
in bulk and almost for free.
The British band member on being asked how the record looked like, said - “They would
start off with square or rectangular Y, put a plate on it, draw it and cut it out by hand”.
What is Y, mainly used in hospitals, that people used as makeshift records.
19. 6)
When IBM Watson was being developed, its creators thought of feeding the data of a
particular website X thinking that this might be a good way for Watson to understand
how people actually communicated in real life.
However, Watson was unable to filter the cuss words and impolite words that came
from the data which led to the developer team eventually deleting all of X’s data
from Watson’s memory.
Recently a new trend began when an Instagram user asked everyone to “Show us ur
name in X” using the new “add yours” Instagram stories sticker. Nearly two million
users have shared a screenshot of the definition of their name on X within the sticker
thread.
ID X.
22. 7)
People started talking about this after a tweet containing a GIF went viral on twitter.
Scientists explained this illusion as an example of synesthesia, or when the senses get
crossed in the brain. For example, hearing a word and immediately seeing a colour.
It also led to a huge reddit community which currently has over 312k members who post
similar gifs. These gifs create a perception of something with the help of apparent motion
and vibration effect.
What is so special about these gifs?
OR what are they called?
25. 8)
This phrase is a comical way of depicting simplified scientific models.
Originating in theoretical physics, the metaphor refers to physicists' tendency to reduce a problem
to the simplest form imaginable in order to make calculations more feasible, even if the
simplification hinders the model's application to reality.
The phrase comes from a joke that spoofs the simplifying assumptions sometimes used in
theoretical physics.
Milk production at a dairy farm was low, so the farmer wrote to the local university, asking for help
from academia. A multidisciplinary team of professors was assembled, headed by a theoretical
physicist, and two weeks of intensive on-site investigation took place. The scholars then returned
to the university, notebooks crammed with data, where the task of writing the report was left to the
team leader. Shortly thereafter the physicist returned to the farm, saying to the farmer, "I have the
solution, but it works only in the case of ____ ____ in a vacuum."
What 2 worded phrase is this? (blanks not indicative)
28. 9)
With each passing year, number of drink spiking cases are increasing. The
conversation on this alarming trend and how to stay safe was reignited by a Netflix
show. In one scene, two girls, unsure of whether their drinks have been spiked,
perform a test and the results are almost instantaneous.
The test was proposed by 4 college students to give women a discrete way to test
their drinks and make use of a commonly worn personal care product. The user has
to stir the drink and if the drink is drugged, it will produce some observable changes,
which will alert the user.
What is the test?
29.
30. ANSWER
They developed a Nail polish that changes colour when it comes in contact with
drugs like - Xanax, Rohypnol, GHB. The user has to stir the drink with their finger and
if the drink is spiked, it will change colour, alerting the person.
31. 10*)
Ofey was such a curious character. From joking (surely) to safe-cracking to
drumming to cosplaying to experimenting with LSD—were genuine expressions of
his idiosyncratic character, as was another of his passions for which he is not very
well known: art (shown on the next slide).
“My friend suggested ‘Au Fait,’ which means ‘It is done’ in French. I spelled it O-f-e-y,
which turned out to be a name the blacks used for ‘whitey.’ But after all, I was whitey,
so it was all right. ”
He took up the pursuit at the age of 44, and continued to draw and paint for the rest
of his life, signing his work “Ofey.” Many of his drawings display the awkward,
off-kilter perspective of the beginner, and a great many others look very
accomplished indeed.
Why do we have this question in a Science Quiz? How do we better know Ofey?
35. 11 )
In early 1960s, an aeronautical engineer was working on technology to ensure safe
landing of Apollo astronauts and to recover the command module. Years later, he
was roped in to develop airplane seating that could increases chances of survival in
case of a crash. As it turned out later, the technology not only made passengers
safer, but it also made the travel comfortable due to its property of even distribution
of weight and their ability to recover their original shape.
Other uses of the inventions include - to line players’ helmets, to create insoles, to
build inflatable bumper, rafts and to build horses’ saddles.
What did he invent which is now used in myriads of products to ensure comfort and
safety?
38. 12)
Based in Redwood City, California, X was an American technology company that
specialized in computer workstations intended for higher-education and business
use.
