The 350-week quiz club has achieved a great milestone. It began in 2010 with just a few participants but now has many members who have supported it over the years through their busy schedules. The club will celebrate its 350th weekly quiz with a special joint hosting by 14 people instrumental in starting the club. It hopes to continue growing and reaching more milestones like 500 and 1000 weekly quizzes.

1. When we started.. only thing that
The
…Twitter was just a sound birds made
been constant is..
…a guy in Turtleneck was still figuring TCS Maitree Kolkata Quiz Club
out how to build iPhones and iPads Thursday Thrillers
…the countries of South Sudan and Celebrating…
Montenegro did not exist
…the senator from Illinois was beginning
Week of unbroken Quizzing and Fun!!!
to dream about becoming the US president
…Arab Spring was the hopeful name given
to a season
Be a part of the celebrat
…IPL meant Intellectual Property Law 19th April, 2012
2:00 – 3:00 pm
Delta Park Lords,
Conference Room 2

2. 350 weeks is a very long time indeed. And for a voluntary, weekly
event -- any event -- to have survived that long is a great achievement
- more so for an event for which participants have to skip lunch and
make time out of their busy office schedules; and one which offers no
other reward but a quenching for the thirst for knowledge.
Today, on the occasion of the 350th weekly quiz by the TCS Maitree
Quiz Club Kolkata, on behalf of the Quiz Club, I would like to extend
the heartiest congratulations and gratitude for all of our members who
have continued to support our endeavor through the years. A
testimony to our success would be the fabulous results achieved by our
members in Corporate and Open quizzing circuits. Our members have
also gone onto model similar clubs in other companies when they have
moved on from TCS—thereby spreading and enriching the our common
passion for Quizzing….
In keeping with our tradition of teamwork, the 350th Thursday Thriller will
be an event jointly hosted by as many as 14 people who have been
instrumental in giving shape to the Quiz Club over the years. There have
been numerous quizzers who have made our quizzing experience more
enjoyable. For paucity of space we would only be able to feature questions
from a small fraction of them in this special edition of Thursday Thriller.
Hope you enjoy it. And above all, we hope to continue receiving your
support for all our endeavours as we move towards our 500th and 1000th
Thursday Thrillers…
“No Quizzing No Fun. Know Quizzing Know Fun.”

3. Abhishek Das
In 2010, these were his distinctions.
A> The Brand ambassador of a German Supermarket store
called REWE
B>The honorary citizen of the Spanish town of Caballino.
C> Accessed as western propaganda by Ahmadinejad to
introduce superstition.
Who?
1.

4. Abhishek Das
What does a Deltiologist collect?
2.

5. Arnab Pal…
George Embiricos in 2011 sold a certain something to the
Royal family of Qatar at an astronomical value of $250
Millions (which is a record in itself, and bettered the previous
record by more than $100 million).
What was the object of this expensive sale ?
And whose record did it break ?
3.

6. Arnab Pal…
Only two novels of Charles Dickens was set on a historical
backdrop.
Name the novels and the real life incident (No Part Marks).
4.

7. Bhaskar Datta
Who is this person who recently - in Feb 2012 (lost his job
due to something he did last year) ?
5.

8. Bhaskar Datta
According to urban legend, this dish derives its name from
secret ingredients that were used in the original recipes—for
making it tastier and healthier.
However, the name actually derives from the liberal dousing
of egg that was used to ―finish‖ the dish.
What popular dish am I talking about?
6.

9. Bhavin Zaveri
X was made by largely customizing Y; the cost of which was
close to US$ 100,000. The additions included extremely
durable shell and frame, controlled by a computer with
artificial intelligence. The chief engineering was managed by
Dr. Bonnie Barstow and his assistant Devon.
Along with partner Michael, X was brought in during
situations where "direct action might provide the only
feasible solution".
Y came from the house of GM as a specialty package in the
third generation of Y’s (its own) avatar and was seen until
1992.
7.

10. Bhavin Zaveri
This is a painting by Raja
Ravi Verma.
Q is Who is this boy , the
subject of this painting and
why should we remember /
know him ??
8.

11. Deepanjan Deb
Joseph Gurney Cannon (May
7, 1836 – November
12, 1926) was the Speaker of
the United States House of
Representatives from 1903 to
1911, and is considered to be
the most dominant Speaker
in United States history, with
such control over the House
that he could often control
debate.
In what significant way is he
―a first‖ in the world ?
9.

