FRESHIE GENERAL QUIZ

Institute Literary Arts Club

WRITTEN ROUND

25 questions, 10 points per question

In case of a tie, the starred (*) questions will be given priority.

QUESTION 1

Identify the movie from its minimalistic poster.

QUESTION 1
QUESTION 2

Until a few decades ago, airports around the world were free to maintain their own
abbreviations. However, the lack of standard often led to confusion. Some airports
maintained two letter codes, such as Los Angeles (LA), Portland (PD) and Dubai (DB) while
most others had three letter codes. With the establishment of International Air Transport
Association (IATA), a three letter standard was imposed. How did these airports with two
letter codes adapt, without making any major changes?
QUESTION 3

In 1946, Grace Hopper saw a moth in the computer she was working on ( called the Mark II),
which was causing errors. This led to the coining of a specific term term related to electronic
devices. Which word?
QUESTION 4

Eoin Colfer published a book in 2009, as the final installment in a world-famous trilogy on the
request of the widow of the author of the preceding titles in the trilogy. This series became
notorious for the caption “The [first/second…] book in the increasingly inaccurately named
[...]”.
Name the series.
QUESTION 5

A __________ is traditionally used to introduce novices to this field. It

is also traditionally used as a sanity test to make sure that a
language is installed correctly. Fill in the blank.
QUESTION 6

Mid-July saw India’s Union Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs, Kiren
Rijiju take part in a viral phenomenon. This internet challenge was first
started by taekwondo instructor and fighter Farabi Davletchin on
Instagram, and soon became popular among MMA fighters. Very quickly
celebrities jumped on the bandwagon, and Akshay Kumar even
proclaimed he did it because he was inspired by his action idol, Jason
Statham. ID this internet challenge.
QUESTION 7

In 2011, NASA's Ikonos Satellite

reported an astonishing image from
a height of over 430 miles above
sea level. It was the first time a
congregation of people was clearly
observed from space. Why had the
people gathered there and where?
QUESTION 8

X is an American technology company which was created by Nick

Woodman in 2002. He says that his want for something that could
capture the professional angles inspired the name ‘X’. Nowadays a
product by this company has become popular due to its
uncompromising performance. Identify X.
QUESTION 9

Which term associated with exponential decay is also the title of

one of the largest selling computer games (for whose 3rd
instalment fans have been waiting for years)?
QUESTION 10

Nuwara Eliya is a town located in the central province of Sri Lanka.

It is the main hill resort of Sri Lanka and is the heart of the tea
industry. The topography of the town is such that black soil forms
the top layer here. One of the most famous attractions of the town
is a temple, situated close to a botanical garden, which was
supposedly built in the memory of X, who was kept prisoner in the
area. Identify X.
QUESTION 11

Fred Baur, an American inventor, designed

a product as shown in the figure, while
working at Procter and Gamble. This
became a revolutionary storage technology
and the brand using this is popular all
around the world, even today. His last wish
was that a part of his remains be stored in
the product he invented. Identify the brand
associated with this product
QUESTION 12
X is an American candy that was created by Forrest Mars Sr. who copied the idea
from the British-made Smarties. While abroad, he was surprised to see British
soldiers eating pill-sized candies that didn’t melt in the summer heat, were small,
and easy to transport. This was possible thanks to ‘hard panning’- essentially
hardened corn syrup surrounding the chocolate, preventing the candies from
melting. After his return, he began production of his own version that was sold
exclusively to the military during WWII. Eventually the candy was put on sale for
the general public and became incredibly popular, as it remains today. ID X, which
now uses the tagline "Melts in your mouth, not in your hand."
QUESTION 13

Which organization
tweeted this on 14th July,
the same day as the ICC
Cricket World Cup 2019
final?
QUESTION 14

In the early 2000s, an American entertainment and media company,

famous for promoting a professional sport, fell foul with a global
environmental forum due to a very similar name. The latter sued
the former as the steroids scandals plaguing the former were
bringing the latter’s name into disrepute. As a result, the media
company was forced to make a minor alteration to its name.
Identify the complainant and the company.
QUESTION 15