Apple purchased X and gave the founder his old job back at Apple. Apple also
promised that X's operating system would be ported to Macintosh hardware, and
combined with the Mac OS operating system, which would yield Mac OS “X”, later
called macOS. Though not very profitable, the company had a wide-ranging impact
on the computer industry. Object-oriented programming and graphical user
interfaces became more common after the release of its first products.
Several developers used X’s platform to write pioneering programs. For example, in
1990, Computer Scientist Tim Berners-Lee used an X Computer to develop the first
web browser and web server.
Id X.
44. 14)
According to Charles Arthur in his book Digital Wars, the first use of the phrase X on
television appeared in a T.V show. On October 15, 2002, in the fourth episode of the
show’s final season, the character Willow turns to the eponymous slayer and asks,
“Have you X her yet?”
The character Xander answers: “She’s 17!”
Willow then clarifies that she meant trying to find relevant information about said
person.
According to Arthur, just a few months later, all 60 members of a committee selected
by the American Dialect Society voted this 2002’s most useful new word.
Merriam-Webster and the Oxford English Dictionary would soon note the coinage.
What’s this very common phrase X?
47. 15*)
Leonardo Da Vinci is most famous for his paintings, that are a sight to behold.
However, one of the many things he is not usually associated with is the discovery of
X. Although invented much later for practical use, X finds its first mention in a book
written by Da Vinci. According to him, the use of a water filled glass hemisphere
could correct a very common defect.
More than 300 years later, a German glassblower used this concept to cure himself
of the severe disorder he suffered from. With the advancement of plastics, X took
the form that we see today.
What is X?
53. 17)
In 1963 a 10-year old boy borrowed a book from his local library in Cambridge, England. The boy was
X, a schoolchild with a passion for mathematics, and the book that had caught his eye recounted the
history of Y, the most famous problem in mathematics, which had baffled the greatest minds on the
planet for over three centuries.
To back up his theorem the author of Y had developed an argument or mathematical proof, and
following the first marginal note he scribbled the most tantalising comment in the history of
mathematics:
I have a truly marvellous demonstration of this proposition which this margin is too narrow to
contain.
He believed he could prove his theorem, but he never committed his proof to paper. After his death,
mathematicians across Europe tried to rediscover the proof of what became known as Y.
X realised his childhood dream of proving Y in 1997 and winning the Wolfskehl Prize.
Identify the theorem Y.
56. 18)
“It is the most recognizable photograph ever ‘Earthrise over the lunar surface’ taken in
1968 by Apollo 8 …. Do you realise until that photo was published nobody thought to draw
earth with X on it. Every representation of the Earth before that photo was just Earth ….
We didn’t think X were part of Earth” - Neil DeGrasse Tyson
Id X.
1960 2003
59. 19)
Finding a bug in your code can be tedious, but, if the typo is a proper syntax, neither
the IDE nor the compiler will alert you to it.
To avoid a similar bug, X condition is used in programming, which, when written
wrong will produce a syntax error and will not compile.
Alternatively, most of us know X as probably
the most loveable character on internet who
has a non standard way of speech, similar to
the modifications done to the code syntax.
ID X?
X
62. 20*)
X is a device that can generate an airflow more than 20 times stronger than an
average ceiling fan. Its futuristic design is sure to make you wonder about the way it
works. It differs from traditional fans in both its appearance and the way it works,
drastically.
The air flows through the channel in the pedestal, through a curved path, and comes
out from narrow openings at a 16-degree angle around the frame of the fan. This
allows for the surrounding air to also be drawn in from multiple areas around the fan
leading to an outlet of constant flow of cool breeze, much like a reverse vacuum
cleaner.
What is so special about this fan’s design?
67. RULES
- This round contains 7 Pounce and Bounce Questions.
- We will be moving clockwise in this round.
- The next direct question will be available to the team next to the one which
answered the last question.
- Scoring:
- Direct - 20/0
- Bounce - 10/0
- Pounce - 20/-10
- For pouncing, tag the quizmaster within the pounce window in your teams’ text
channel (whatsapp group) and write your answer.
- Don’t speak up the answer until you are asked to do so.
68. Few technical breakthroughs have changed the face of their field like the X.
It has revolutionized biological research and biotechnology to such an extent that it can be considered as one
of the major reasons for the boom the field has experienced over the last 20 years or so.
