Informals '14 Part 8: Bollywood qqqqqqqquiz (not kkkkiran)

                                                                                    By   Nupur Neti, 1^st Year TC

                                                                                           Progya Parmita ,1^st Year IEM

1.       Connect : Maqbool, Omkara, Ram Leela, Angoor

2.       ID this minimalist poster:

                        

3.       X is located in Mumbai. It is also known as Bollywood’s Box Office. On 11 January 2013, it broke the Guinness record for something. ID the place and what is the record it broke?

4.       You see, the whole country of the system is juxtaposition by the haemoglobin in the atmosphere because you are a sophisticated rhetorician intoxicated by the exuberance of your own verbosity. Where have you heard this?

5.       X became CNN's Top Song in 2012. Its rapid spread to nightclubs and discos in Tokyo, Japan were reported soon after release, and a viral video of Japanese women dancing to it spread soon afterwards. Police officers in India used versions of the song and its title to combat road rage and encourage bike riders to wear helmets. However In April 2012, a petition was filed seeking a ban on the song citing negative influence on children, claiming to inciting violence and aggression. ID X.

6.       X was released in the 90s. While it didn’t initially do well at the box office, it has grown to have a cult following. It repeatedly references to another iconic movie Y which was written by the father of one of X’s lead actors. X and Y are so famous mainly due to their memorable dialogues, friendships and hilarious antics. The same actor plays the second in command to the main villain in X as well as  Y.  Both X and Y are in the top 3 for the list of highest rated Bollywood movies by IMDb. ID X and Y. 

7.       X is the screen name of Mary Evans who was born to a Greek mother and a Scottish father. Her role often involved beating up Indian men and a lot of stunts which gave her the first part of her screen name. She was famous for her role in the movie Hunterwali, one of the first female lead movies in Bollywood. ID X.

8.       X was born as Johnrao Prakashrao Janumala and brought up in Dharavi. As a child, he earned money by selling pens on the streets of Bombay by imitating Bollywood stars and later worked with factor in Hindustan Unilever’s factory where his performances earned him the name X. He is one of the most well-known actors in his field and is inspired by Johnny Walker, Kishore Kumar and Mehmood. ID X.

9.       X was initially to be named Inquilaab as his mother was profoundly influenced by the freedom movement. He moved to Bombay to work as a film actor but for a long was rejected repeatedly as film makers wanted someone fairer and “He just wasn’t fair enough”. Hence he moved on to narration and background for many years until Indira Gandhi sent a personal letter of recommendation and thus he got his big break. ID X

10.   X is the first Hindi film to gross over  1 billion, and when adjusted for inflation, it is still one of the highest earning Bollywood films ever. Painter (Late) M. F. Husain was reported to have seen the film 85 times. Filmmaker Karan Johar named it as the one film that changed his life. ID X.

11.   X is a movie whose title is taken from a poem by Dushyanth Kumar and is heavily inspired by another poem written by Ram Prasad Bismil. The film went under severe controversy - first there was some uncertainty over shooting appropriate scenes inside the Amritsar Golden Temple and a 20-second horse race was cut on claims put forward by Maneka Gandhi. What is X?

12.   X had the following to say of the English Band Y : “People say that Y are a fad. But I don’t think so…If you listen to Y properly, you get a feel of old Roman music. Sometimes you get a feel of Indian music, sometimes you get a feel of Assamese folk songs.” ID X and Y.

13.   Music for this song X is done by Laxmikant-Pyarelal and is considered THE song in catapulting this actress on her road to success. A favourite when it comes to antakshari games, the movie released in 1987. The song was such  a success that Filmfare introduced a whole new category of awards - The best choreography award. ID X.

Informals '14 Part 6: Fake Fundas

                                                                                       By  Sethupati K, 1^st Year Mech 

                                                                                                           

1)  In 1896, a school in the city of Aarau, decided to change their grading system. Getting a ‘6’,which previously meant having a tough time in class, now meant that he/she passed with flying colors and similarly getting a ‘1’ which was supposed to denote class toppers now stood next to the class failures’ names. So naturally when anybody went through X’s report card later, he/she must have thought what a dumb guy he was in school after looking at a string of 1s.Simply identify X

2)  Years after the accident occurred, a newspaper reporter Michael Ahern accepted that he had invented the story so that it would make the copy more colorful. But the damage had already been done. The lady and her poor creature referenced in his story, were the talk of the town and were blamed for it. Being an Irish, she was subjected to hate and finally died as a heartbroken person. While Daniel ‘Peg Leg’ Sullivan was thought to be the main culprit behind the accident, the lady was finally freed of all guilt only in 1997 when a historian came to her (late)rescue. ID the lady and her supposed crime.

3)  As of today, there is no actual evidence of X wearing Y. This idea of X wearing Y, originated from a 1876 production of the Der Ring des Nibelungen opera cycle by Richard Wagner. Actually it was the costume designer Carl Emil Doopler who created Y for the characters appearing in the production and our generation would have seen it mostly in Flintstones. ID X and Y

4)  Some headlines from ____  ____ News during the 1970s and early 1980s which was a quarterly 4 page tabloid released by the organization of the same name. FITB

·         "Whole World Deceived... Except the Very Elect" (Dec. 1977)

·         "Australia Not Down Under" (May 1978)

·         "Sun Is a Light 32 Miles Across" (Dec. 1978)

·         "The Earth Has No Motion" (Jun. 1979)

·         "Nikita Krushchev Father of NASA" (Mar. 1980)

·         "Galileo Was a Liar" (Dec. 1980)

·         "Science Insults Your Intelligence" (Sep. 1980)

·         "The Earth Is Not a Ball; Gravity Does Not Exist" (Mar. 1981)

5)  A X is a passage situated below or behind a tier of seats in an amphitheatre or a stadium, through which big crowds can exit rapidly at the end of a performance. They can also be pathways for actors to enter and leave stage. But the common misconception with regards to X is that Ancient Romans built designated spaces of the same name for a relevant purpose as a part of binge eating cycle. ID X

6)  Researchers recently conducted experiments with a certain aquatic creature and debugged a popular myth. They successfully taught the creature to play fetch, push levers, do the limbo, and even play soccer. If they are fed around the same time of day, they also remember that and will anticipate the feeding leading up to that time, which implies they have a very good sense of time. They also have been shown to be able to recognize their masters and even pick their favorites (usually the one who feeds them).What popular fact was deemed nonsense as a result of these experiments?

