1. The BQC Open
General Quiz
Vikram Joshi
(With valuable contributions from Anannya Deb)
2. The BQC open would not have been possible without ....
Rajiv Rai Srinath TB
Anannya Deb Atul Mathew
Vikram Joshi Prasad Sawant
Anil Kothuri Ashit Hegde
Shrikant Narasimhan Shubhankar Gokhale
Sumant Srivathsan Abhinav Dasgupta
Vibhendu Tewari
4. Rules
40 Questions
11 – 20 are starred for tie-breakers and sudden death (if
required)
If your answer cannot be read while correcting, it will be
ignored
If you do not understand the question, then that is a clue
There are no part points anywhere
Please switch off all mobiles during the quiz
5. Prelims 1
If you add a six letter proper noun to these six terms, what
exhaustive list do you get?
North
South
North East
North West
South Central
North Central
6. Prelims 2
This British television show devised by Bill Wright drew
inspiration from his experiences of being interrogated by the
Gestapo during World War II.
Identify the TV show.
7. Prelims 3
Tony Marston, Mr & Mrs Rogers, Gen MacArthur, Emily Brent,
Justice Wargrave, Dr Armstrong, William Blore, Philip Lombard
and Vera Claythorne were guests of Mr U.N.Owen in which
book that ranks 7th in the all time best sellers list according to
Publications International?
10. Prelims 5
In which city do you have two rival football clubs playing what
they call “the inter-continental derby”?
11. Prelims 6
At least two historians of that time claim the person said
nothing. However, one of these historians did say that there were
others who told him that the last words as spoken by the person
were “Kai su, teknon?” However, we know these words – through
English literature – in a different language (though they mean
generally the same thing) but used in the English language as an
expression of betrayal.
How do we better know these words?
12. Prelims 7
Which calculating tool and programming language designed
by Alan Eliasen in 2001, whose main focus is in the fields of
science, engineering, physics, text processing and education, is
named rather appropriately after a character in the Simpsons?
13. Prelims 8
Formerly an exclusive hunting reserve of the former rulers
of Mysore, which national park whose name literally means
“streams of snakes” along with 2 other national parks and one
wildlife sanctuary forms the largest contiguous protected area in
South India?
14. Prelims 9
What is the common name of the structure erected as marked
on the map shown with the purpose of keeping out something
from human inhabited areas? This common name of the
structure is also the title of a 2002 Australian film.
15. Prelims 9
What structure was erected as marked on the map shown with
the purpose of keeping out something from human inhabited
areas? The name of the structure lends its name to a 2002
Australian film.
16. Prelims 10
GK Chesterton in his 1911 poem Lepanto closes with this stanza:
_________ on his galley sets the sword back in the sheath
(Don John of Austria rides homeward with a wreath.)
And he sees across a weary land a straggling road in Spain,
Up which a lean and foolish knight forever rides in vain,
And he smiles, but not as Sultans smile, and settles back the blade...
(But Don John of Austria rides home from the Crusade.)
Fill in the blank
17. Prelims 11
The only US First Lady to win an Emmy award won it for her
televised tour of the completed restoration of the White House
telecast on CBS.
Name her.
18. Prelims 12
This rebellion which began in 1951 is an acronym of the words
for “Europeans go to Europe; Africans get independence” in
Swahili.
It was brutally put down with over 20,000 African deaths and
only 150 European ones.
Name this rebellion.
19. Prelims 13
There are four cardinal sins as prescribed in the Rehit Maryada
for all baptised Sikhs. The first three are
a) Dishonouring the hair
b) Eating meat of an animal slaughtered the Muslim way
c) Co-habiting with a person other than your spouse
Which is the fourth sin?
20. Prelims 14
The 13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar, named
after the Turkish knife used during Ottoman times and blessed
by the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, was raised by the Nazis with
the objective of recruiting members of which specific ethnic
group?
21. Prelims 15
Name the 16th-17th century clergyman turned statesman who
was dubbed “the father of the modern European state” by Henry
Kissinger and “the architect of absolute monarchy” by French
historians and is the subject of the famous triple portrait by
Philippe de Champagne?
