2008 04 29: Q0030

EUROPEAN HISTORY is going to be today's topic. So, get ready to have a feel of European spears and canons. You may encounter Edwards, Henrys, Magellans, Versailles and many more.

1. What plant was traditionally cultivated in Europe for its unique blue dye?
2. In which London building was the funeral of Diana Princess of Wales held in 1997?
3. In which year was the Battle of Waterloo?
4. The World Trade Organization was founded in 1995 in which European city?
5. Who was the first reigning British monarch to make an official visit to the USA?
6. Who was the British nurse arrested in Brussells and shot by firing squad in 1915 on suspicion of helping Allied solders to escape?
7. In Victorian England what people were popularly called robins because of their red uniforms?
8. What is the first letter of the Greek alphabet?
9. Which country won the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup?

10.Who started the Protestant Reformation by posting Ninety-Five Theses on the door of the Schlosskirche?

2008 04 28: Q0029

WORLD WAR II

Sweden
England
France
Germany
USA
Japan
India
Non-Alignment Movement
USSR

2008 04 25: Q0028

COMPUTER SCIENCE
RAM
ROM
CD
CPU
DVD
ALU
VDU

2008 04 24: Q0027

NUMERICAL ABILITY TEST

2008 04 23: Q0026

THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA

2008 04 22: Q0025

WOMEN IN BOLLYWOOD

1. Nargis

2. Sushumita Sen

3. Nadira

4. Shashikala

5. Farida Jalal

2008 04 21: Q0024

The Royal Albert Hall, London has recorded the graph of her voice with the help of a computer which is by far the "Most Perfect" in the World. No other proof required for the authenticity of the voice quality of this queen of melody…the nightingale of India… “Sur Saamraagyi”...LIVING MELODY QUEEN LATA MANGESHKAR. So, by now, it might be clear what am I going to ask about in today's tens? Absolutely right...today's ten questions are heartfully dedicated to Bharat Ratna Lata Mangeshkar. Lata Mangeshkar was born in a Maharashtrian family in Indore, which then used to be in Central India Agency and presently is the part of Madhya Pradesh. Her father, Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar, was a classical singer and theater actor. Her mother, Shudhhamati, was Deenanath's second wife. Lata is the eldest child of her parents. She has Hridayanath, Asha, Usha, and Meena as her siblings in sequence.

1. I need to know the exact date of birth of this legendary singer. Can you help me out?
2. Besides Lataji, who is the only other great film celebrity to have received both the Bharat Ratna & the Dada Saheb Phalke Award.
3. Including Lataji, how many women have been honored with the Bharat Ratna award?
4. Lataji was named 'Hema' at her birth, with a nickname 'Hridaya' by her father. The name 'Lata' was used later, after a female character ‘Latika’, in one of her father’s plays ‘Bhaav Bhandan’. Although, the family surname was Hardikar, it was Lata's father who adopted the surname Mangeshkar, since the family hailed from a small village in Goa. Name that village.
5. In 1984, a state government of union of Indian republic instituted the Lata Mangeshkar Puraskar in Lataji's honour. The award has been conferred to Anil Biswas, Naushad Ali, Kishore Kumar, Jaidev, Manna Dey, Asha Bhosle & Khaiyyam. Government of which Indian state am I talking about?
6. What is the significance of 16th December, 1941 in Lataji’s life?
7. On June 27, 1963, Lata Mangeshkar sang the patriotic song ‘Ae Mere Watan Ke Logon’ in presence of Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, the then Prime Minister of India, & brought tears to Nehru's eyes. Who composed the song? Who wrote it?
8. In 2007 (to be more precise, on June 21, 2007), Lata Mangeshkar released an album which featured eight ghazal-like songs written by Javed Akhtar and composed by Mayuresh Pai. Name the album.
9. In how many movies did Lata acted? Yes....she acted.

10. In 1999, a perfume brand named after her was launched. Name it.

2008 04 18: Q0023

WORLD WAR I

2008 04 17: Q0022

What a phenomenal success for a character that never existed!! People feel him as he is been dwelling right in the world of which they themselves are a part of, though he never was. What a great fantasy!! Hats off to the imagination and the great penning skills of JK Rowling, who created Harry Potter and transmitted it to the people’s brains in such a mesmerizing way, that if I go in the wilds and say that Harry doesn’t exists, nobody would ever believe me. Harry Potter is the central character around which the whole story revolves. He is a born wizard whose parents were killed by an evil wizard during their struggle with him. This is a story of Harry’s revenge against this evil magician. The commercial success this character gained showed JKR as the highest earning English novelist. For more details on Harry Potter, its writer and his adventures, please refer to: http://www.jkrowling.com/, and http://harrypotter.warnerbros.com/. So, here is my latest set of questions, dedicated to HARRY POTTER & HIS ADVENTURES...the first in the series. I'd love to devote more space to HP and JKR in my future postings.