7)  In 2003, the popular show Mythbusters busted this world known fact when they conducted the actual experiment and their verdict was, "A ____'s terminal velocity is too low for it to penetrate human skin - let alone penetrate concrete or asphalt - even when fired from a rifle from that height.".Straightdope.com pitched in by saying a _____ would gain a maximum of roughly 280ft/s and from that height(1250ft) would not cause any harm as it had less mass and would also experience tumbling. Which fact was busted?

8)  Killing X is a long process. Subjecting X to solar radiation does not have any effect as X is seen to be walking in noon in Chapter 24. Simply impaling X is not gonna result in his death instead something else also must be done to ensure he rests in peace. Who is X and what is the additional process?

9)  If equilibrioception, thermoception, proprioception, nociception and interoception are in the Infamous Five, who are the Famous Five?

10) X was pretty tall compared to the average guy from his country. He was measured to be 5’2”(in the French scale) which would be 5’7” or 170cm in Imperial scale. But people took his height as 5’2” in Imperial scale and thought he was a short guy and given the fact that he was always surrounded by the tall Imperial Guards his height was lost in translation forever. Whom are we talking about?

Informals '14 Part 5: Popular Characters

 By  Pavithra Tagore, 1st Year IEM                                                                                                  

       Shreya Guddin ,1st Year IEM

1.       X is the alter ego of his creator. In the novel series, X’s publisher’s name, Jonas Faukman is an anagram of X’s creator, Jason Kaufman. Quoting directly from the book about a frequently referred to accessory: “Although its juvenile dial often drew odd looks, X had never owned any other ______; Disney animations had been his first introduction to the magic of form and colour, and Mickey now served as X's daily reminder to stay young at heart.” This popular novel series featuring X has been adapted into films. Who is X?

2.       The comic book character Batman was partially inspired by X.  Batman himself resembles X, making use of his wide knowledge of peculiar things in order to solve cases. Also like X, Batman has an immense knowledge in different hand to hand combat techniques that range from boxing to Asian martial arts. Alfred Pennyworth is a former British Army Medic who serves as Batman's confidant in moments of doubt and in head-scratching cases; he also writes about Batman and his cases; just like X’s best friend and confidant. Who is X?

3.       When a movie featuring X was made, the film’s initial copyright was held by the Quaker Oats company. Inspired by one of X’s products, the real world now has a medicinal marijuana strain named X Bubblicious. X is a fictional character from one of Roald Dahl’s novels.      Who is X?

4.       X shares his name with one of the greatest poets of the 19th century, who wrote ‘Leaves of Grass’-a poetry collection. This great poet agonized over it, making edits and additions his ENTIRE life.  He revised it over and over throughout his life and was continuing to work on making it perfect right up until his dying breath.  This was his baby, so to speak.  This was his blue ____ – the chemical compound that X perfected which gave meaning to his world.  The item that X worked meticulously on creating and then re-creating until it was the most superior product on the market. 

Who is X?

5.       The lead character of a book (also a movie), written by Ian Fleming, is X-an agent of the Secret Service. Fleming named X after the author of an ornithology guide. In the first draft of X, Fleming decided to use the name James Secretan as X’s cover name while on missions. Within the first few pages of the book, Fleming introduced most of X’s unusual habits and trademarks, which included his looks, his Bentley, his drinking and smoking habits. Fleming describes X as a compound of all the secret agents and commandos he met during the 2nd World War.

6.       “Love. The reason I dislike that word is that it means too much for me, far more than you can understand.” said X. X is a beautiful, aristocratic married woman from St. Petersburg whose pursuit of love and emotional honesty makes her an outcast from society. She despises her husband who she thinks is fake and has an illicit affair. Who is X?

7.       X claims to be a Székely descended from Attila the Hun. Lucy Westenra was X’s first victim. X was a voivode who was notably attached to Y who consumed insects and other beings to absorb their power. In the real world there is a syndrome named Y syndrome commonly exhibited by schizophrenics. X and Y please.

8.       In John Rizal’s novel, El Filibusterismo, the protagonist returns as Simoun, a rich jeweller to avenge the betrayal he experienced and recover his fiancée, Maria Clara. It is said that this tale was heavily influenced by another popular character who returns from prison with the help of a “mad priest” to avenge his betrayal. Which character are we talking about?

9.       Who was this written by?

 10.     Following is a critic review of X, a film based on the novel of the same name:

"X is such a clone of "The Lord of the Rings," it probably could lose a plagiarism suit. There's also a heavy dash of "Harry Potter". The hero is X, who lives with his uncle in a Hobbiton-like village and doesn't know he's pregnant with magical powers and destined to free his people from tyranny.  The author of the novel on which the film is based, was only 15 when he wrote it, and, frankly, it shows. Its star looks like Prince William but has no personality, and its scenes are geared to set up the franchise, with no resolution. At 104 minutes, it's more than an hour shorter than the first "Rings" installment, with none of its unity and stand-alone satisfaction. All that was missing were the hobbits.” X?

                                                                                               

Informals '14 Part 4: Cartoons and Comics

                                                                                               By  Nihal Mohan, 1^st Year Mech 

                                                                                                      Suraj Manjesh  ,1^st Year CSE

1. Where would you find Val Hallen, Major Glory, and The Infraggable Krunk?

2. A TV anchorman announces, "We interrupt this program to bring you...X the Y show, starring X, the Y! Abandoned as a pup, he was found by ______, who lives in the middle of Nowhere with her husband, _______ _____.... But creepy stuff happens in Nowhere. It's up to X to save his new home!"  this is the opening lines of which show?

