BAQC February Quiz2016/02/14Swaroop Ramaswamy*

*Includes contributions from Anand Aiyer and Jayadev Bhaskaran

Warm-up

1Which Russian-American is credited with creating the hit TV series, Dexter’s

Laboratory and Samurai Jack?

2Which famous English house lends its name to a fruit cultivar, an experiment to

measure the value of a physical constant, and the Department of Physics at the

University of Cambridge?

3The name of this dish literally translates to “oily or fatty rice” in Malay, in this context

however it is taken to be “rich or creamy rice”. Which dish?

4Which early 20th century political reform movement, considered responsible for the

Armenian Genocide, lends its name to a phrase meaning “youthful person who rebels

against authority or societal elements”?

5Which American-born French Dancer, with nicknames such as Black Pearl and Bronze

Venus became the first black woman to star in a major motion picture?

6Which contemporary name for the devil is the inspiration for the title of a 1954 work

by William Golding?

7Besides athletics, there are only two sports (not events) in the summer olympics in

which men are not allowed to participate. Name both.

8Which Hank Levy composition for the Don Ellis Orchestra soared in popularity

following the releasing a modern Hollywood classic, in 2014?

9By what alternative name is the play within a play, Murder of Gonzago known?

10In 1964, which two sovereign regions joined to form Tanzania, a portmanteau of the

two names?

Exchange Sheets

1Which Russian-American is credited with creating the hit TV series, Dexter’s

Laboratory and Samurai Jack?

Genndy Tartakovsky

2Which famous English house lends its name to a fruit cultivar, an experiment to

measure the value of a physical constant, and the Department of Physics at the

University of Cambridge?

Cavendish

3The name of this dish literally translates to “oily or fatty rice” in Malay, in this context

however it is taken to be “rich or creamy rice”. Which dish?

Nasi Lemak

4Which early 20th century political reform movement, considered responsible for the

Armenian Genocide, lends its name to a phrase meaning “youthful person who rebels

against authority or societal elements”?

Young Turks

5Which American-born French Dancer, with nicknames such as Black Pearl and Bronze

Venus became the first black woman to star in a major motion picture?

Josephine Baker

6Which contemporary name for the devil is the inspiration for the title of a 1954 work

by William Golding ?

Beelzebub

7Besides athletics, there are only two sports (not events) in the summer olympics in

which men are not allowed to participate. Name both.

Rhythmic Gymnastics and Synchronized Swimming

8Which Hank Levy composition for the Don Ellis Orchestra soared in popularity

following the releasing a modern Hollywood classic, in 2014?

9By what alternative name is the play within a play, Murder of Gonzago known?

Mousetrap

10In 1964, which two sovereign regions joined to form Tanzania, a portmanteau of the

two names?

Tanganyika and Zanzibar

Bounce - Clockwise

1In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really

feels alive is when he's jacked into the virtual utopia/MMORPG known as the OASIS.

Wade's devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world's digital

confines .But when Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by

players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade's going to

survive, he'll have to win—and confront the real world he's always been so desperate to

escape.

Plotline of which modern classic?

2The difference between these two type of birds, X and Y, is rather vague and many trained bird

watchers have difficulty distinguishing between them. The difference depends more on

appearance than biology. The word X comes from a French word that means ‘Silver Y’, lending to

further confusion. Some common differences are,

● X are commonly pure white in colour, but Y exhibit various colours.

● Y have a nice and clean flight, but X do not.

● X have significantly black legs and yellow beak, which is not very common among Y.

Identify X and Y.

X - EgretsY - Herons

3In mathematics, quaternions are a number system that extend complex numbers. They

were first described by this Irish mathematician, who supposedly discovered the

fundamental formula for them while on his way to the Royal Irish Academy. As the

story goes, he could not resist his urge to carve the formula on the bridge he was

walking on.

Which famous mathematician, whose best known contribution is a reformulation of

Newtonian mechanics?

William Rowan Hamilton

4Blythe Masters is an economist and former executive at JPMorgan Chase. In 1994, J.P.

Morgan had extended a $4.8 billion credit line to X, which faced the threat of $5

billion in punitive damages.

A team of J.P. Morgan bankers led by Masters then purchased credit protection against

the credit line to the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development to cut the

capital which J.P. Morgan was required to hold against X's default, thus reducing its

own risk. J.P. Morgan later bundled together packages of such exposures and offered

them to market, thus creating a new financial instrument.

What financial instrument? Why did X face a threat of $5 billion in damages?

Credit Default SwapsThe company was Exxon and they faced punitive damages for the Exxon Valdez Oil

Spill.

5Once while this show was filming in Georgetown at about three o'clock in the

morning, an irate lady reportedly came out in a bathrobe with a bunch of guys. She

said: “What the hell's going on? I have an early morning at the State Department. And,

by the way, you people don't even have a Secretary of State on your show. And I think

you should have one and it should be a woman.”

Which show and who was this irate lady?