12. Deepanjan Deb
140 years ago Mumbai was largely an uninhabited cluster of
islands. To fulfil the water supply needs of the city a reservoir
was built, in the famous Malabar Hills. Not only did the
reservoir sustain the needs of Mumbai for the next 100 years,
it also witnessed the growth of Mumbai as the Commercial
Capital of India.
The reservoir was built by a company called Littlewood
___________ & Co., which today is __________
___________Co. & Ltd
10.

13. Niraj Chaudhary
Eric Clapton used to frequent this American diner in London.
When he asked the proprietors to keep his regular table, one
of them suggested to keep his guitar there as indicator of
reserved table.
What started with this and culminated as The London Vault?
11.

14. Niraj Chaudhary
Complete these lines by Ghalib to get the name of a legend's
directorial debut –
"Hui muddat kay Ghalib mar gaya par yaad aata hai, Woh har
aik baat pe kehna ke: ________________".
12.

15. Rajeev Bhattacharjee
In the 1880’s, the Indian Railways in the Punjab and Sindh
region faced a peculiar problem. In order to solve the
problem, they started doing something which soon became a
good revenue generator for them. The solution that the Indian
Railways came up with, is practiced even today.
What am I talking of?
13.

16. Rajeev Bhattacharjee
Genelia D Souza acted in a movie called Force before she
married Reteish Deshmukh. This, according to Bollywood
insiders like Bharathi Pradhan, caused an unforeseen
hindrance to her marriage.
What was the issue and how was it solved?
14.

17. Reshma Mitra
On 30th August 1998 X and Y found an ingenious technique
to let their users worldwide know that they'll be out of office
to attend the Burning Man event in Nevada.
The technique was so well received by users that it soon
became a cult worldwide and is now used to celebrate
numerous occasions throughout the year.
Identify the technique.
15.

18. Reshma Mitra
Product X was ranked No. 1 in the
Household Care segment of the Most
Trusted Brands in India for 2007-08
by Brand Equity and overall has been
ranked the 20th Most Trusted Brand.
One of the main reasons for X's
popularity is the creative marketing
strategy, including successful
advertising campaigns which appeal
to everybody. One noticeable thing in
most (if not all) ads is the rural
setting/backdrop.
The Indian rusticity is what stands out, and they have a
generous dose of intelligent humour to support it! While
corporates around were changing their adverts as often they
changed their shirts, the pitch for X remained unaltered for
years, except for small tweaks here and there. The picture above
is of one of it's print ads. What is being talked about?
16.

19. Saswata Chakraborty
He is a trained pilot and also a trained sitar player. He also
applied to train as an actor at the Film Institute, Pune, but
didn't follow it up as he then believed it not to be a serious
job. He was also drawn towards a picture of Swami
Vivekananda in an advertisement by the Ramkrishna
Mission, and decided to be a monk, but did not do so due to
strong advice by his family and a Swami in Chicago. He shot
into prominence when he asked the Supreme Court to make
the Vohra report on the criminalization of politics in India
public. This petition gave a push to the Right to Information
movement.
He might not be some things anymore but he is still the
Chairman of the Indo-European Union Parliamentary Forum.
Who is he?
17.

20. Saswata Chakraborty
Guiodo D’ Arezzo, who was born in the end of the 10th
century, deduced the names of something from an ancient
Latin Hymn to St John .
Ut queant laxis resonāre fibris
Mira gestorum famuli tuorum,
Solve polluti labii reatum,
Sancte Iohannes.
While one of the names has been changed and one added,
the others remain constant and are now used almost all over
the world.
So what did he deduce?
18.

21. Shiladitya Ganguli
A young shayar, struggling to find his feet in the Mumbai film
industry, went to another more famous and well established
shayar looking not for money but for a job. The latter, who
used to call the former Naujawan, persuaded him to accept
Rs. 200 – a princely sum in the 60’s – to help him tide over
the immediate crises.
Over time, the younger shayar also made a name for
himself, but the debt remained unpaid – even becoming a
matter of lighthearted banter between the two of them, with
the younger man jokingly telling the older that he would
never repay – until the death of the senior shayar, when the
younger one ended up paying the gravedigger Rs. 200 for his
services.
Identify both.
19.