3. X and Y are considered to be the creators of time and space whereas Z represents antimatter.

 X and Y fight a lot and on one occasion, Z intervenes. Z is supposedly banished to a world on the reverse side for its violence. Give me X, Y, Z who are also known as the creation trio.

4.  ________________________ follows two children named X and Y, who after winning a limbo game to save X's ten-year-old pet hamster, gain the mighty Grim Reaper as their best friend in eternal servitude and slavery forever and ever. X is a dim-witted , optimistic and kind-hearted whereas Y is dark. ill-tempered, sinister and very intelligent. ID the show (blank) and X and Y.

5.  The choice of a X as the Pet in Y was inspired by media underuse as well as to exploit the creatures striking appearance. The choice of X also gives freedom to "make stuff up" since "no one knows very much about them." X and Y?

6. Connect: Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, Lockheed martin F22 Raptor, An-255 Cossack Transport plane, VF-1S Super Valkyrie, F14 tomcat, SU-27 Flanker and some more to a fictional character.

7.  Connect - Haze, Rage, Oceanus, Naturon, Nuova, Eis, Syn and Omega.

8.  In X, holding one of the 12 _______ will give its holder one of the following superhuman abilities - Animation of inanimate objects, Super Strength, Balance, Super Speed, Combustion, Invisibility, Healing/Renewal, Astral Projection, Shape-shifting, Levitation, Immortality and Heat Vision.

 Id the show, X .

9.  X was born to Y’s sister at St. Bernard’s hospital on December 20  1979. but another episode shows that X met Y when it was young. X idolizes his uncle Y and helps Y and his friends in solving mysteries. Y is VERY popular. X was initially considered a breakout character that brought the series to fame but was later credited for the show’s decline. X and Y please who share a common 3 letter surname?

10.  X is also known by the name Tuffy. Initially, he was presented as a peer of Y with no relation to him. In later episodes, he was made Y’s nephew. X speaks more than Y. He is depicted as speaking in different ways on different occasions which include French, Saxon, English, British cockney etc. X is usually depicted as being hungry. Although Y cares for X, he gets mad at Y whenever he does something dangerous or reckless. X and Y? If it’s any hint, Y and Z are very famous….

11.  Nigel Uno, Hoagie Gilligan Jr., Kuki  Sanban, Wallaby “Wally” Beatles, Abigail “Abby” Lincoln are the ‘real’ names of which group of ‘agents’? Name of the show is sufficient.

12.  This is the longest running Cartoon network Original series and Canadian-made animated series to date. It follows the lives of three adolescent boys who all share variations in the same name. The series takes place in the town of peach creek. One is a strong, dim-witted workhorse of the group, the other is an inventor, neat freak, and the most intelligent of the them. The last one is a greedy, ill-tempered con artist, loudmouth, and self-appointed leader of the Trio.

ID the three which will also give you the name of the show

13.  X are a group of intergalactic police with john stewart a.k.a _____ being one of its most famous members..  X's uniform consists mainly of their signature colour which is also reflected in their name.. Id X

14.  X and Y ,though of totally different works of fiction have been referenced to each other and hence Y believed to be a descendant of X. the reason being that in one of the episodes, Y says a famous quote by X and attributes it to his ancestor. Because of this, there has been a great deal of fan fiction depicting X as a ______. Many suggest that the creator of Y wanted Y to be a descendant of the creator of X from his mother’s side. Anyway, X and Y yaaru?

Informal'14 Part 3 :SIMPLY POLITICS!

                                                                               By Rakshith Ponnathpur, 1^stYearCSE 

                                                                                             Sanjay Vinayak ,1^st Year CSE

1)   When X was in the court defending an innocent man,a message was given to him about

 the death of his wife. X did not show any feelings and fought the case.At last the judge asked 

him what was the message given to him was by the unknown person. X replied sadly that his

 wife had died..Something about X is going on, which is supposed to set a world record. Put 

funda

2)   In September 2009, both X and Y were ordered by the then FM, Pranab Mukherjee to vacate from a particular place. X was then Y ‘s boss. Both are from neighbouring states in south India and both have been ministers of cabinet rank . X was also the cm of a state and Y has been in the news recently. Id X and Y and the place from where (general) they were ordered to vacate?

3)  X is a former law minister of India and also a very senior advocate. X was featured on the list of one of the most powerful persons in India according to a survey by The Indian Express. He was a member of both the BJP and Congress and is the founding member of a political party Y. In Dec 2013, he was falsely accused of writing a newspaper article in 'Mail Today' defaming the leader of Y. Id X and Y.

 4)    Here is X’s political record 

    Balrampur – 1957, 1967
    Gwalior – 1971
    New Delhi – 1977, 1980
    Vidisha – 1991
    Gandhinagar – 1996
    Lucknow – 1991, 1996, 1998

X is the only politician who has won from 6 different constituencies and from four different states. Id X.

5)   His biography _________ was written by his nationalist friend and an eminent writer of Hindi literature, Ramavruksha Benipuri. Returning from the US in late 1929 as a supporter of Marxist theories, _______ joined the Indian National Congress on the invitation of Jawaharlal Nehru in 1929; Mahatma Gandhi became his mentor in the Congress. When he was imprisoned at the Hazaribhag Jail during the Quit India Movement, his friend Yogendra Shukla put him on his shoulders, scaled the prison wall and carried him on his shoulders for a distance of about 124 kms and reached Gaya to join the protests. Eventually, he won the Magsassay Award for Public Service in 1965 and became the 10th posthumous awardee of the Bharat Rathna in 1998. Who is he?