The West WingMadeleine Albright

6Secret Garden, by Johanna Basford has sold more than 3 million copies worldwide and

its popularity has to led to it being translated to 14 different languages, which is very

unusual for a book of this nature. The setting for the book is the Brodick Castle

Gardens on the Isle of Arran where Basford played as a child. Two sequels, Enchanted

Forest and Lost Ocean, have been published following the wild success of Secret

Garden.

Many have credited Johanna with sparking a new cultural revolution, with the

publication of Secret Garden. What revolution?

Coloring Books for Adults

7The name of this city means “sticks of fire” in the language of the Calusa, a Native

American tribe, which lived in the region. Many historians believe that this might be a

reference to the many lightning strikes that the area receives during the summer

months.

The city is home to a popular NHL team, which is also named for the same reasons.

Which city?

TampaTampa Bay Lightning

8This region spread across the tribal districts of Odisha, Maharashtra and Chattisgarh is

largely populated by the Gondi people. The region is part of the northern Deccan

plateau. Much of it is rugged and hilly and geologically it is mostly Pre-Cambrian rock.

In 1885, Eduard Seuss, an Austrian scientist and paleontologist, hypothesized the

existence of X based on evidence found in this region. Id X.

Gondwanalandfrom Gondwana

9It was designed by Alec Fraser-Brunner, who was the curator of the Van Kleef

aquarium, for the logo for the tourism board. It does not feature in any local folklore or

myth.

Doctors in the country use it as verb to refer to the act of vomiting, probably due to

the constant gushing of water from the mouth.

What?

Singapore’s Merlion

10In addition to the 3 famous ones, others include,

● Faythe, a trusted advisor, courier or intermediary

● Wendy, a whistleblower, is an insider with privileged access who may be in a

position to divulge the information

● Charlie, a third participant

● Dave, a fourth participant

● Mallory, a malicious attacker

Name the 3 famous ones.

Alice, Bob and Eve

11...

1984 : baseball (men), tennis (men and women)

1988 : badminton (men and women), baseball (men), bowling (men and women), judo

(women), taekwondo (men and women)

1992 : Basque pelota (men and women), roller hockey (men), taekwondo (men and

women)

1996 : None

2000 : None

2004 : None

2008 : None

2012 : None

What two-word term connects?

Demonstration Sports

12If El Dorado was the legendary city of gold, La Canela was the legendary valley of

what?

Cinnamon

13 1 Oksana Baiul

2 ______________

3 Chen Lu

4 Surya Bonaly

5 Yuka Sato

6 Tanja Szewczenko

7 Katarina Witt

8 ______________

Fill in both the blanks.

Nancy KerriganTonya Harding

14X Castle was the inspiration for the Y mansion

from the 1941 Orson Welles film Citizen Kane, a

fictionalization of X's career. It was not used as a

location for the film, which used Oheka Castle in

New York, as well as buildings in San Diego's

Balboa Park.

Commercial filming is rare and most requests are

turned down. Since the property was donated to

the state of California only two projects have been

granted permission: Stanley Kubrick's Spartacus,

which used it to stand in as Crassus’ villa; and Lady

Gaga's music video for “G.U.Y.”

X - Hearst CastleY - Xanadu

15This discrepancy arises from the fact that in Medieval England, most of the peasants

were English speaking and commonly used words of Germanic origin. However, most

of the aristocracy, either spoke French or expressed strong admiration for French

culture. While the peasants performed most of the labour, they were hardly rich

enough to afford nutritious meals and persisted largely on a diet of bread and

vegetables. The aristocracy could afford to spend on better meals and had a much

more varied diet. What discrepancy did this lead to?

Different names for meat and living animalspork - pigbeef - cow

venison - deer etc.

16Prior to its closure in 1998, this was considered one

of the most technically challenging airports for

pilots. Runway 13, which was the only functional

runway when the airport was shut down was

considered particularly dangerous. At the northern

end of the runway, buildings rose up to six stories

just across the road. The low altitude manoeuvre

required to line up with the runway was so

spectacular that some passengers claimed to have

glimpsed the flickering of televisions through

apartment windows along the final approach.

Which airport and which city is it in?

Kai Tak International AirportHong Kong

17____ sessions : Songs from a Tin Can is the first album by this artist. It was released in

mid-2015.

It features 11 songs - Big Smoke, Beyond the Terra, Feet Up, I Wonder if She, Caroline

Jewel In The Night, Daughter of My Sins, Window of My Mind, Space Lullaby, Farm

Auction and Ride that Lightning. In addition to these, there is also a bonus track.

Who is the artist ? Also name the bonus track.

Chris HadfieldSpace Oddity

18Iconic poster for an iconic movie

parodying an iconic poster for another

iconic movie.

Identify both movies.

The Rocky Horror Picture ShowJaws

19Officially known as Autodrome Jose Carlos Pace, it is better known by its former

name. That name comes from the fact that the neighbourhood it is located in lies

between two large artificial lakes, Guarapiranga and Billings. What name?

InterlagosSite of the Brazilian Grand Prix

20Clip from a 1997 movie called “George of the Jungle”. What is this a reference to?