22. Prelims 16
Introduced into India by Babur and later formalised by Akbar,
Mughal Ganjifa is a card game played with a deck of 96 cards
comprising of 8 suits of 12 cards each. As the game became
popular beyond the Mughal courts, the designs on the cards
were made compatible with Hindu tradition. A second form of
the game emerged with 10 suits of 12 cards each. While local
variations abound across the country, Mughal Ganjifa and its
Hindu sibling remain the two meta-variants. What is this Hindu
form of Ganjifa called or what was typically depicted in the 10
suits?
23. Prelims 17
Critics of her 1956 ghost-written memoirs The Heart Has Its
Reasons said, "facts were remorselessly rearranged in what amounted
to a self-performed face-lift ... reflecting in abundance its author's
politically misguided but winning and desirable personality." She
herself is reported to have summed up her life in a sentence: "You
have no idea how hard it is to live out a great romance.“ Who is she?
24. Prelims 18
The Boswellia tree historically was widespread in the Arabian
peninsula, the Horn of Africa and India and is the source of
olibanum. But a recent study notes that this tree may come close
to extinction in another 50 years due to various ecological
factors. This will inevitably drive up the prices of olibanum.
What is olibanum, a Biblically significant product?
25. Prelims 19
Give me one word for the cloud of white aluminium pieces
that were ejected by WW2 fighters on both sides and served as a
radar-evading counter-measure by enveloping the plane and
causing distortions on radar screens. The Brits called it Window
while the Germans called it Duppel.
26. Prelims 19
The British Lancaster over Essen during a thousand
bombing raid
Give me one word for the cloud of white aluminium pieces
that were ejected by WW2 fighters on both sides and served as a
radar-evading counter-measure by enveloping the plane and
causing distortions on radar screens. The Brits called it Window
while the Germans called it Duppel.
27. Prelims 20
The Russell-Einstein Manifesto begins as follows:
IN the tragic situation which confronts humanity, we feel that
scientists should assemble in conference to appraise the perils that
have arisen as a result of the development of weapons of mass
destruction, and to discuss a resolution in the spirit of the
appended draft.
What was the conference that assembled in July 1957 called or
where was this conference held?
28. Prelims 21
This was the home and the final resting place of this monarch.
Where is this?
29. Prelims 21
This was the home and the final resting place of this monarch.
Where is this?
30. Prelims 21
This was the home and the final resting place of this monarch.
Where is this?
31. Prelims 22
Name the personality celebrating her 21st birthday featured in
this cartoon EH Shepherd (who also illustrated the first edition
of Winnie the Pooh) made for the April 1947 issue of Punch. This
was the first of many cartoons (continuing to this day) featuring
this personality.
32. Prelims 22
Name the personality celebrating her 21st birthday featured in
this cartoon EH Shepherd (who also illustrated the first edition
of Winnie the Pooh) made for the April 1947 issue of Punch. This
was the first of many cartoons (continuing to this day) featuring
this personality.
33. Prelims 23
What form of literature meaning a little song in Italian has the
following types - Curtal, Caudate, Pushkin, Occitan, Spenserian,
Modern among others?
34. Prelims 24
Using photographs taken in 1944, the Lili Jacob Album first gave
the world a view into this facility. Pawel Sawicki visited the same
facility over the last 2 years and took photos using the same
angles. The same were released in a publication recently titled
“________ - ______ - The Place Where You are Standing”. Which
facility?
35. Prelims 24
Using photographs taken in 1944, the Lili Jacob Album first gave
the world a view into this facility. Pawel Sawicki visited the same
facility over the last 2 years and took photos using the same
angles. The same were released in a publication recently titled
“________ - ______ - The Place Where You are Standing”. Which
facility?
36. Prelims 25
As per this seminal paper published in July 1936 in the
Proceedings of the London Mathematical Society, what do you call a
number if its decimal can be written down by a machine?