1. In which country was the first of the Harry Potter’s books published? Who was the publisher?

2. Name the first book of the Harry Potter’s series that got published.

3. Till date (December 2007) how many books on Harry Potter got translated into movies?

4. How old was Harry when his parents got murdered?

5. Name the evil wizard against whom Harry Potter’s adventures are plotted?

6. Name the school where Harry Potter mastered his skills as a wizard.

7. Joanne Rowling, creator of Harry Potter and his friends as well as all his enemies, was once asked by her publishers to adopt a more gender-neutral pen name, in order to appeal to the male members of this age group, fearing that they would not be interested in reading a fantasy novel they knew to be written by a woman. She elected to use J. K. Rowling, using her grandmother's name as her second name. What does ‘K’ in her name stands for?

8. As per the first book, ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone’, shortly before his eleventh birthday, Harry received a letter from the witchcrafts’ school, informing him that he’s to start at the school that fall. Harry accepts the offer letter hand-delivered by the gamekeeper, Rubeus Hagrid and purchase school supplies in Diagon Alley and a month later, Harry takes the train to Hogwarts. From where did he catch the train?

9. How many houses was the witchcraft school divided into? In other words, the students in the school were allotted a house at the time of his / her arrival at the school. What was the total number of such houses?
10.Name the first award the first Harry Potter book received just after a few months of its first release.

2008 04 16: Q0021

Do you love movies? War movies? Thrill? War-thrill? What about Greek mythology? Better said, ‘Greek mythological battle’ movies. Have you seen The Odyssey (1997)? Hercules (1995)? Jason and the Argonauts (2000)? Helen of Troy (1956)? Clash of the Titans (1981)? Or 300 (2007)? Here’s your chance to prove that you really have seen atleast “300”…a year 2007 released film which was a graphic adaption of Frank Miller’s novel with the same name. So, here is the set of your tens…Spartans.

1. Which battle has been depicted in the 2007 released film “300”?
2. Who played the lead characters of Spartan King and Queen in the movie?
3. The three hundred soldiers marched towards the hot gates, alongwith their king, Leonidas, to contain the invader. Name the invader (reel as well as real).
4. Of the 300 soldiers, Leonidas ordered only one of his faithful soldiers to return to Sparta with a specific purpose. Who was that soldier and what specific purpose was he to fulfil?
5. Where did the Spartans contain the mighty army of the Persians?
6. All the kings of the Sparta need to take permission of the deities before marching for the battles. A special class of girls were dignified to become the medium of communication between the kings and the deities (or the divine powers). What name is given to such girls?
7. Name the hunchbacked Spartan, who was not permitted by Leonidas to take part in the battle as a soldier, due to his physical disability to upheld the shield.
8. Which two species of animals have been shown in the movie, which might be new to the Greeks. These animals became the part of Xerxes’s army after his conquest over the respective areas.
9. When the King Leonidas was engaged in the battle against the Persians, his queen, Gorgo approached the council to send the army for the king’s support. One councilor betrayed her and charged her of adultery in an attempt to discredit her. Ultimately, this corrupt politician was killed in the council by the enraged queen. Also, he was found to be a traitor. Name him.

10. Who, gratifying Leonidas' sacrifice, led the assembled Greek army of 10,000 spartans and 30,000 Greeks, into a fierce charge against the Persian army, igniting the ‘Battle of Plataea’?

2008 04 15: Q0020

Name the respective CAPITALS of the following European nations.
1. France
2. Italy
3. Germany
4. Russia
5. Switzerland
6. Spain
7. Portugal
8. Luxembourg
9. Greece
10.England

So, how was the warm up? Rightly guessed. The questions asked above were just to warm your brain cells up. I know, that you already could recollect most of the capital cities like: 1. Paris, 2. Rome, 3. Berlin, 4. Moscow, 5. Berne, 6. Madrid, 7. Lisbon, 8. Luxembourg, 9. Athens, and 10. London. Now, tell…nothing new…only the Capital cities of the following European nations, as you did for the above mentioned countries.

1. Monaco
2. Denmark
3. Lithuania
4. The Czech Republic
5. Iceland
6. Faroe Islands
7. Serbia
8. Slovakia
9. The Netherlands
10.Bosnia

2008 04 14: Q0019

No more hard thinking...just give each of the following sentence a flashing thought. And then, think for a while. And then, think deeply. And after that, you can do research as well, if you think it to be worth of. But right now, state whether the following statements are TRUE OR FALSE. Very simple.

1. Airports that are at higher altitudes require a longer airstrip due to lower air density.

2. An earthquake on Dec. 16, 1811 caused parts of the Mississippi River to flow backwards.

3. The only king without a moustache in a deck of cards is the king of hearts.

4. The plastic tips on shoelaces are called "aglets".

5. Albert Einstein was offered the presidency of Israel in 1952, but he declined.

6. 99% of people cannot lick their elbow.

7. 90 percent of women who walk into a department store immediately turn to the right.

8. -40 degrees Celsius is equal to -40 degrees Fahrenheit.