“Senator, you’re no Jack Kennedy”

Lloyd Bentsen to Dan Quayle

21"Critical Film Studies" is the 19th episode of the second season of Community.

The episode is centered almost entirely on two characters—Jeff and Abed—conversing

in an upper class restaurant. The two engage in what is seemingly a deep conversation

about their life-changing experiences. Abed acts unusually social and normal, which

Jeff finds weird. . Having opened himself up to Jeff, Abed then insists that he and Jeff

have a "real conversation". Jeff responds by saying that he doesn't believe in real

conversation. In the process of explaining himself, he inadvertently lets out his

insecurities. As he is getting comfortable with opening himself to Abed, the waiter

stops by and accidentally reveals that the dinner was a reenactment of _____.

What was it a reenactment of ?

My Dinner with Andre

22Fiumicino is a stream in the heavily industrialized Emilia Romagna. Savignano di

Romagna, the town the stream runs through is a very industrial town and as a result

the it is extremely polluted. Exploitation of underground waters along the upper

course of the has reduced its flow. The presence of the stream has been recorded since

the ancient times, when it was named for its distinctive coloration, owing to the

presence of mud deposits. It has lost its natural route, except in its upper course

between low and woody hills. In 1933, Benito Mussolini renamed it and ever since it

has been the subject of great debate. Why?

Rubicon

23In 1934, X ran in the California gubernatorial election as a Democrat.

Speaking about his loss he later said, “The American People will take Socialism, but

they won't take the label. I certainly proved it in the case of EPIC. Running on the

Socialist ticket I got 60,000 votes, and running on the slogan to 'End Poverty in

California' I got 879,000. I think we simply have to recognize the fact that our enemies

have succeeded in spreading the Big Lie. There is no use attacking it by a front attack,

it is much better to out-flank them.”

Time magazine called him “a man with every gift except humor and silence.” He is

remembered for coining the famous line: “It is difficult to get a man to understand

something, when his salary depends upon him not understanding it.”

Upton Sinclair

24Odaiba is a large artificial island in Tokyo Bay, Japan, across the Rainbow Bridge from

central Tokyo. The name comes from six artificial islands built by Egawa Hidetatsu for

the Tokugawa shogunate in 1853 to host defensive batteries. What specific threat were

they built in response to?

Commodore Perry’s Black Ships

25This classic NYC building, X, occupied two city

blocks from 7th to 8th Avenue and from 31st to

33rd Streets. It was considered a masterpiece of the

Beaux-Arts style and one of the architectural jewels

of the city. As patronage decreased through the

1950s, a decision was made to destroy the above-

ground portions of the building. This decision

galvanized support for architectural preservation

across the United States, leading to the advent of

modern historical preservation. The plan was

carried out in 1963 and a different building, Y,

stands in the above-ground portion today. The new

building is the 4th building of the same name.

Name both buildings.

Pennsylvania StationMadison Square Garden

26While X is not the largest city in the country, it was the historical capital and the

country was known as the “Kingdom of X”. The name for the country is still X in

many South Asian languages, including Persian and Urdu. Various European names

for the country, including its English name, are derived from the name of the city.

The red walls of the city, built by Ali ibn Yusuf in 1122–1123, have given it the

nickname, “Red City”.

Today, the city has established itself as a cultural, religious, and trading centre for the

Maghreb and Sub-Saharan Africa. The biggest landmark in the city, Jemaa el-Fnaa, is

considered one of the busiest squares in all of Africa.

Which city and which country?

Marrakesh and Morocco

Valentine’s Day Specials!

27X is a world heavyweight champion and is considered one of the greatest boxers of all

time. He is nicknamed Mr. Steelhammer and has fought in 28 heavyweight title fights,

more than any heavyweight champion in the sport's history. He also holds the record

of having defeated the most boxers with an undefeated record, at 12.

Y is an American actress known for her role as cheerleader Claire Bennet on the NBC

series Heroes and Juliette Barnes in the ABC musical drama series Nashville.

Id X and Y.

Wladmir Klitschko and Hayden Panettiere

28Other popular characters include,

● The Baby

● The Constable

● Joey the Clown

● The Crocodile

● The Skeleton

● The Doctor

Name the two important characters that I have left out.

Punch and Judy

29In Bridget Jones’s Diary, Renee Zellweger plays a single women facing pressures from

society to couple up. Colin Firth plays a reserved English gentleman, pretty wealthy,

with high morals and a habit of rescuing people.

The characters played by Renee Zellweger and Colin Firth are based on which famous

couple?

Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy

30In response to an earthquake, X, who was then the Secretary of Labour, established a

fund to raise money to aid the victims. He devised a plan to have an "artistic festival" as

a fundraiser, and invited radio and film actors to participate. It was at this festival that

he met Y.

Y was well loved by the people of her country. In 1951, she was urged by the public

announce herself as the vice presidential candidate (X was the sitting president). She

refused due to declining health and was later made the Spiritual Leader of the Nation.

Id X and Y.

Juan Peron and Eva Peron