6) X won the Delhi Student Union Presidential Election by a huge margin in 1995. X became All India Convenor of the NSUI in 1996 and in 1997, X was appointed as the All India President of NSUI. X was part of the National Commission for Women until 2012 when she was removed from the NCW for naming a sexual assault victim. Some of X’s achievements include winning the ‘Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Award For working for the women’s cause’  in 2009 and ‘Shresht Stree Award in Student Leadership’ in 1996. X is the chairman of NGO “Go India Foundation” and was in the news recently. Who is X?

International:

7)  The Co-Princes of Andorra are the two rulers of the Principality of Andorra, a small landlocked nation lying in the Pyrenees mountains between France and Spain. Founded in 1278 through a treaty between the Catalan Bishop of Urgell and the French Count of Foix, this unique monarchial arrangement has persisted through medieval times to the present day.  Currently, the Bishop of Urgell and X serve as Andorra's co-princes, following the transfer of the Count of Foix's claims to the Crown of France, and thence to the French Republic.ID X?

8)   X currently holds one of the most powerful posts in the world. X played a crucial role in pushing for USA's invasion of Iraq in 2003. X's spouse is heiress to a world famous    ketchup manufacturer. Gimme X and the ketchup manufacturer

9) __________ is a businesswoman and a politician. She is the youngest female PM of her country at 45.Her country has been in the news recently due to political agitations against her and her party for trying to pass a bill that would provide amnesty to her brother and party cadres over murder charges. FIB and give me her country.

10)  Y was a member of the Order of the British Empire and also a high ranking member of British Intelligence.In 1963, Y was revealed to be a member of the spy ring now known as the Cambridge Five serving KGB and NKVD. The antagonist of a recent 2011 movie 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' is said to be based on Y. ID Y

Informals '14 Part 2: FIFA WC

                                                                                                                                                                                                    By  Mueez Ahmed, 1^st Year IEM 

                                                                                      Sumant, 1^st Year ISE

1)   X started his career at FC Brussels but joined Anderlecht as a ten year old. Considering his parental roots he is allowed to represent Kosovo. Since Kosovo doesn’t have a registered FIFA Team, he is eligible to represent Belgium through birth and passport, Albania through his ethnic Albanian heritage, Turkey through his grandparents, and Serbia due to the disputed status of his parents' homeland of Kosovo. Also, in recent times there has been a huge debate over his eligibility to play for England with English manager Roy Hodgson expessing his desire to make him a part of the current English squad for the World Cup. Id X

2)__________ is the all-time leading goal-scorer in the FIFA World Cup ever since the tournament’s  inception in 1930

3)      Which country holds the record for scoring the maximum number of goals(10) in a single game at the FIFA World Cup ?

4)       Brazil is the most successful team at the World Cup Finals with 5 World Cup titles. As a result, they have five of these things. Italy has won 4 World Cup Finals and thus has four of these. Similarly, Germany has 3, Argentina and Uruguay have 2 while France, England and Spain have one each of these. What are these things that are referred to here ?

5)      X is regarded as one of the greatest ODI batsmen of all times. He was voted one of the five Cricketers of the Century in 2000, by a 100-member panel of experts, along with Sir Donald Bradman, Sir Garfield Sobers, Sir Jack Hobbs and Shane Warne. However, one of the least known facts about him is that he happens to be the only person to have ever played in both the cricket and football World Cup(qualifiers), having represented Antigua at the 1974 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Id X.

6)      Named after a cannon invented in the early 1930s by the Americans, X is one of the first whose name was chosen by fans. Every child in Brazil born on December 3 received one piece X for free. X is made by a German company that was started by two brothers and is one of the most popular in its field today. Id X.

7)      X happens to be one of the 13 teams that played the first Football World Cup in 1930 hosted by Uruguay. X along with Uruguay made it to the first Wold Cup Finals which is remembered for a very controversial event. Over a dispute over which football to use it was decided that one half would be played with Uruguay’s ball and the other with X’s. X’s ball was used in the first half and they lead 2-1 until Uruguay won the game 4-2 to lift the first ever World Cup. Identify X.

8)      Discovered by a dog Pickles wrapped in an old newspaper in the streets of London , without which the 1966 World Cup would have been incomplete, X was stolen and remained that way for 6 days amidst a flurry of ransom notes, threats and negotiations. The dog Pickles which found X, was immediately made a national hero and England went on the win the World Cup that year. What is X?

9)      It is also known as lepatata Mambu and was traditionally made and inspired from the horn of a kudu(which is a deer like animal found in Africa). It became quite popular during the 2010 FIFA World Cup and Hyundai constructed the largest working model of this as a part of their marketing campaign. What are we talking about?

10)  Rinus Michels is credited with having invented this tactic/style of play which gained immense recognition and popularity at the 1974 World Cup. The Dutch team, which was coached by Michels then, popularized this style of play and the eventually went on to finish as Runners-Up in that World Cup. However, Ajax FC (which was also coached by Michels at that time) was the first team to implement this and dominated Europe in the early 1970’s with it. The essential tactic involved is this: a player who moves out of his position is replaced by another from his team, thus retaining the team's intended organisational structure. In this fluid system, no outfield player is fixed in a nominal role; anyone can successively play an attacker, a midfielder and a defender. What tactic/style of play?

11)  _____ ______ happens to be the only host country ever to have been eliminated from the group stages of the World Cup.

Question 1 to 11 are all independent questions. The formula given  points to one letter in every answer When you put together all these letters it leads you to an Answer. Clue to this Answer : Born 25th April, 1947. Has played for and managed, both Ajax and Barcelona. 3 Times European Player of the year winner.

                                            
                               (1^st word)                                                 (2^nd word)

U-3 | L+2 | A-4 | S-2 | R-1   Z+2 | A+1 | O+3 | A-4 | L+1 | C-3

Informals '14 Part 1:Tech Tonic!

