World Leaders

Q1. X served as both the National Bank president and instructional director of the armed forces of the country that he 'freed' from an 'imperialist'-backed regime. His stylized visage is arguable the 'most famous photograph in the world'. He was eventually captured and executed in another country by forces backed by the same 'imperialist' that he overthrew. Identify this person.

Q2. He is credited with having directly or indirectly caused the death of approximately 21% of his country's population during his reign from 1976-1979. The name of his Government was derived from the name of an ancient kingdom in his region. He was finally ousted by a Vietnamese force, but was recognized by the United Nations as the rightful government of his country. Identify this leader.

Q3. He led China in the second Sino-Japanese War, in which the Government that he had formed in China was severely weakened, but his prominence grew. In May 1948, he was sworn in as the first President of the Republic of China. Identify this controversial leader.

Q4. He was the first popularly elected President of the Russian Federation. His tenure saw severe confrontation with the Russian Parliament, escalating in 1993 when he called in soldiers to free the seat of Parliament from his opponents. Identify this leader who left office as almost a universally unpopular leader.

Q5. He first became the ruler of his country in 1950-51 when his entire family was forced into exile. He succeeded his brother to the throne, but only after his nephew lay in coma for some time and ultimately died. Identify this monarch.

Literature

Q1. India's former Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, brought action against this book in British Courts. The reason was that in one of the chapters, the book portrays her son, Sanjay Gandhi, of accusing her of having caused his father, Feroze Gandhi's death, due to neglect. It was eventually settled out of court when the author agreed to remove the offending sentence. Identify this book.

Ans. Midnight's Children (Salman Rushdie)

Q2. This is the pseudonym for William Sydney Porter. The story of coming up with this alias has been described by the author as follows: It was during these New Orleans days that I adopted my pen name of _______. I said to a friend: "I'm going to send out some stuff. I don't know if it amounts to much, so I want to get a literary alias. Help me pick out a good one." He suggested that we get a newspaper and pick a name from the first list of notables that we found in it ..... Now for a first name. I want something short. None of your three-syllable names for me." "Why don’t you use a plain initial letter, then?" asked my friend. "Good," said I, "___ is about the easiest letter written, and ___ it is." Identify the writer.

Ans. O Henry

Q3. Identify this author: One of this author's most popular characters is Noddy. J.K Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter series, has been said to be influenced by this author's arguably most famous work (and this led her to introduce Harry's kissing scene) and said this of the protagonist "In book four, the hormones are going to kick in - I don't want him (Harry) stuck in a state of permanent pre-pubescence like Poor Julian in the ______ _____."

Ans. Enid Blyton (Famous Five)

Q4. This book was originally written in Portuguese and holds the Guinness Book of Records for the most translated book by a living author, having been translated into 67 languages. The book's author is also the most-selling Portuguese language writer of all times.A theatrical adaption of this book has been produced and performed by the Cornish Theater Collective and is their most successful production till date. Identify this best-selling novel, which was first published in 1988.

Ans. The Alchemist (by Paulo Coelho)

Q5. Being it's author's first, and till date only novel, the potential of this book was first identified by an editor at Harper Collins, who sent it to three British publishers, and the author of this book received an unprecedented half-a-million pounds as advance by the publisher, Harper Flamingo. Identify the book.

Ans. Arundhati Roy

Farewell Economics Quiz

Q1. Founded as the Imperial Bank of India in 1806, it is the oldest commercial bank in the Indian subcontinent, the bank is famous for its scheme of "golden handshake", a lucrative voluntary retirement scheme for its employees. After 2008, the Government of India holds a majority stake in this bank (about 60%). Identify the bank.

Ans. State Bank of India

Q2. Started in 1959 with a seed capital of Rs.80, the company today has a turnover of Rs.500 crores anually. What is the famous product of the company Shri Mahila Griha Udyog _____ _____ (the blanks can be filled with the name of the product)?

Ans. Lijjat Papad

Q3. Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the Unites States of America was fondly known as Teddy. In this 1906 cartoon from the magazine "Punk", Roosevelt is shown grapplign with snakes that represent one of the largest and most dominant corporations in the world's economic history, a corporation that was eventually broken up in 1911. Identif the company.

Ans. Standard Oil (of John D Rockefeller Sr.)

Q4. Founded in 1976 in Calcutta, and again in 1989 in Indonesia as Ispat International, this company now has its headquarters in Avenue de La Liberte in Luxembourg and is headed by a person who was ridiculed initially for his inadequacies in the English language. Identify the company.

