Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Zounds
IZ 121
a selection of questions from 2010 and 2011
J. Ramanand
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Dhanyavaad.
Books &
Literature
Jennifer Egan's book "A Visit From the Goon Squad" won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize
for Fiction. The book is a set of stories about Bennie Salazar, a music executive
and one-time-rocker, and characters connected to him.
An interesting aspect to the book is the presence of a chapter (about a girl's diary)
set in a particular form, which has probably never been used in a mainstream
literary novel. Some critics thought of it as a gimmick, while others have lauded
the idea. Egan says she was inspired from how the 2008 Obama campaign
benefited from one such document to spur a turnaround in their fortunes.
BOOKS
Jennifer Egan's book "A Visit From the Goon Squad" won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize
for Fiction. The book is a set of stories about Bennie Salazar, a music executive
and one-time-rocker, and characters connected to him.
An interesting aspect to the book is the presence of a chapter (about a girl's diary)
set in a particular form, which has probably never been used in a mainstream
literary novel. Some critics thought of it as a gimmick, while others have lauded
the idea. Egan says she was inspired from how the 2008 Obama campaign
benefited from one such document to spur a turnaround in their fortunes.
BOOKS
Powerpoint slides.
This author made his feature film debut as an actor in the
the film "7 Khoon Maaf" directed by Vishal Bhardwaj.
Who?
BOOKS
This author made his feature film debut as an actor in the
the film "7 Khoon Maaf" directed by Vishal Bhardwaj.
Who?
BOOKS
Image: Stephenking.com
BOOKS
Stephen King's latest book is called 11/22/63 (the day
John F. Kennedy was assassinated) and is about Jake
Epping, a time-traveller who travels back in time. He
attempts to stop not just JFK's assassination but also
change an ordinary person's future.
Image: Stephenking.com
BOOKS
The House of Silk is very much up Horowitz's alley, but is remarkable for being the
official return (once again) of a character to print.
Which character?
BOOKS
The House of Silk is a new novel by Anthony Horowitz, a novelist who has
written several mystery books for children, as well as several screenplays for TV
such as Agatha Christie's Poirot, Midsomer Murders, and Foyle's War.
The House of Silk is very much up Horowitz's alley, but is remarkable for being the
official return (once again) of a character to print.
Which character?
BOOKS
Sherlock Holmes.
What book
would complete
this stack of
books?
BOOKS
Image: The Independent
BOOKS
BOOKS
Image: Wikipedia
The noted Japanese author Haruki Murakami
wrote a book called "1Q84" a couple of years ago,
which achieved critical and commercial success. An
English translation of this book was issued in 2011.
BOOKS
Image: Wikipedia
George Orwell's "Nineteen Eighty Four".
Train number 17303/4, an Express of the Indian Railways, plies between
Yeshwantpur (Bangalore) and Mysore in Karnataka. This comes under the South
Western Railway.
In 2011, this train was given a more endearing name, something fitting to that
particular section of the country. Perhaps a tiger or M.K.Gandhi will one day
board the express.
What name?
BOOKS
Train number 17303/4, an Express of the Indian Railways, plies between
Yeshwantpur (Bangalore) and Mysore in Karnataka. This comes under the South
Western Railway.
In 2011, this train was given a more endearing name, something fitting to that
particular section of the country. Perhaps a tiger or M.K.Gandhi will one day
board the express.
What name?
BOOKS
BOOKS
The previous holder of this title died in June 2011, after
a tussle with his arch-rival. The replacement, the second
ever to hold this title, is half-Hispanic and half-black.
BOOKS
That TV series (which aired from the late 80s through to 2000) was named
after the surname of the eponymous CID officer. Appropriately, this one is
called Endeavour after his first name.
BOOKS
Endeavour is the name of a new British TV series. This is a prequel to a
well-known detective TV series based on books written by Colin Dexter set
in the deceptively calm environs of Oxford.
That TV series (which aired from the late 80s through to 2000) was named
after the surname of the eponymous CID officer. Appropriately, this one is
called Endeavour after his first name.
BOOKS
Inspector Morse
This 2011 book is based on several corporate
workshops conducted by the authors on the
subject of teaching management lessons using
examples from sports. The authors are
married to each other and even went to the
same B-school (IIM-Ahmedabad).
BOOKS
Image: Sify
This 2011 book is based on several corporate
workshops conducted by the authors on the
subject of teaching management lessons using
examples from sports. The authors are
married to each other and even went to the
same B-school (IIM-Ahmedabad).
BOOKS
Image: Sify
This kicked up a lot of fuss, because the word 'nigger' was replaced by 'slave'
in the books. One more word was also to be replaced with something less
offensive, which is also the prefix of a character's name in the Tom Sawyer
book.
Which word?
BOOKS
In 2011, Alan Gribben, a Professor of English at an Alabama university,
came out with a new edition of the Mark Twain books "Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn" and "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer".
This kicked up a lot of fuss, because the word 'nigger' was replaced by 'slave'
in the books. One more word was also to be replaced with something less
offensive, which is also the prefix of a character's name in the Tom Sawyer
book.