9. Leonardo da Vinci was dyslexic, and he often wrote backwards.

10. Buttermilk does not contain any butter.

2008 04 11: Q0018

What about getting brain blinking to get across the following simple abbreviated terms as used in the ECONOMICS. Just give the complete and correct FULL FORMS of the following ten 'Economic' terms:
1. GDP
2. VAT
3. FOREX
4. HDI
5. FDI
6. IPO
7. NPA
8. NAV
9. GAAP
10. R&D

2008 04 10: Q0017

Medieval European History – that’s the topic for today’s 10 questions. Just to hone up your grey cells, I mention here, “all the continents of the world have their names started as well as ended in ‘A’…of course except EUROPE.

1. Which English King had six wives?
2. What diminutive dictator ruled post-Revolutionary France?
3. Who started the Protestant Reformation by posting Ninety-Five Theses on the door of the Schlosskirche
4. In 1588, what did the British navy defeat, making England Europe's most powerful nation?
5. What is the name of the medieval fortress and prison that was stormed by French Revolutionaries on July 14, 1789?
6. Who did Elizabeth I of England marry?
7. What Italian astronomer used a telescope to prove Copernicus's theory of a heliocentric solar system?
8. What was the name of the theatre that William Shakespeare partly owned?
9. What were colonial-era British soldier's nicknamed?
10. Who did Pope Julius II hire to decorate the ceiling of his chapel in 1508?

2008 04 09: Q0016

Let today be the day of designers…not the fashion designers, but the designers of the world in broader sense. The architects, sculptors, scientists, etc. Check how many DESIGNERS can you identify?

1. Who designed the world’s most popular assault rifle – AK 47?
2. RMS Titanic, an Olympic-class passenger liner, owned by the White Star Line, was at the time of her launching in 1912 the largest passenger steamship. During its maiden voyage, Titanic struck an iceberg on April 14, 1912, and sank a few hours later on April 15, 1912. Where was it built? Because it carried mail, its name was given the prefix RMS (Royal Mail Steamer).
3. The Pentagon, the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington, Virginia, has been designed by which Swidish American architect?
4. Who proposed “Citius, Altius, Fortius” (Latin for "Swifter, Higher, Stronger") to be the Olympic motto, during the creation of the International Olympic Committee in 1894? The motto was introduced in 1924 at the Olympic Games in Paris.
5. It is not only the tallest building in Paris, but also one of the most recognizable structures in the world. It is an iron tower built on the Champ de Mars beside the Seine River in Paris. Right…we care talking about Eiffel Tower. Who designed it?
6. Who built the Amber Fort at Jaipur (INDIA)? [The name of the Kachhwaha king who started the construction of the fort is wanted here].
7. Who designed the White House, the Presidential residence of the Presedent of USA?
8. A true music scientist, he blended the western Hawaiian guitar with sitar, sarod and veena technique to create altogether a new string instrument, Mohan Veena (a nineteen string modified archtop guitar with three melody strings, four drone strings and twelve sympathetic strings). He also received, besides many acclamations, a Grammy award in 1994. Name him.
9. Who designed the term ‘Non Alignment’ to be used for all the actions against any deed that might increase hatred, or doubt amongst the nations. This further laid to the foundation of Non Alignment Movement which had the members who didn’t get into any of the power blocs of the world during the Cold War.
10. Who is credited with the conceptual design of the modern age electronic computer? For his theoretically accurate contributions, he is also considered to be the Father of modern computing.

2008 04 08: Q0015

Let's check how many correct hits you can make through this MIXED BAG of questions. For an additional support, I've provided the hints as well. Best of Luck!!

1. Who among the following persons bought the sword of Tipu Sultan in London and brought it back to India? [Ratan Tata / Mukesh Ambani / Vijay Mallya / Aditya Birla]
2. Which of the following companies became India’s first listed IT firm to have crossed $1 billion turnover? [Satyam / HCL / Wipro / Infosys Technologies]
3. Who among the following has become the first Indian to score a triple century in Tests? [Rahul Dravid / Sachin Tendulkar / V.V.S. Laxman / Virender Sehwag]
4. Which of the following parts of the poppy plant is used for the extraction of opium? [Capsules / Flowers / Leaves / Roots]
5. The first feature film (talkie) produced in India was [Hatimtai / Alamm Ara / Pundalik / Raja Harishchandra]
6. In order to win the Grand Slam in Tennis, a player must win which one of the following groups of tournaments? [Australian Open, Wimbeldon, French Open, U.S. Open / Wimbledon, French Open, U.S. Open, Swedish Open / Wimbledon, French Open, Paegas Czec Open, U.S. Open / Davis Cup, Wimbledon, French Open, Australian Open]
7. Which law of Quantum Mechanics states that no two electrons in an atom can have the same set of four quantum numbers? [Bohr’s Law / Aufbau Principle / Newton’s law / Pauli’s Exclusion Principle]
8. Who granted the permission to establish the first British factory at Hooghli in Bengal? [Shah Shuja / Murshid Quli Khan / Shuja-ud-din / Alivardi Khan]
9. Who of the following built the temple of the Sun God at Konark? [Anantavarman / Narasimha I / Kapilendra / Purushottama]

10.When was decimal coinage introduced in India? [1947 / 1950 / 1957 / 1960]