  By  Varun Kashyap, 1st Year ISE

Shreyas Raghunath, 1st Year ISE

1.      With a vision for a phone worth keeping , this startup X created a huge sensation by posting its idea on YouTube.Recently, Motorola announced that it was working on a similar idea all along under the name Y . Identify X and Y.

2.      In 2012 Google bought X to protect itself and its products from legal battles against Y. Now, recently after just one year it has sold the major stake of the company to a chinese manufacturer while retaining the companies rich patents portfolio’s and its advance projects. Identify X&Y.

3.      X, quite well known in India recently entered a European country Y becoming one of the first Indian companies to launch its products in a European market. Also, X shares it's name with that of a marvel character. It's latest launches there included models with names such as Knight and Tube. Id X and Y.

4.      Apple SVP of global marketing Phil Schille opted to unfollow the company X and it’s CEO after Y acquired X for 3.2 Billion Dollars.X’s CEO was previously an employee of Apple and is credited to the founder of Ipod, before resigning from Apple to start his own company X.X’s company claims that it (X) reinvents unloved but important home products .       Identify X&Y.

5.      What is the name of the Android alternative, Linux based operating system being extensively supported mainly by Samsung and Intel? The Samsung ZEQ 9000 will be the first commercially available device running on thus operating system.

6.      All set to be launched any time soon in India, X is priced at a whopping Rs.69,999, making it the costliest device of its kind to be launched in the country. Give us X, which incorporates one of the most significant technological innovations of 2013.

7.      Recently the Seattle Seahawks, owned by X, thrashed the Denver Broncos to win their first Superbowl Championship. X is currently the chairman of Vulcan Inc, an investment company founded by him. He was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma, a cancer of the white blood cells which he managed to survive. But he is most famously known as the co founder of Y along with Z, which is known to almost everybody and has been in the news lately.  Id  X, Y and Z.

8.      This famous annual electronic show, began in 1967 and is the launch platform of a number of devices ranging from the first VCR, DVD technology, the first HDTV among other devices. It is an annual show held in the "Sin City". Y, a tech company with an "iye" for well designed, well marketed and extremely popular devices has been very notably absent in X since 1992. Id X and Y.

9.      Started as a project in Stanford University this social networking app’s current mascot is called “Ghostface Chillah”.It started under the name ‘Pikaboo’ before being rebranded to its present name.On 31st Dec 2013 the apps database was hacked thereby revealing over 4.6 million usernames and phone numbers.Which app??

10.  Which company, initially started as a wood pulp and rubber processing company, was acquired by Microsoft in 2013?

11.  Developers King.com recently created a viral sensation by patenting a rather common word which features in their hit game. To their surprise several indie developers have trolled King by flooding the app market with apps named after this word.Which word are we talking about and name the App ?

12.  Connect : Gear, Pebble and Martian.

13.  Why have the following been in the news lately : Balance, Clay Shooter, Tennis and Matcher.

14.  What is this recent public letter about?

      

Informals '13 Part 6: Superheros!

- Jayanta Kurumathur, 1st year, Telecom
  Pranav Sreerama, 1st year, IEM
  Sandeep Kini, 4th year, BT


1)  Wade Wilson, or X’s primary power is an accelerated healing. Artificially endowed, this enables him to regenerate any destroyed tissue at a super-human rate as well as making him immune to all known diseases. An unanticipated side effect was an acceleration of the cancerous tumors he was suffering from at the time, causing them to quickly spread across his entire body. Because of this, his healing factor super charged his cancer, resulting in massive scar tissue causing his appearance to be severely disfigured.

2)  The character is a green-skinned extraterrestrial humanoid from the planet Mars, who is pulled to earth by an experimental teleportation beam (originally presented as an attempted communication device) constructed by Dr. Saul Erdel. X possesses a wide variety of superhuman powers— including telepathy, shape-shifting, projecting energy, x-ray vision, phasing, invisibility, flight, and super strength. One of the X's signature traits is his vulnerability to fire.

3)  Four of X’s senses function with high levels of superhuman accuracy and sensitivity, giving him abilities far beyond the limits of a normal person. X developed a radar sense which is similar to echolocation. Due to the fact that Y, X’s alter ego’s sensory organs have a superhuman level of development, his inner ear, which controls the equilibrium and motions of the body, is also preternaturally developed, aiding him in acrobatic feats that surpass even Olympic-level athletes. X, Y yaaru?

4)  X is a vigilante who employs murder, kidnapping, extortion, coercion, threats of violence, and torture in his war on crime. Driven by the deaths of his wife and two children, who were killed by the mob during a shootout in New York City's Central Park, X puts a skull on his chest and wages a one-man war on the mob and all criminals in general by using all manner of conventional war weaponry, determined to punish the entire criminal syndicate for their destruction of his family. Gimme X!

5)  Diana or X is depicted as a masterful athlete, acrobat, fighter and strategist, trained and experienced in many ancient and modern forms of armed and unarmed combat, including exclusively Amazonian martial arts. X also has been likened to “the closest thing we will ever get to a well respected and adored female woman of superman”. X is?

6)  X is a superhero closely associated with Batman. The name of the idenitity comes from an alias taken up by Superman in the bottled city of Kandor, where he had no powers. Superman thus chose the identity inspired by batman, and naming it X as there were no bats in Kandor. X later became the alias of Y after he joined the teen titans. X, and Y please.

7)  Robert Louis Drake was born in Port Washington, Long Island, New York, to William Robert Drake and Madeline Beatrice Bass-Drake. Robert's powers first manifest when he is on a date with Judy Harmon, and a local bully tries to take Judy away for himself. Knowing Judy cannot put up a good fight, he points his hand at the bully and encases him in a block of ice. Robert then met with _____ and joined his team of strange teens under the alias of X. FITB and X please.

8)  Y was initially introduced as the daughter of Batman and X from earth-two. Y adopts the alias of Z and has become closely associated with the Bat family. Y is also a member of the” birds of prey”, a team consisting of her, Black canary, Oracle, and sometimes X. Y is never seen without the cross on her neck and bears cross motifs on most of her costumes. Y also featured recently on the hit tv show Arrow as a potential love interest and foil for the main character. Y is?