37. Prelims 26
The wholly Arctic based predator Monodon monoceros gets its
scientific name from the Greek for "one-tooth one-horn“. These
horns were considered to have magic powers, such as the ability
to cure poison and melancholia because of which Vikings and
other northern traders sold them for many times their weight in
gold. The tusks were used to make cups that were thought to
negate any poison that may have been slipped into the drink.
Name this mammal.
38. Prelims 27
What word meaning cheap or poor quality wine comes from
the slang term used by Australian and British soldiers in the
fields of northern France during WW1 to describe the terrible
white wine i.e. “vin blanc” that farmers sold in order to get rid of
it?
39. Prelims 28
Though they have an elaborate naming system for their over
12,000 products, because of the global markets some of these
names can often cause hilarity. In Anglophone countries, for
example, Jerker, Fukta, Fartfull and Lyckhem were product
names which had to be withdrawn (however benign their
meanings may be in the original language). Name the company?
40. Prelims 29
The first ruler of this kingdom was Shivaji’s half-brother Venkoji
Bhonsale.
The kingdom lasted until 1855 when due to the lack of legitimate
male heirs, it devolved to the British under the Doctrine of
Lapse.
Name it.
41. Prelims 30
Who is this famous citizen from Leeuwarden, Netherlands
whose crime was conclusively proven more than 50 years later
when classified documents were made public?
42. Prelims 30
Who is this famous citizen from Leeuwarden, Netherlands
about whose crime was conclusively proven more than 50 years
later when classified documents were made public?
43. Prelims 31
Born to parents who survived the siege of Leningrad, he learnt
the Russian martial art Sambo and later switched to the Olympic
sport of Judo. He has achieved the rank of the 6th dan (red / white
belt) in Judo and is the co-author along with Vasily Shestakov
and Alexei Levitsky of the 2004 publication “Judo: History, Theory
and Practice”.
Name this tough guy.
44. Prelims 32
10 years after his famous book, Paul Theroux was back in the
Indian subcontinent traveling by train from Peshawar to
Chittagong. His narrative was published in an issue of National
Geographic embellished by photographs such as these. Name the
accomplished photographer who also did one of the most iconic
National Geographic covers ever?
45. Prelims 32
10 years after his famous book, Paul Theroux was back in the
Indian subcontinent traveling by train from Peshawar to
Chittagong. His narrative was published in an issue of National
Geographic embellished by photographs such as these. Name the
accomplished photographer who also did one of the most iconic
National Geographic covers ever?
46. Prelims 32
10 years after his famous book, Paul Theroux was back in the
Indian subcontinent traveling by train from Peshawar to
Chittagong. His narrative was published in an issue of National
Geographic embellished by photographs such as these. Name the
accomplished photographer who also did one of the most iconic
National Geographic covers ever?
47. Prelims 33
I’m not a business quizzer, so this must seem to be the easiest
question ever to some of you. Just add four words to complete
the speech that you will see in the video.
48. Prelims 34
Name this ensemble musical group who get their very regal
name from the Cambridge based alma mater of their original six
founding members. Over the last 40 years, over 24 different
people have been part of this ensemble which has won 2
Grammys and many other notable awards. Here they are
performing “Masterpiece”, a history of 400 years of classical
music.
49. Prelims 35
In Indian quizzing parlance, this question falls under the
category called TCQ (Typical Chennai Question) which concern
recently departed personalities. Using that as a clue, identify
this band performing a cover of a Neil Diamond classic.
51. Prelims 37
When performing this song, the singer forgot a verse. So she
improvised on the spot. This performance would later win her a
Grammy for Best Vocal Performance Female. Name the song
and the literary work from which it originates. (No Part Points)
52. Prelims 38
Name the poet, co-founder of the Chhayavad movement in
Hindi literature, whose work you will just hear in this clip?
53. Prelims 39
You will hear a famous “declaration” interrupted by the
applause of an appreciative crowd. Name the person making
this speech.
54. Prelims 40
We started in Mumbai and we shall return to Bombay. After a
performance on April 4, 1958 at the Eros Theatre in Bombay, the
Times of India music critic wrote “Pianist most outstanding...It has
the inestimable gift of being able to take the starch out of music snobs –
and there are so many of us in this great city.” Name the artist /
quartet.