Y is generally credited with inventing X in 1983 while working for Cetus Corporation in Emeryville, California.
Y was hatching an idea to increase the concentration of the specific gene of interest to detect point mutations
in human genes.
While driving his Honda Civic on Highway 128 from San Francisco to Mendocino, Y made an intellectual leap.
He reasoned that by using two opposed primers, one complementary to the upper strand and the other to
the lower, then performing multiple cycles of denaturation, annealing and polymerization he could
exponentially amplify the piece of DNA (and now RNA) between the primers. This led to the birth of X.
The Reverse Transcription version of X has recently been in news as it has led to detection of viral RNA
possible within hours which otherwise would have taken days and that could have been catastrophic.
What is X?
1)
71. A world’s leading cosmologist, X (now deceased) and a marvel actor, Y locked horns in an epic battle
of the game Z. Alex Winter, the director, had the perfect person in mind to narrate: Keanu Reeves.
In the story, an un-aging Keanu Reeves from 700 years into the Where am I? insists that Y (the actor)
must provide the keynote speech at a Caltech event or he will put the Where am I? of humanity at
risk. When Y calls Caltech, they doubt his credentials, until Y challenges X, the scheduled speaker, in a
game of Z.
Z consists of a centuries-old game combined with the uncertainties and probabilities of science
somewhat related to Y’s marvel character’s origin story.
The 11-minute video premiered in Caltech’s Beckman Auditorium in 2016. The event celebrated the
legacy of the late Caltech physicist Richard Feynman, who received the Nobel Prize in physics 50
years ago.
Id X, Y, and Z
2)
74. The design of this product line that has been used in space missions, on ISS, and
even at the United Nations is very distinct. They look like a black colored box
inspired by Japan’s bento lunchbox. The design also features a peculiar red dot
which makes it even more easily identifiable.
The product has been very successful in the business market. As mentioned earlier,
the product has been used in outer space and for a very long time remained the only
one of its kind to be certified for use on the ISS.
Interestingly, the name of the product is inspired from one of the slogans of the
company who initially manufactured it.
ID the product line.
3)
77. The solar eclipse of 1919 was special for science in many ways. For one, it was the longest in
500 years.
Scientists measured the position of stars closest to sun, which normally was not observable
due to sun’s brightness. They compared this with their position in the night sky and observed
some discrepancies. In terms of basic physics, this was an important observation as it
proved the theory X.
The theory, in turn, proved claims of a french astronomer wrong. The astronomer was
assigned with the task of replicating the trajectory of a planet. However, his predictions were
off. The astronomer was sure of existence of something dense interfering with the orbit of
the planet.
However, the theory explained the discrepancies in the trajectory and photographic
evidences from a total solar eclipse some time before failed to support the claim.
ID X. What was the claim that was proved wrong?
4)
78.
79. ANSWER
X = General theory of Relativity
Claim = Existence of Planet Vulcan
between Mercury and Sun
80. Bumblebees and X (a subset of humans) have something in common: neither like to divulge
their address and both tend to stay close to home. Scientists studied the habits of one to track
down the other.
They developed an algorithm which includes analysing locations connected to a series of
“events” to determine the most probable area in which the X lives based on bee behaviour.
In it the bees were tagged and then monitored as they travelled between their nest and the
flowers. Altering the density of the flowers enabled the scientists to manipulate how hard the
bees had to work to gather the nectar.
By combining computer simulations of the bees’ movements with geographical profiling, the
team found they were able to locate the entrance to the bees’ nest, showing that this algorithm
was effective to find X.
Who is X or what is the algorithm used for? (Image follows)
5)
83. ANSWER
X = Serial Killers
Image = Locations of murders by Jack the Ripper
84. One of the most complex and convoluted myths in the world of nutrition is the one called, the
‘X (a food item), Y and Iron Decimal Point Error Myth’. It was started by the nutrition expert,
Professor Arnold Bender in his inaugural lecture at the University of London in 1972.