22. Shiladitya Ganguli
A very famous actor, accustomed to adoration and adulation
from one and all, was once surprised to see a fellow
passenger on a flight barely acknowledge his presence before
resuming to read his newspaper. Hoping to stir some interest
in the man, he started a conversation, dropping subtle hints
about his career and fame, but to no avail. Finally, he came
straight out and introduced himself, asking if his co-
passenger could recognize him now, to which the man
replied that in his line of business he did not get much time
to watch films.
Two stalwarts of India, both Bharat Ratna’s. Identify both.
20.

23. Smitakshi Banerjee
According to one theory , the phrase originated at fire
departments or volunteer hose companies who gave
exhibitions of their prowess at carnivals or similar events.
As per another theory, it refers to the reconnoitering by
bootleggers of the route they plan to use before transporting
their illicit goods along it.
Now commonly seen in engineering contexts, which phrase
am I talking about?
21.

24. Smitakshi Banerjee
Highlighting the poor camerawork and editing of
Doordarshan, a certain person said –
"After the game, when I saw the footage, I saw the camera
going from one direction to the other and maybe there was
some editing problem but it showed me in very bad light . . .
as if I had left the goalpost and run away..No, they didn’t
show me at the goalpost at all. People thought maybe I got
scared and left my post".
Name the person and also identify the context.
22.

25. Sreekanth G
X in Y was probably the most famous temple in Greece in its
day. Situated in the sacred grove of Y in the western
Peloponnese, X was the central focus of the whole sanctuary
of Y, where Z were held for over a millennium. Built by Libon
in 470-456 BC, X was not huge by the standards of the
Parthenon or the X in Athens, but was much bigger than the
other temples of the sacred grove. All that remains now is
the base (28m x 64m), though excavation has uncovered
many of the marble carvings that adorned the temple and
these are on display in the museum in Y.
Solve for X, Y and Z
23.

26. Sreekanth G
X is a fabulous art deco style building in the centre of
London. It resembles a huge snooker table turned on it's
back, the legs being the four huge original steam towers. It
has to be said, that while being one of the most beautiful
buildings in the world, it has to be one of the most unusually
ugly and yet attractive buildings. Its charm lies in its size and
in the way that it is totally, unrepentantly a functional
monster.
X supplied power to London between 1937 and 1980. It was
designed by the British architect Sir Giles Gilbert Scott.
What is X and why did it hit pop culture headlines in the late
1970s?
24.

27. Sudip Kalyan Dey
With no living male heirs, Holy Roman Emperor Charles
VI, on 19 April 1713 issued the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713
to ensure that the House of Habsburg lands and the Austrian
throne would be inherited by his daughter, Maria Theresa of
Austria.
Apart from the fact that this was the first time a daughter
inherited the throne of Austria, what was odd with the
Pragmatic Sanction?
25.

28. Sudip Kalyan Dey
In the field of emerging technologies, what is Nootropics?
26.

29. Subrata Dass
Hormel developed America's first canned ham (''Hormel
Flavor-Sealed Ham'') in 1926, and eleven years later
developed the first canned meat product that did not require
refrigeration. It was a ''distinctive chopped pork shoulder and
ham mixture'' developed by Jay C. Hormel, son of Hormel
founder George A. Hormel, and marketed as ''Hormel Spiced
Ham'' - not a terribly inspiring name for an innovative
product fated to save lives, win wars, and balance diets of
people world wide. Hormel Spiced Ham got off to a slightly
rocky start. Other meatpackers began to introduce their own
canned luncheon meats, and Hormel lost its controlling share
of the market. Soon, however, they came up with a cunning
plan to rectify this situation - they would give Hormel's
luncheon meat a truly catchy name. Toward this end, they
offered $100 for a suitable appellation. The winning name
was, of course________________.
27.

30. Subrata Dass
28.

31. Vivita Sequeira
Carrying long-stemmed roses as a sign of peace, Mikheil
Saakashvili and his supporters entered the parliament
building and demanded the resignation of President Eduard
Shevardnadze in the Rose Revolution of 2003 of which
country?
29.

32. Vivita Sequeira
Which planet is principally made of iron, but shares its name
with a different metal?
30.