9)  Roy Thomas, Stan lee’s successor as editor  told Len Wein he wanted him to make up a character specifically named X who is Canadian and small/short of stature and has a fierce temper (like a real X). X first appeared in the final "teaser" panel of The Incredible Hulk #180 (The character then appeared in a number of advertisements in various Marvel Comics publications before making his first major appearance in The Incredible Hulk #181. Now the charcter however has become infamous as the mascot and face of a super team even being featured in his own movie that covers his backstory. X bub?

10)  The original team of Y in their first appearance in 1963 consisted of A norse god, a gamma powered giant, a man who is capable of shrinking down to and communicating with insect species, his girlfriend who can develop insectoid wings and named the team Y because it sounded “dramatic”, and a “big man in a suit of armor” facing off against said norse god’s half brother. Y please.

11)  While there have been many versions of Y throughout comic history, the one currently in the limelight is that of X, who was later revealed to be a clone of Lex luthor and the man of steel. The current version of Y was also a member of the Teen titans (2003 volume) and was romantically involved with Wondergirl. Give me X&Y.

12)  “Chernaya Vdova” or X is the moniker of Y a Russian spy, an antagonist of the superhero Iron Man. She later defected to the United States, becoming an agent of the fictional spy agency S.H.I.E.L.D.,. Commonly depicted as a femme fatale, the X was ranked as the 31st sexiest woman in comics by the Comics Buyer's Guide. X has also been described by many fans as the “assets” of the greatest superhero team in the world. Gimme X and Y.

13)  _________ known by her alias Y has been a member of the x-men with the ability to phase through solid objects and also had a significant impact on popular culture. She was mentioned by Joss Whedon as being the inspiration for Buffy the Vampire slayer, and also mentioned in the first episode of the TV series Heroes, by the character of Hiro Nakamura as he was influenced by Y’s one shot time travel in the infamous “Days of future past” storyline. FITB and Y.

Informals '13 Part 5: Lights. Camera. Action.

 - Abhishek HV, 1st year Mech
    Avinash Kini, 1st year Mech

1)  Which film of 1980s directed by Steven Spielberg stars more of former bond movie actors? The film stars a former James Bond (Sean Connery), a former Bond ally (John Rhys-Davies), a former Bond girl (Alison Doody), two former Bond commanding officers (Michael Byrne and Billy J. Mitchell), a former Bond nightclub owner (Vernon Dobtcheff), and three former Bond villains (Julian Glover, Stefan Kalipha and Pat Roach).

2)  The "pinch" that X uses to knock out Las Vegas's power is based on a device called the z-pinch, which creates a burst of energy (mostly x-rays) by using a magnetic field that "pinches" a column of charged gas particles. However, the movie departs from science in several ways: for example, the electromagnetic pulse (EMP) generated by a real z-pinch is barely powerful enough to knock out an electronic device across a room. In fact, under current science, the only thing capable of generating a city-wide EMP is a genuine nuclear explosion. Name X and id film franchise?

3)  A man is found floating in the Mediterranean Sea with two gunshot wounds in his back and a device with the number of a Swiss safe deposit box embedded in his hip. Upon reaching shore, the man assumes the name  Y  after finding a passport under the name in the safe deposit box, along with other international passports, large amounts of assorted currencies, and a gun. Y's conflict with the agency reaches a climax when he takes the fight to their doorstep. ID Y.

4)  In the production of a movie based on a book, considering the authors’, the Catholic church would not allow actor and director to shoot film scenes in two historic cathedrals in Italy's capital city. They were allowed to film external shots only. Name the movie and the director?

5)  Connect -The Intimidation Game, Rory's First Kiss, Magnus Rex/Fox Hills Green. The production names for a very famous TRILOGY!

6)  The U.S. Department of Defence provided authentic military uniforms for the actors of a certain movie. The uniforms worn by the base attack survivors in the movie is the Multicam uniform of the Army's Future Force Warrior system, and Agent Simmon's uniform holds a Combat Infantryman's Badge and the silver oak leaves of a Lieutenant Colonel. Name the movie.

7)  Ian Fleming named his iconic spy after a real life X who was a bird expert and other of  “Birds of the West Indies”. Fleming a keen bird watcher himself.owned the book and decided the writer’s name suited his spy perfectly.

8)  The poem that X  makes Davian read in the bathroom right before he tranquilizes him is written by Neal Whitman. The purpose of the poem is for all the sounds of the English language to be said in one piece, and these "sounds" are known as phonetics. This makes sense in regards to X taking Davian’s  place moments later with him speaking in his exact dialect. ID X and the movie?

9)  The original script called for terrorists to hijack the building, and for a super-hero cop to stop them. Director,  then modified the script to change the bad guys into robbers pretending to be terrorists so that the audience could enjoy their intention of grabbing a load of money. He felt having terrorists as the villains would make the movie less enjoyable and give it a political angle, which he wanted to avoid. He also changed the hero, X , into an everyday, flawed man that rises to the occasion in dire circumstances. He felt the audience would identify more with him than with a "super-cop". Name the movie.

10)  Four symbols referred to in the movie, the Man, the Lion, the Ox and the Eagle, are also attributed to the four Gospels of the Christian Bible: Matthew (Man, the humanity of Christ), Mark (Lion, for courage and for action), Luke (Ox, for strength and perseverance), and John (Eagle, for clarity of sight and for divinity). Name the movie.

11)  X is a 2000 horror comedy parody film directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans. It is an American dark comedy which heavily parodies the horror, slasher, and mystery genres. Several mid- and late-90s films and TV shows are spoofed, most predominantly Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, along with The Sixth Sense, The Usual Suspects, The Matrix, The Blair Witch Project, and Dawson's Creek.