“A statue of Y in Crystal City, Texas, commemorates the fact that singlehandedly he raised the
consumption of X by 33%. America was ‘strong to the finish ‘cos they ate their X’ and duly
defeated the Hun. Unfortunately the propaganda was fraudulent; German chemists
reinvestigating the iron content of X had shown in the 1930s that the original workers had put
the decimal point in the wrong place and made a tenfold overestimate of its value. For a better
source of iron X would have been better off chewing the cans.”
But the actual reason according to Y why he ate X was because - “X is full of Vitamin A. An’tha’s
what makes hoomans strong an helthy”.
What are we talking about? Or Id X and Y.
6)
87. In 2017 a famous paper was published with the title “Could X produce enough energy to sustain themselves?”
X’s sole purpose is to eat, and thus kill humans, while disregarding other sources of nutrition. However it has
been mentioned that the Xs do not use humans for energy as they have no digestive tract. Therefore, it is
theorised that they must photosynthesise, since they have managed to survive for 100 years without feeding
on any form of life.
There total daily energy expenditure was calculated and matched to the photosynthetic energy required and
was concluded that, by modelling the X’s skin as the equivalent of plant cells producing similar energy by the
same means, the Xs would not survive. All of the varieties - 3m, 7m, 15m, and 60m - would produce a very
small percentage (19%, 15%, 12%, and 6% respectively) of the energy they would require to sustain
themselves.
Therefore, unless the mass of the Xs plays a significant role in improving the supply/demand energy ratio,
then the Xs are unfeasible in real life.
Who are we talking about?
7)
91. RULES
- The team with the lowest score chooses a category and the score,
which opens the respective question on buzzer for all teams.
- The team which correctly answers the question will choose the next
category.
- If no team answers the question the team which last chose the
category will choose again.
- Once a question has been chosen it won’t be available again.
- It will be better for you if you make a note of the categories which
have been chosen.
94. Awards (5pts)
With the face of Archimedes and a quote attributed to 1st century AD poet Manilius, which
reads in Latin: "Transire suum pectus mundoque potiri" ("Rise above oneself and grasp the
world"), this awards is considered highly prestigious in the field of mathematics.
1)
98. Awards (10pts)
These are a satirical way of honoring individuals who have supposedly contributed
to human evolution by selecting themselves out of the gene pool by dying by their
stupid actions.
2)
102. Awards (15pts)
Known as the ‘Oscars of Science’ and with a $3 million prize money these awards
were founded by Sergey Brin, Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg, Yuri and Julia
Milner, and Anne Wojcicki.
The trophy is molded into the shape of a toroid, recalling natural forms found from
black holes and galaxies to seashells and coils of DNA.
3)
110. Feeling Lucky? (10pts)
She is the first woman to receive a Doctorate in Science from an Indian University. Her
research contributed to the development of drugs that treated malaria and epilepsy.
Who is she?
2)
114. Feeling Lucky? (15pts)
ID the scientist to whom Google dedicated this doodle. The doodle depicts the
scientist’s most renowned work - (effect on photons as they travel through a
compound. )
3)
142. RULES
- You will be shown 5 uncyclopedia pages. You have to identify to whom/what is
the page dedicated.
- Write all the answers in a single message in your team’s text channel (Whatsapp
group) .
- Do not unmute and answer.
- Scoring: 10/0
159. RULES
- This round contains 7 Pounce and Bounce Questions.
- We will be moving anti-clockwise in this round.
- The next direct question will be available to the team next to the one which
answered the last question.
- Scoring:
- Direct -> 20/0
- Bounce -> 10/0
- Pounce -> 20/-10
- For pouncing, tag the quizmaster within the pounce window in your teams’ text
channel (whatsapp group) and write your answer.
- Don’t speak up the answer until you are asked to do so.
160. A test is performed to assess cognition and understanding of cause and effect in animals.
It was observed that one of the subjects of the test were able to solve it on the first trial.
They used sinking objects rather than floating objects, solid objects over hollow, big
objects rather than small ones. The results indicated that they possessed incomplete but
sophisticated understanding of displacement.
Their performance has been explained using two hypothesis. One suggests that they
focus solely on the movement of reward and tend to repeat actions that bring the reward
closer. Second hypothesis suggests that corvids pass certain test due to their preference
towards handling objects that resemble natural stones.
What test which provides an insight into the mechanism animals use to learn about the
world?
1)
161.
162. ANSWER
Also known as Aesop’s Fable Test. They are given stones and a
tube of water with floating rewards.
