1.Which autonomous republic in the south-eastern region of Ukraine wants to secede and join Russia? It was the location of a famous 19th century war (1853–1856) between Russia on one side, and France, Britain, the Ottoman Empire, and Sardinia on the other.
2.Which Tamil epic written by Ilango Adigal is divided into three chapters: The Puhar Chapter, the Madurai Chapter, and the Vanchi Chapter?
3.What event in Indian political history was endorsed by Acharya Vinoba Bhave, who called it Anushasan Parva or ‘Time for Discipline’?
4.Favourable film reviews on which website devoted to movies reviews and news are marked ‘Certified Fresh’?
5.What object would one find on top of the Wimbledon Men’s Singles Trophy?
6.What Russian musical instrument can one hear in Lara’s theme in David Lean’s Dr Zhivago?
7.A memorable scene in Frank Capra’s film It Happened One Night involves Clark Gable (munching a carrot) and Claudette Colbert trying to hitch a ride. Creatively, what famous non-human movie legend did this scene inspire?
8.The Haunted House and The Pirates of the Caribbean — what common basis do these two films have?
9.Which movie star made his debut as a child in the Aamir Khan – Juhi Chawla film Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak?
10.The play Manonmaniam by Sundaram Pillai in 1891 is considered by many to be the first Tamil play and was a masterful adaptation of Lord Bulwer Lytton’s poem The Secret Way. How did the opening of this play become popular in 1970?
11.Australians Colin McDonald and George Thoms opened together in the final Test against West Indies in Sydney in 1951-52. That same season they also opened for Melbourne’s University club and for Victoria. The only other pair to have opened for club, State, and country is from India. Who are they?
12.Misch metal is a mixture of ‘rare earth’ elements like lanthanum, praseodymium and cerium. When it is combined with iron it acquires a property that is useful in the manufacture of a certain product. What product?
1300.What is the significance of the painting Red Vineyard at Arles at the Pushkin Museum in Moscow. and whose work was it?
14.The diameter of what was decided by Philip Astley in the late 1700s to be 42
feet (since accepted as an international standard) because this gave horses enough room to ride at full gallop?
15.What is unusual about the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the United States’s Arlington National Cemetery, and why?
16.What is the specific name for this form of therapy for people who suffer from strokes/physical disabilities?
17.What is usually wrong with the portrayal of Narada in early Indian films and how did this ‘variation’ come about?
18.What unusual honour links Peter Finch’s performance in Network and Heath Ledger’s Joker in The Dark Knight?
19.In one of his famous journeys, this person brought a Brazilian graft of a plant and grafted it with the local version. What was the result?
20.What is the reason for the Dead Sea having a 30 per cent salt content?
Answers
1.Crimea
2.Silappatikaram
3.The Emergency
4.Rotten Tomatoes
5.Pineapple
6.Balalaika
7.Bugs Bunny
8.Both based on theme rides at Disneyland
9.Imran Khan
10.The opening invocation song of the play, titled Tamizh Thai Vazhthu, was chosen as the official ‘prayer song’ by the Government of Tamil Nadu.
11.Ramnath Parkar and Sunil Gavaskar. Opened the batting together for their club (Dadar Union), state (Bombay) and country (India).
12.Cigarette lighters. When small shavings of it are removed quickly enough, the heat generated by friction is enough to ignite those shavings. The sparks generated are in fact tiny pieces of burning metal.
13.The only painting Vincent van Gogh sold during his lifetime. It was exhibited in Brussels in 1890 and sold for 400 francs.
14.Circus ring
15. It is empty. No victim was found who was unidentified, fought in Vietnam, and who had more than 80% of his body recovered.
16. Wiihabilitation. The actions required to play the Nintendo Wii are also useful as physiotherapy exercises.
17.Narada carries a tambura and not the veena. It was difficult for actors playing Narada to carry a heavy veena and sing and balance on a parapet against an open sky (to simulate walking in the clouds).
18.The only posthumous nominations and winners of Best Actor Oscar.
19.The Alphonso Mango named after Alfonso de Alberquerque, the first Duke of Goa
20. The water in the Dead Sea has no outflow. As water evaporates, minerals are left behind, so that the Dead Sea now has 30% salt content.
