2. QUIZ INSTRUCTIONS
20 questions.
5star marked questions, used for tie-breakers.
If the tie persists, sudden death.
QM is god.
Googling is a sin, so remember to turn your mic on
and say "Shantam Paapam" or "Sorry QM for I have
sinned" after you Google.
Top 8 finalists, Naale banni.
3. Question #1
Marcus Tullius Cicero was a Roman statesman, lawyer, and accomplished orator who was
amputated and beheaded on the orders of Mark Antony for his scathing criticism and
opposition against the man. But before his untimely death, he penned work in 45 BCE,
whose title translates to "On the ends of good and evil” in English. "There is no one who
loves pain itself, who seeks after it and wants to have it, simply because it is pain..." is the
English translation of an excerpt from that work.
A long time later, the Catholic Church declared him to be a “Virtuous Pagan” and thus his
writings were spared the fate (banning/burning etc) of a lot of other literary works from
the same time and origin. In the 1960s, a typeface manufacturer started using a 1500s
based scrambled version of that excerpt in their advertising campaigns, and in the 1980s,
Aldus Corp. used it in one of their flagship products. This led to the origin of a phrase that
is used by almost every designer on the planet.
ID the phrase.
7. Kumortuli in Kolkata is known for its special sacred
statues. The statues are made from mud that is from the
sacred Ganga, or imported from other sources. One of
the most notable of these, is the Durga statue that is
made. It is considered incomplete without mud from
outside a X. One of the theories behind this is that, the
soil here is rich with the virtues that the men that enter
Xs leave behind. The soil must be begged from one of
the “workers” at X, and received as a gift, which used to
be done by a priest, but is now done the maker of the
statue. This soil is then mixed with cow dung and urine,
along with the mud from Ganga, and added on the
statue.
ID X.
Question #3
9. Question #4
The coronavirus pandemic has lead to all sorts of new ways to pass time. One
such way has been devised by YouTuber PippenFTS, who has enlisted the help of
over 100,000 people from all across the globe with similar interests for this
project. He has overcome a height restriction of 255m with the help of a module
called X, which changes the original dimensions of this entity to a 16x16x16 one.
With everyone's help, he intends to do something that is very much mathematically
possible with respect to mensuration, but has never been attempted on this scale
before. Each contributor will deliver a certain model, and stitching together all
would result in the completion of the project.
What project?
11. The origins of this act lie in 1800s Germany where the soldiers would perform
it in order to bring good luck; but today, it is more of an Aussie celebration.
Although it is commonly associated with a person X, it was first done in the
field by David Reynolds, another Aussie.
This celebration’s root in the German army was to instill a spirit of loyalty and
friendship, even if it meant performing an act as gross as this. Later on, a
Prussian general created the Bierstiefel, which kept the tradition going,
albeit removing the gross nature of it.
What act?
*Question #5
13. Question #6
They have been a part of Armies and battles for as long as written record
has existed, and they do even today. Hence, nowadays, they’re always
ranked higher than the people who train them in the US army. This is to
prevent mistreatment and neglect, since any such actions would result in
disciplinary measures being taken against the accused.
Who are they?
15. The theme for this year’s Met Gala was
‘In America: A Lexicon of Fashion’.
X wore a floral dress designed by a
project Runway alum Christian Siriano
which consisted of 50 different
varieties of flowers and a chic mini
silhouette with a lengthy asymmetrical
train that swirled around her waist.
Put Funda behind the inspiration of
this dress.
Question #7
17. Question #8
The origin of this isle X comes from an old legend from around the same parts.
The saga describes the journey of an exiled warrior from Y, who found a small
habitable area on the seemingly inhospitable X, northwest from Y. X was
named with the hopes that the pleasant name would attract settlers to live
there.
One would expect a similar, but slightly contrasting story of avoiding over-
settlement for the naming of Y, but that would be wrong since Y was named
for what a traveller who climbed a mountain saw surrounding Y.
ID the very popular confusing duo X and Y.