R is a garment worn by both sexes, but primarily associated with women today. It is used in
cases of certain spinal problems, for waist training, and sometimes simply to look good as
it holds and trains the torso into a desired shape. Almost ubiquitous in parts of society at
one point, R was suitably modified to make it compatible for a range of activities including
horseback riding, playing tennis, cycling, as well as maternity wear.
However, an extreme version of R- called tightlacing, was rife with problems. It was
associated with a whole horde of medical problems, including the dislocation and
deforming of internal organs. Below is a satirical cartoon from around 1820 ridiculing the
effects of tightlacing. ID ‘R’.
QUESTION 15
QUESTION 16

X is one of Russia’s biggest exports. It is one of the most effective

and versatile of its kind and was recognized as being simple to
operate, rugged, reliable under trying conditions, and amenable to
mass production. The symbolic value of X is demonstrated by its
presence on the coats of arms of numerous countries as well as
on the flag of Mozambique. It has been estimated that some 100
million Xs have been produced. Id X.
QUESTION 17

Called ‘The Last One’, it was aired on NBC on May 6, 2004 and was
watched by 52.46 million viewers making it the most watched
entertainment telecast in six years and the fourth most watched of
its kind in US history. What am I talking about?
QUESTION 18

This type of bomb was used in the world war. It got its name from it destructive power which
enabled it to destroy entire city blocks at once. This name is now used in the entertainment
industry. What is the name?
QUESTION 19

Unlike the “moment magnitude scale” used elsewhere, the shindo scale is used in Japan. A
given event may be described as “shindo 4 in Tokyo, shindo 3 in Yokohama” etc. with levels
ranging from “faint”, “weak”, “strong” and “violent” and others in between. What does shindo
measure?
QUESTION 20

What 2-word term did French demographer, anthropologist and historian Alfred Sauvy coin to
refer to countries that were unaligned with either NATO or the Soviet bloc during the Cold
War? This also separated the technologically advanced countries from the others.
QUESTION 21

This philosophical concept is depicted in the

following graphic, which basically means
that humans are forever chasing rainbows
due to the existence of a preset level of
happiness, and that one’s circumstances
don’t really account for a major part of our
happiness. Name this concept.
QUESTION 22

What do the following have in common?

They’re among the only 15 people so far to
have won WXYZ. WXYZ is a term in which
each letter stands for a different award, and
winning all four is considered the ‘grand
slam’ of American show business. ID what
each letter stands for.
QUESTION 23

Which sport, invented in the 90s by a young British woman in a quaint countryside Edinburgh
café, has now gone on to have an international organisation to govern it with over 20 full
members and a World Cup? While it is not yet at the Olympics, the sport continues to grow in
stature and popularity and continues to accept newer emerging member countries into the
fold.
QUESTION 24

Harald X, the Viking king of Denmark in the 10th century, was famous for uniting parts of
Denmark and Norway and converting the Danes to Christianity. A present day technology, X,
borrows its name from Harald’s name in the sense that it was intended for uniting the
wireless communication field. Identify X.
QUESTION 25

XY is a generic name used for a variety of incendiary guerrilla weapons. Coined during the
Winter War of 1939 by Finnish forces, the name is an insulting reference to X, the Soviet
foreign minister, one of the main aggressors against Finland. They developed two sets of
indigenous weapons - the first a cluster bomb that broke into several smaller bombs upon
explosion which was called X ‘bread baskets’. The other weapon, being glass-bottle based,
was called XY, just as drinks go along with food, Y would go along with ‘bread baskets’.
Identify XY.
ANSWERS?
QUESTION 1

Identify the movie from its minimalistic poster.

3 Idiots
QUESTION 2

Until a few decades ago, airports around the world were free to maintain their own
abbreviations. However, the lack of standard often led to confusion. Some airports
maintained two letter codes, such as Los Angeles (LA), Portland (PD) and Dubai (DB) while
most others had three letter codes. With the establishment of International Air Transport
Association (IATA), a three letter standard was imposed. How did these airports with two
letter codes adapt, without making any major changes?
QUESTION 2

They simply added an X to their names, so LA became LAX, PD became PDX and DB became
DXB.
QUESTION 3

In 1946, Grace Hopper saw a moth in the computer she was working on ( called the Mark II),
which was causing errors. This led to the coining of a specific term term related to electronic
devices. Which word?
QUESTION 3

A bug.