12)  This very popular film franchise of 8 movies has totally got 12 oscar nominations as a whole, but ultimately has never won a single one. Id franchise.

13)  In an interview X was asked if he and Elvis Presley ever met. X said that in 1976 after "Z" was released, Y contacted him and asked him to visit Graceland and a bring a copy of the film with him. X told the interviewer that he was too afraid to meet Elvis, and he didn't go, but he did send a copy of the film. Apparently, Elvis did indeed watch the film with some friends. X,Z?

Informals '13 Part 4: Current Affairs!

- Vaishnavi manjunath 
  Varsha Srikeshava

1)  Name the Indian American origin astronaut , also an US navy officer who recently took over as the command of International Space Station ,an aritificial satellite in lower earth orbit serving as microgravity and space environment research laboratory which is also a joint project of five space agencies including NASA.

2)  Supporting and promoting this critical issue,NDTV in partnership with coca-cola India,CAF and UN Habitat launched this campaign.It raised 13.6 crores after a 12 hour telethon. Many celebrities supported this .Name the campaign.

3)  Name the primate sent into the space recently in January 2013 by Iran in the “Pishgam “ rocket to a height of 72 miles and retrieved it back alive. The main purpose of launching this primate and also other animals into space is to investigate biological effects of travel space.

4)  X is an American multinational computer technology corporation employing more than 103,300 people worldwide and listed at number 44 in the Fortune 500 list .It recently announced that it would become private in a $24.4 billion leveraged buyoutand thus remove itself from the NASDAQ and Hong Kong Stock Exchange, so that its shares are no longer being traded on a (public) stock exchange.  

5)  A leading company with primary products like mobile telephones and portable IT devices sold its head quarters to Exilion,a Finnish real estate company.It added electricity generation to its business activities in the early 20th century and recently made a strategic partnership with Microsoft in adopting its OS replacing its earlier main OS in its smartphones. Which company am I talking about?

6)  Name the youngest South Korean teenager to be the winner of European Tour Golf event by winning at the New Zealand Women Open in feb 2013. She was also the youngest winner on the LPGA(Ladies Professional Golf Association) tour when she triumphed at the Canadian Open at 15yrs of age.

7)  ‘X’ is being sued by a patent-holding company acting on behalf of a dead Dutch programmer called Joannes Jozef Everardus van Der Meer. Rembrandt Social Media are suing ‘X’ over their use of the ‘ Y’, along with various other features used on the social network. X & Y?

8)  Kaspersky Lab ,the Russian cyber security reported that leading countries like India,Russia and Germany which are hit by cyber spying targeting science research,diplomatic and governmental organizations which enables the attackers to steal data from mobile devices,slurp up configuration information from network equipment.The cyber spy shares its name with a fictitious Typhoon class submarine in Tom Clancy novel. Name it.

9)  What activity is governed by the 'Concorde agreement,' the seventh version of which is currently under negotiation?’

10)  A leading car manufacturer acclaimed the title of top automaker of the World in 2012,recording the highest sales and beating its arch rivals Volkswagen and General motors which launched a five speed automatic version of fortuner SUV. Vehciles of this company were sold under the family name of its founder in early 19th century. Which company am I talking about?

11)  X, a contemporary Indian musician was born in varanasi in 1920.He spent his youth in Europe and India with dance group of his brother but later gave up dancing in 1938.He was also a nominated member of rajyasabha and a Bharat Ratna awardee who also influenced the US band “The Beatles”. X was recently honoured with one of the most prestigious awards posthumously. Gimme X.

12)  ID the logo.

13)  A system where the political leaders we elect and place in the Parliament are directly responsible to the voters who elected them. Our party's vision is to realize a dream of swaraj that Gandhiji had envisaged for a free india — where the power of governance and rights of democracy will be in the hands of the people of India.  Is the vision of?
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Informals '13 Part 3: We mean Business!

 -Sudeep Nagabhirava, 1st year CS

   Sagar Kathrisal, 1st year BT

1)  X is an Indian brand of cosmetics, owned by Unilever. X started as a 100% subsidiary of Tata Oil Mills (Tomco), part of the Tata Group; it was named after the French opera which itself is the French form of Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, also renowned for her beauty. Indian cosmet X was started in 1952, famously because the then Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, was concerned that Indian women were spending precious foreign exchange on beauty products, and personally requested JRD Tata to manufacture them in India. ID X.

2)  How do we better know the leisure division of industrial oxygen company, a subsidiary of Gujarat Fluorochemicals Ltd ?

3)  Whose vision was  “Would have the Maruti Zen size, the Ambassador’s internal dimensions, the price of a Maruti 800 and with  the running cost of a diesel” and  about which car?

4)  Original name of this company was cadabra.inc. How do we better know this online company now?

5)  Four brothers Hirsz, Aaron, Szmul, Itzhak who have migrated from Poland to the Land of Opportunities have founded something that changed the entertainment sector. What have they formed?

6)  The 2nd busiest airport in Denmark after Copenhagen is in billund, a small town of population 6000. Air traffic is primarily freight though tourists also constitute a significant chunk .All these activities can be attributed to something that began operations from this small town in 1930s. What?

7)  X started off by working with a firm in Yemen in the 1950s and moved to Mumbai in 1958 to start his own business in spices. After making modest profits, he moved into textiles and opened his mill in Naroda industrial area of Ahmedabad where he founded Y in 1966, and today, the company, with over 85,000 employees, provides almost 5% of the Central Government's total tax revenue. As of 2012, Y was listed among top 100 firms in Fortune 500 list of world's biggest companies by revenues.ID X and Y.

8)  X is headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas. The company's business model is based on selling a wide variety of general merchandise at "always low prices." They refer to their employees as "associates". All X stores in the US and Canada also have designated "greeters" at the store entrance, a practice pioneered by founder Sam Walton. For many years, associates were identified in the store by their signature blue vest, but this was discontinued in June 2007 and replaced with more modern and professional khaki pants and polo shirts. Identify X.