21. Question #10
Sun Temple
Ellora Caves
Hampi
Rani ki Vav
Sanchi Stupa
Red Fort
X
ID connect and in what aspect is X different from the others mentioned
23. Question #11
Cows in Moscow were fitted with VR headsets in an attempt to
simulate a pleasant environment with greenery and had colours that
made them feel calm, in an attempt to increase the volume of milk.
Twitter, Reddit and many blogs were quick to draw parallels between
this and a 1999 movie and flooded the internet with a pun based on
the movie’s title.
What pun?
27. Question #13
X is a movie whose plot revolves around the festivities occurring during the
month of June. The story was heavily based on folktales and myths of
Scandinavian countries, especially Sweden.
To capture its full essence, the director built this fictional town of ______
(In the movie) based on the regions of Hälsingland and Hälsingegårdar
farms as shown in the pictures. The word _______ can be traced back to
a fairy tale about villagers dancing themselves to death when the devil
comes calling.
ID X.
Image Follows
30. As we hear it today, the saying can be seen to have 3 ______s, but
according to Osho Rajneesh, there is a fourth that exists according to the
Hindu and Buddhist Origin of this pictorial maxim, which asks you to hide your
pleasures and not put them on display.
The popular version of the maxim itself (without the 4th ______) can be seen
all over the world, including the Sabarmati ashram.
What maxim?
Question #14
32. X and Y were synthesised in the same 2-week period in 1897 by a German chemist working for
Bayer Company.
X is a drug that was marketed as a cough medicine, painkiller and sedative while being
completely non-addictive. The drug became a massive hit in just a year, sold all over the world.
The claim of it being non-addictive however was found to be false, and the drug has been
banned almost all over the world since the ‘30s.
Y on the other hand started off on a rough start at Bayer, for it could not be patented, since it
has been previously synthesised. Even though this was the case, the drug was vigorously
marketed all over the world and is one of the most popular drugs to date.
X and Y were thus trademarks of the Bayer company, which were to be given up as a result of
the treaty of Versailles post WW1, and thus are known today as a commonly used word, rather
than a trademark.
ID X and Y.
Question #15
34. Question #16
In the summer of 1816, X, Percy and Claire visited Lord Byron in Geneva. Being
trapped indoors due to incessant torrential rain, they came across a set of German
ghost stories called ‘Fantasmagoriana’. This prompted a horror story writing
competition which would be judged by Lord Byron.
This competition led to the birth of Y which X subtexts as ‘The Modern __________’,
the blank indicating a “villain” in the eyes of the Gods. As stated by the writer, it
takes inspiration from theories of Dr Darwin and galvanism which were discussed
frequently during their visit to Geneva.
Y is now regarded as a classic, horror science fiction novel which paved the way for
many modern science fiction works.
ID X & Y
36. Question #17
Non-sexualised photos of infants are generally not considered child
pornography under US law. However the addition of a certain item,
superimposed after an iconic photograph was taken is being argued as
making the minor in question, Spencer Elden, look like a sex worker. This,
along with the allegation of his legal name and image being tied forever
to the “commercial sexual exploitation” due to this piece of artwork, has
led him to sue X over the piece of art.
ID X.
37. Question #18
In the 80s, due to the tremendous competition in the energy drink market,
alongside the usual marketing campaigns like endorsements and ads, Red
Bull launched another innovative campaign using “used” cans. The campaign
created an illusion of demand, thus boosting sales.
What did they do?
40. Question #19
Since a lot of children go missing in Pakistan every year, a country with rough
terrain and many areas with almost no media coverage, Berger decided to
team with an artist and activist, Samar Minallah Khan, to help in the outreach
about this information.
They thus used Xs to spread information, so that it reaches even the remotest
of locations. This has already resulted in a handful of children being
reconnected with their families over the last couple of months.
Put Funda.
43. Question #20
In Jurassic Park, DNA was a goofy yet
uncanny cartoon character designed
to explain to Jurassic Park tourists,
who are assumed to be laymen, how
InGen recreated the dinosaurs.
What did Mister DNA inspire in a
recent pop culture phenomenon,
sometime in June.