Bug
QUESTION 4

Eoin Colfer published a book in 2009, as the final installment in a world-famous trilogy on the
request of the widow of the author of the preceding titles in the trilogy. This series became
notorious for the caption “The [first/second…] book in the increasingly inaccurately named
[...]”.
Name the series.
QUESTION 4

Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

QUESTION 5

A __________ is traditionally used to introduce novices to this field. It is also traditionally used
as a sanity test to make sure that a language is installed correctly. Fill in the blank.
QUESTION 5
‘Hello World’ program
QUESTION 6

Mid-July saw India’s Union Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs, Kiren Rijiju take part in a
viral phenomenon. This internet challenge was first started by taekwondo instructor and
fighter Farabi Davletchin on Instagram, and soon became popular among MMA fighters. Very
quickly celebrities jumped on the bandwagon, and Akshay Kumar even proclaimed he did it
because he was inspired by his action idol, Jason Statham. ID this internet challenge.
QUESTION 6

The Bottle Cap Challenge

QUESTION 7

In 2011, NASA's Ikonos Satellite reported an

astonishing image from a height of over 430
miles above sea level. It was the first time a
congregation of people was clearly observed
from space. Why had the people gathered
there and where?
QUESTION 7
The Kumbh Mela in Nashik
QUESTION 8

X is an American technology company which was created by Nick Woodman in 2002. He

says that his want for something that could capture the professional angles inspired the
name ‘X’. Nowadays a product by this company has become popular due to its
uncompromising performance. Identify X.
QUESTION 8

X is an American technology company which

was created by Nick Woodman in 2002. He says
that his want for something that could
capture the professional angles inspired the
name ‘X’. Nowadays a product by this company
has become popular due to its uncompromising
performance.
GoPro Identify X.
QUESTION 9

Which term associated with exponential decay is also the title of one of the largest selling
computer games (for whose 3rd instalment fans have been waiting for years)?
QUESTION 9

Which term associated with exponential decay

is also the title of one of the largest
selling computer games (for whose 3rd
instalment fans have been waiting for years)?

Half-Life
QUESTION 10

Nuwara Eliya is a town located in the central province of Sri Lanka. It is the main hill resort of
Sri Lanka and is the heart of the tea industry. The topography of the town is such that black
soil forms the top layer here. One of the most famous attractions of the town is a temple,
situated close to a botanical garden, which was supposedly built in the memory of X, who
was kept prisoner in the area. Identify X.
QUESTION 10

Sita.
QUESTION 11

Fred Baur, an American inventor, designed a

product as shown in the figure, while working at
Procter and Gamble. This became a revolutionary
storage technology and the brand using this is
popular all around the world, even today. His last
wish was that a part of his remains be stored in
the product he invented. Identify the brand
associated with this product.
QUESTION 11

The Pringles Can

QUESTION 12

X is an American candy that was created by Forrest Mars Sr. who copied the idea from the
British-made Smarties. While abroad, he was surprised to see British soldiers eating
pill-sized candies that didn’t melt in the summer heat, were small, and easy to transport. This
was possible thanks to ‘hard panning’- essentially hardened corn syrup surrounding the
chocolate, preventing the candies from melting. After his return, he began production of his
own version that was sold exclusively to the military during WWII. Eventually the candy was
put on sale for the general public and became incredibly popular, as it remains today. ID X,
which now uses the tagline "Melts in your mouth, not in your hand."
QUESTION 12
QUESTION 13

Which organization tweeted this on 14th July, the same day

as the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 final?
QUESTION 13

Wimbledon
QUESTION 14

In the early 2000s, an American entertainment and media company, famous for promoting a
professional sport, fell foul with a global environmental forum due to a very similar name.
The latter sued the former as the steroids scandals plaguing the former were bringing the
latter’s name into disrepute. As a result, the media company was forced to make a minor
alteration to its name. Identify the complainant and the company.
QUESTION 14