Ans. Mittal-Arcelor

Q5. Because Indian laws do not allow FDI in the retail sector, Wal Mart entered into an association with Bharti-Airtel to open wholesale cash-and-carry joints in India. On 31st May 2009, in which city in India was the first store of this much-anticipated JV opened to traders?

Ans. Amritsar

Q6. "X" founded his own company after he had worked for his brother's film production company. The first three films of this company were Daag: A Poem of Love, Kabhi Kabhie and Doosra Aadmi. Identify the company.

Ans. Yash Raj Films

Q7. He is a graduate from IIT-Delhi, Carnegie Mellon and Stanford Graduate School of Business, and out of the two companies that he co-founded, the lesser known one is Daisy Systems. He has a net worth of $1.5 billion and is recognised as one of the most influential men of Silicon Valley because of the second company that he co-founded. Identify this Indian.

Ans. Vinod Khosla

Q8. Created by Ogilvy and Mather and shot by Bangalore-based firm Nirvana films, it was one of the highlights of the Indian Premier League - II. Identify.

Ans. ZooZoos

Q9. This "medium of information" is among the world's most well-known brands, but has run into several controversies, most notably all muslim nations (except for Turkey), India, mailand China and other Asian and African countries. Identify.

Ans. Playboy

Q10. When this man decided to start his company, he just put a K in the beginning of his company's name and put a K at the end of the name and just arranged alphabets in-between the two K's. Which famous company was born thus?

Ans. Kodak

Mixed Bag

Q1. Identify the person who said these words: "Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed."

Ans. Martin Luther King Jr.

Q2. He is the only American President to have won a Pulitzer Prize and represented Massachusetts in the American Senate. Identify.

Ans. John F Kennedy

Q3. In Indian polity, the speaker is unually elected unapposed since the opposition does not put up a candidate due to a clear lack of strength. However, only once in India's history has a President been elected unopposed. Who was this "lucky" President?

Ans. Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy

Q4. In 1976, she was elected the President of the Oxford Union, becoming the first Asian Woman to head the prestigious debating society. In fact, she stayed in Oxford for one additional year so that she could achieve this milestone. She also studied at Harvard, an institution to which she gave a gift later on. Identify her.

Ans. Benazir Bhutto

Q5. In cricket, the score "111" is known as a "Nelson" after Admiral Nelson who (as legend goes) one leg, one arm and one eye. The most famous victory that Admiral Nelson achieved was at the Battle of the Nile, where he defeated which famous military commander?

Ans. Napoleon Bonaparte

Q6. During World War II, the Afrikakorps that he commanded was one of the few German regiments that were not accused of war crimes of the degree of genocide. His successful North African campaign earned him the nickname of "Desert Fox". He was a very popular person, but due to his supposed involvement in the 20 July plot to assassinate Hitler, he was forced to consume poison. Identify.

Ans. Erwin Rommel

Q7. Credited as one of the most talented commanders in history, his most famous quote is "Either we will find a way, or we'll make one." He led his army of men, horses and elephants into Rome and threatened the very existence of the Roman Empire in its fledgling years. Identify him.

Ans. Hannibal

Q8. Which actor, who first appeared in the film Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar, later went on to win a Filmfare Best Male Debut award for a film produced by his uncle?

Ans. Aamir Khan

Q9. Bucephalus was the horse of which famous military commander?

Ans. Alexander the Great

Weekly 5 : Mixed Bag

Q1. Born to a large, impoverished family, "X" emerged as a teen star after X's manager Angelil mortgaged his home to finance X's first record.In 2004, after surpassing 175 million in album sales worldwide, X was presented with the Chopard Diamond Award at the World Music Awards becoming the best selling female artist of all time. In April 2007 Sony BMG said that "X" had sold over 200 million albums worldwide. Identify "X".

Ans. Celine Dion

Q2. Which is the world's largest real estate company in terms of revenues, earnings, market capitalisation and developable area?

Ans. DLF

Q3. How do we better know Mehrunissa, a part-time Urdu poet, who is most famed for her marriage to her second husband, whose she was the twentieth wife?

Ans. Nur Jahan

Q4. Which is the world's largest carnivorous animal found on land?

Ans. Polar Bear

Q5. Rafael Nadal currently holds the record for most conseqetive wins on clay. Which sporting icon held the record before Nadal broke it?