163. A Lithuaninan artist came up with the idea of this hypothetical roller coaster stating its
goal is to <redacted> "with elegance and euphoria".
The concept design of the layout begins with a steep-angled lift that takes riders up
500-metre (1,600 ft) to the top, a climb that takes a few minutes to reach. Any
passengers that wished to get off could then do so. From there, a 500-metre (1,600 ft)
drop would take the train to 360 kilometres per hour (220 mph), close to its terminal
velocity, before flattening out and speeding into the first of its seven slightly clothoid
inversions. Each inversion would have a smaller diameter than the one before in order to
maintain the required 10 g to passengers while the train loses speed. After a sharp
right-hand turn the train would enter a straight, where unloading of <redacted> and
loading of new passengers could take place.
What is this roller coaster used for? (image follows)
2)
167. Now present at college campuses and research institutes on every continent, getting
X over the border can still be hard. Fears about pests and diseases can hold up the
deliveries for inspection.
One hopeful receiver was the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and
Astrophysics in Pune. In 1994, they received a descendant of the original X. But, a
combination of post-office delays and the Pune heat meant that the X withered
again and again. Finally, in 1997 two of X reached them.
The now director of the institute remembers the enthusiasm - “Everyone thought
that [having] it [X] would be a wonderful thing” , especially since so much
“astronomy is rooted in the thinking of the person associated with X/because of
which X is significant.”
What is X?
3)
170. As part of the scientists’ efforts to discover new materials and characterise them, one of
them got inspired by the catchphrase of a Dr X of a popular TV series and tried on Barium,
Zinc and Gallium as the constituent elements based on it.
This compound formed a new, never-before-seen crystal structure. However, it did not
have any other exciting features, scientists said. It behaves like other nonmagnetic
quasicrystals, but has a different arrangement of atoms.
Those familiar with Dr X will know that his use of the phrase <redacted> tends to be
associated with a jest or jape. Despite this, Paul Canfield, a researcher at Iowa State
University, and his team decided that Dr X’s fearsome scientific reputation merited the
thorough investigation of the compound he so frequently proposes.
What inspired this Compound?
4)
173. Xs are essentially a latch-like mechanism in which energy is loaded in a mass-spring system, held in
place with a latch. When the latch is rapidly released, all the stored potential energy is released over a
short period of time.
Several small organisms are capable of producing ultrafast moves through a similar latching
mechanism: frogs' legs and chameleons' tongues, for instance, as well as exploding plant seeds,
multiple termite species, and the mandibles of trap-jaw ants.
The inspiration which led to research on this came from a famous scene of a 2018 movie. They
believed it was impossible for the character to do an X while wearing the <redacted> thus discovering
a plot hole in the film.
While doing the research the scientists discovered that X is the fastest motion the human body is
capable of producing. It was previously thought pitching a baseball was fastest.
What is X and the famous practically impossible scene? (image follows)
5)
177. Dropped right in the middle of the hallway of a museum in Houston is a bob that is
connected to the Earth at only one point on a swivel using a 60 ft long wire.
Throughout the day, the bob travels back and forth knocking a ring of pins that are
kept near the outer rim of the bob’s swing. During the course of a few seconds, the
pendulum slowly makes its way between two pins, knocking them down, suggesting
that the angle of the swing has changed.
But, if the same set up is taken to equator, it “will just sit there. It swings, it doesn’t go
anywhere.” At poles, “North and South, they work great.”
Under the influence of what unperceived motion is the direction of travel of
pendulum shifting?
6)
181. “Although badly wounded in his solar paddles, he(X) is not quite dead. He may still
be able to tell us something of value. We have got a great deal out of him during his
life (short, but neither nasty nor brutish).”
This 1962 memo to the British PM talks about X’s accident before which he had
transmitted a thousand hours worth of significant data. USA came to realise what
had happened suspiciously quick but kept quiet and UK found out much later, even
though both were stakeholders.
This accident raised a new concern about the capabilities of EMP weapons.
Explain what had happened.
7)
182.
183. ANSWER
X-Ariel-1, UK’s first satellite, which was a joint venture with the USA.
It failed 4 days after a nuclear test high in the atmosphere by the USA,
called Starfish Prime.