WWF (World Wildlife Fund) and WWF (World Wrestling Federation). The
latter changed its name to WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) due to
this issue.
QUESTION 15
R is a garment worn by both sexes, but primarily associated with women today. It is used in cases
of certain spinal problems, for waist training, and sometimes simply to look good as it holds and
trains the torso into a desired shape. Almost ubiquitous in parts of society at one point, R was
suitably modified to make it compatible for a range of activities including horseback riding, playing
tennis, cycling, as well as maternity wear.
However, an extreme version of R- called tightlacing, was rife with problems. It was associated with
a whole horde of medical problems, including the dislocation and deforming of internal organs.
Below is a satirical cartoon from around 1820 ridiculing the effects of tightlacing. Identify ‘R’.
QUESTION 15

Corset
QUESTION 16

X is one of Russia’s biggest exports. It is one of the most effective and versatile
of its kind and was recognized as being simple to operate, rugged, reliable under
trying conditions, and amenable to mass production. The symbolic value of X is
demonstrated by its presence on the coats of arms of numerous countries as
well as on the flag of Mozambique. It has been estimated that some 100 million
Xs have been produced. Identify X.
QUESTION 16

AK-47
QUESTION 17

Called ‘The Last One’, it was aired on NBC on May 6,2004 and was
watched by 52.46 million viewers making it the most watched
entertainment telecast in six years and the fourth most watched of its
kind in US history. What am I talking about?
QUESTION 17

Friends
QUESTION 18

This type of bomb was used in the world war. It got its name from it destructive
power which enabled it to destroy entire city blocks at once. This name is now
used in the entertainment industry. What is the name?
QUESTION 18

Blockbuster

Blockbuste
r
QUESTION 19

Unlike the “moment magnitude scale” used elsewhere, the shindo scale is used in
Japan. A given event may be described as “shindo 4 in Tokyo, shindo 3 in
Yokohama” etc. with levels ranging from “faint”, “weak”, “strong” and “violent” and
others in between. What does shindo measure?
QUESTION 19

Magnitude of earthquakes
QUESTION 20

What 2-word term did French demographer, anthropologist and historian Alfred
Sauvy coin to refer to countries that were unaligned with either NATO or the Soviet
bloc during the Cold War? This also separated the technologically advanced
countries from the others.
QUESTION 20

‘Third-world’ countries
QUESTION 21

This philosophical concept is depicted

in the following graphic, which basically
means that humans are forever
chasing rainbows due to the existence
of a preset level of happiness, and that
one’s circumstances don’t really
account for a major part of our
happiness. Name this concept.
QUESTION 21

Hedonic Treadmill
QUESTION 22

What do the following have in

common? They’re among the only
15 people so far to have won
WXYZ. WXYZ is a term in which
each letter stands for a different
award, and winning all four is
considered the ‘grand slam’ of
American show business. ID what
each letter stands for.
QUESTION 22

EGOT - The Emmy, Grammy, Oscar,

Tony Awards
QUESTION 23

Which sport, invented in the 90s by a young British woman in a quaint countryside
Edinburgh café, has now gone on to have an international organisation to govern it
with over 20 full members and a World Cup? While it is not yet at the Olympics, the
sport continues to grow in stature and popularity and continues to accept newer
emerging member countries into the fold.
QUESTION 23

Muggle Quidditch
QUESTION 24

Harald X, the Viking king of Denmark in the 10th century, was famous for uniting
parts of Denmark and Norway and converting the Danes to Christianity. A present
day technology, X, borrows its name from Harald’s name in the sense that it was
intended for uniting the wireless communication field. Identify X.
QUESTION 24

Bluetooth
QUESTION 25

XY is a generic name used for a variety of incendiary guerrilla weapons. Coined

during the Winter War of 1939 by Finnish forces, the name is an insulting reference
to X, the Soviet foreign minister, one of the main aggressors against Finland. They
developed two sets of indigenous weapons - the first a cluster bomb that broke
into several smaller bombs upon explosion which was called X ‘bread baskets’.
The other weapon, being glass-bottle based, was called XY, just as drinks go along
with food, Y would go along with ‘bread baskets’. Identify XY.
QUESTION 25

Molotov Cocktail