9)  X was founded by a financial columnist for the Hearst papers, and his partner Walter Drey, the general manager of the Magazine of Wall Street in 1917. Published biweekly, it features original articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. X also reports on related subjects such as technology, communications, science, and law. The motto of X is "The Capitalist Tool”. Identify X.

10)  X is an Indian online shopping retailer of fashion and casual lifestyle products, and headquartered in Bangalore. It was established by Mukesh Bansal, Ashutosh Lawania, and Vineet Saxena in February 2007. X offered personalized jerseys of several cricket and football teams such as Team India, IPL teams, national football teams, and Premier League football teams. X?

11)  Which company was setup on 29 December 1945 in Mumbai and was initially set up as a manufacturer of vegetable ghee, vanaspati and refined oils in Amalner, Maharashtra? The company logo still contains a sunflower to reflect products of the original business.

12)  Connect: Wills Lifestyle, Benson and Hedges, Kitchens of India, Fiama di Wills, Candyman, Mangaldeep agarbatti, John players.

ANSWERS TO INFORMAL 2

1) Claw

2) NFS Most Wanted

3) Angry Birds , Rio, Star Wars

4) Tycoon

5) World of Warcraft

6) Pinball

7) Mario

8) Hitman

9) Assassins Creed

10) Roadrash

11) Tomb Raider

12) Pac-Man

13) GTA (Grand Theft Auto)

14) Temple Run

Informals '13 Part 2: PC Games!

Abhishek HV, 1^st Year ME

Paurav S, 1^st Year ME

   
1.     Nathaniel Joseph learns about a mystical artifact with immense power in his prison cell and embarks on a journey to obtain the artifact. He comes across his former love Katherine on the way who heads a gang of thieves, also whom he manages to defeat. Defeating Wolvington, Gabriel, Marrow, Aquatis, Omar, he finally succeeds in finding the artifact and unleashing its powers. Which popular game?

   2.     Born and raised in northern California, Josie Maran aspired to become a model at a young age. Josie appears as an aide to the protagonist in the game in which she features, but turns out to be someone entirely different at the end of the game. The game having its newer version released in 2012, name the game?

   3.     Trick or treat, Season's Greedings, Go Green-Get lucky, Ham'o'ween, Winter Wonderham, Summer Pignic, Hogs n Kisses are some of the several holiday-themed episodes of the game X. The game also has Episodes based on a 20th century fox animated film Y, and a film series Z created by George Lucas. Gimme X, Y and Z.

   4.     The word X is derived from the Japanese word (大君)(pun intended), which means "great lord," The term spread to the business community, where it has been used ever since.  X is also a part of famous group of games involving management and business skills. Airline X, Car X, Fish X, Hollywood X, Zoo X, Toilet X, Space station X are a few. Gimme X.

   5.     The first expansion set of the game, The Burning Crusade, was released on January 16, 2007. The second expansion set, Wrath of the Lich King, was released on November 13, 2008. The third expansion set, Cataclysm, was released on December 7, 2010. The fourth expansion set, Mists of Pandaria, was released on September 25, 2012.With over 10 million subscribers as of October 2012, X holds the Guinness World Record for the most popular MMORPG by subscribers. Name X.

   6.     The earliest form of X was a French game originating in the 1700’s. The first X machines with coin slots were created between 1929 and 1931. X was banned from the late 1940’s until the mid 1970’s in many states. Today, playing X on Sundays is still illegal in Ocean City, NJ. The machine layout in brief consists of a play field, plunger, flippers, bumpers, kickers, slingshots and holes. Name X?

   7.     Y is depicted as a short, pudgy, Italian plumber who resides in the Mushroom Kingdom. He repeatedly rescues Princess Peach from the turtle-like villain Bowser and stops his numerous plans to destroy him and take over the kingdom. He also has other enemies and rivals, including Donkey Kong and Wario.

   8.     He has the numbers 640509-040147 tattooed on himself, "64-05-09" is his   date of birth, "04" marks the series IV, "01" is for what class he is and "47" is the order he was cloned as well as the name he is called. 47 is rigorously trained in methods of murder and is hired by "the Agency", a European Contract killing organization. Name the game/movie.

   9.     Originally, the game was to include a crossbow for ranged attacks but Ubisoft had this removed to make the game more challenging. Although the crossbow doesn't feature anywhere in the game play anymore, the evidence of its existence is still in the trailer at the startup of the game - Altair is wearing it on his back along with a quiver of bolts. Name the game.

  10.  The game's title is based on the slang term for the severe friction burns that can occur in a motorcycling fall where skin comes into contact with the ground at high speed. The gameplays are centered on California State routes 89, 1, 74 and 49, commonly known by other names in the game. Name the Game.

  11.  One of the best in-gags in gaming history is the “___Nude Cheat." For all the X games, Core would leak a cheat that claimed to turn ____ naked. In reality, once you'd managed to pull off the complex moves, your only reward was to watch your heroine violently explode with a scream, her arms, legs and head flying off in different directions. Gimme X.

   12.  Blinky, Pinky, Inky and Clyde are the nicknames of characters Shadow, Speedy, Bashful and Pokey respectively that look more like ghosts and are the enemies in this game. The level is finished after X eats all dots in the maze. X must stay away from the ghosts for survival, but at times gains powers to eat the ghosts too. Name X.

   13.   Carl Jhonson, Tommy Vercetti, Antonio Cipriani, Claude are some of the protagonists of the game series Z.

   14.  The controllable characters include "just your average explorer" a "cunning" escape artist, a city cop "with an attitude", a Far East explorer, the "second greatest" explorer ever, a conquistador  and a  football star. The success in this game is based on the formula

                                                     S=(m)(d+5c+t)

more the c's and greater the 'd', and more the m's unlocked, more will be the final 's'    (obviously). Which famously addictive game?