Ans. Guillermo Vilas

Happy quizzing!

The Business Quiz

Q1. With a net worth of $1.2 billion, 'X' is the 162nd richest man on the Earth and is also a member of Parliament. He is a graduate of St. Xavier's College, Calcutta and in 2000, he became the President of the Janata Party and contested all 224 seats in his home state. Identify 'X'.
Ans. Vijay Mallaya

Q2. Currently the world's largest car-making company, the company produced its first car in 1936. The company has a minority share in the Yamaha motor company. Moreover, this company's production expanded due to the ever-increasing demand for fuel-efficient and compact cars. Identify the company.
Ans. Toyota

Q3. Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, this company is the 8th largest corporation in the world by market capitalisation and 10th in Forbes list of most admired companies (2007). In 2007, it spent the most on advertising, close to double that of General Motors. The company was started by a soapmaker and a candlemaker, who happened to be co-brothers. Perhaps the most lasting legacy of this company is the fact that when it began sponsoring radio shows in the 1920s, these radio shows came to be known as 'soap operas.' Identify the company.
Ans. Procter and Gamble

Q4. With a revenue of $526.5 million, this company is involved in entertainment and has produced a few movies, two of which turned out to be good earners at the Box Office. The company's main office is in Stamford, Connecticut, but it has offices in New York, Toronto, London and Los Angeles. Identify the company.
Ans. World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE)

Q5. Though this man holds only 8% of his company's stock, he is consistently ranked as among the richest men in the world. He is well known for his philanthropic efforts, but interestingly he is a Harvard dropout. Identify.
Ans. Bill Gates

Q6. 65.8% of this company's ownership lies in charitable trusts. The logo of the company was designed by Wolf Ollins and is said to be either a fountain of knowledge or a tree of trust or even the starting alphabet of the company's name. With 18.5% stake, Pallonji Mistry is the single-largest stakeholder in the company. Identify.
Ans. Tata

Q7. When Time recognized "You" as its Person of the Year in 2006, it acknowledged the accelerating success of online collaboration and interaction by millions of users around the world, and cited this company as one of its three examples. However, the problem with this company's logo is that it contains the Devanagiri/Hindi sound "vee", but the symbol is slightly distorted from what it should be. Identify the company.
Ans. Wikipedia

Q8. This company was founded by Hong Kong - based entrepreneur Richard Li. In 1993, Media Mogul Rupert Murdoch acquired the company for $1 billion, but faced problems since laws in China did not allow him to broadcast in China. Identify the company.
Ans. Star TV

Q9. This company, owned by Sir Li Ka-shing (who is the richest man of Chinese descent and father of Richard Li), launched a product in India along with the Ruias. However, the company's stake in the JV was bought out by a British company. Identify this company owned by Sir Li Ka-Shing.
Ans. Hutchison Whampoa

Q10. Once upon a time there lived two brother - Adi and Rudolf Dassler. They both started sports goods companies - Adi Dassler started Adidas, from Adi-Das(sler), and Rudolf started Ruda, from Ru(dolf)-Da(ssler). However, the company Ruda later changed its name. What do we know Ruda as, today?
Ans. Puma

High Scorers:
A Born Moron - 10
Anshul - 8

Weekly 5 : Mixed Bag

Q1. This structure can be seen from outer space and is the largest structure ever built by living organisms. It generates $1 billion for the country in which it is located. Identify the structure.
Ans. The Great Barrier Reef

Q2. She is the first female artist to have her first four albums debut at number 1 on Billboard 200. Recently, her latest album was also ranked 1. Identify the artist.
Ans. Britney Spears

Q3. It is the first and oldest corporation in America and has the second-largest endowment of any non-profit organisation (behind the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation). Identify.
Ans. Harvard University

Q4. The Nishaan-e-Pakistan is Pakistan's highest civilian award. Morarji Desai is the only Indian to have won both the Nishan-e-Pakistan and the Bharat Ratna. Which other Indian, who has also won the Dadasaheb Phalke award, is the only other Indian to win this award?
Ans. Dilip Kumar

Q5. Born as Nafisa to an Indian American, she changed her name after she watched one of Angelina Jolie's highly appreciated roles as america's first supermodel. Identify (if you know the movie, you will most probably know the woman's name).
Ans. Jiah Khan


High Scorers:
Harsha Kasturi - 2