Which word?
BOOKS
Which paper?
Which paper?
Three Idiots.
This BBC TV quiz show came to an end in 2011 after its host announced her
decision to quit the programme. It was a popular daytime show, and its presenter,
who was nicknamed "The Queen of Mean", had attained a certain degree of
notoriety. Briefly, there was an Indian version of the show as well.
The Weakest Link, hosted by Anne Robinson. The Indian version was
called "Kamzor Kadi Kaun", presented by Neena Gupta.
This music band re-issued all its 14 studio albums
in 2011, via the record label EMI. To mark this, the
band and the label recreated something which had
been first staged in 1976. (The idea then was to shoot
an image for an album cover).
The group is Pink Floyd, the album was "Animals" and the object was a
giant inflatable pig.
A follow-up to this film has always been spoken
about, but never really materialised. An animated
film based on the original (a marketing poster seen
above) was announced in September 2011; it is
touted to be a remake, rather than a sequel. It is to
be directed by Anish Patel.
"Andaz Apna Apna". The animated movie is titled "Andaz Naya Naya".
Which music group do the following clues point to?
* Started in 1980 and came to a close in 2011
* Involved Michael Stipe, Bill Berry, Mike Mills, and Peter Buck
* Involved Michael Stipe, Bill Berry, Mike Mills, and Peter Buck
The band "R.E.M." that split earlier this year. The group's name was
thought by some to be a reference to "Rapid Eye Movement", but that's
not true.
The 2011 addition to the "Spy Kids" franchise is "Spy Kids: All the Time in the
World". It's also billed as a "4D" film, indicating that in addition to being
available in theatres in 3-D, it has one more dimension of effects. To experience
this effect, viewers need to use a set of cards at appropriate times during the
film.
This effect is not new to films - variants of this have been tried as far back as
the 1960s. But this has never really taken off and has remained an unnecessary
innovation at best.
This effect is not new to films - variants of this have been tried as far back as
the 1960s. But this has never really taken off and has remained an unnecessary
innovation at best.
Lady Gaga
This category was newly introduced at the 57th edition of the National
Film Awards in 2010. This category already existed in the Filmfare Awards
(first awarded in 1998, and won by Viju Shah).
Which category and who was, fittingly, the first ever winner?
Which category and who was, fittingly, the first ever winner?
WORDS
A character in the folk tales of Sheikh Chilli, some stories have it that his
name is a reference to him accidentally scaring or killing away a band of
thieves. The name has become a local idiom in parts of North India with
negative connotations.
WORDS
WORDS
In "Kaun Banega Crorepati", it is a type of lifeline.
In the TV series "Seinfeld", it is a social and eating faux pas committed by
George Costanza in the episode "The Implant".
WORDS
The winner, however, was simply "Albert". Why? Because "Albert" refers to the Royal
Albert Hall, a famous London concert venue. This is transformed in typical Cockney
fashion (in which locals in London's East End section use rhymes and associations
with words instead of the words themselves) to indicate this sporting good.
WORDS
In connection with the 2012 London Olympics, the sporting goods maker Adidas
announced the winner of a competition to name the official sporting good for an
event. This received 10,000+ entries, including British sportsmen such as diver Tom
Daley and cricketer Steve Finn, who entered the names "The Stratford Bouncer" and
"The Record Breaker" respectively.
The winner, however, was simply "Albert". Why? Because "Albert" refers to the Royal
Albert Hall, a famous London concert venue. This is transformed in typical Cockney
fashion (in which locals in London's East End section use rhymes and associations
with words instead of the words themselves) to indicate this sporting good.
WORDS
"Ball" rhymes with "Hall". That is, "Ball" -> "Hall" -> "Albert Hall".
This is a question about two terms - you might not find either of them in a
dictionary yet. Let's call them X and Y. Both X and Y refer to groups of people who
believe in two separate American controversies.
X is the older of the two, and was coined principally in opposition to one person.
The term's associated controversy flared up once again in the end of April 2011,
but has significantly died down since.
This happened partly because of events associated with Y. Y was coined in early
May 2011 (by online media).
Both X and Y are coined from nouns, the exact opposite of each other. Which two
words are these?
WORDS
This is a question about two terms - you might not find either of them in a
dictionary yet. Let's call them X and Y. Both X and Y refer to groups of people who
believe in two separate American controversies.
X is the older of the two, and was coined principally in opposition to one person.
The term's associated controversy flared up once again in the end of April 2011,
but has significantly died down since.
This happened partly because of events associated with Y. Y was coined in early
May 2011 (by online media).
Both X and Y are coined from nouns, the exact opposite of each other. Which two
words are these?
WORDS
X: "Birthers", Y="Deathers"."Birthers" are those people who do not believe
that US President Obama was born in Hawaii, and claim he is ineligible to be
the US President because he was born outside the US. In April, a detailed
birth certificate showing his place of birth was released.
"Deathers" believe that Osama bin Laden was not shot on May 1 in Pakistan.
Among the alternatives are that he was either captured alive or killed long
before these events supposedly happened.
The Oxford English Dictionary's 2011 announcement about the latest revisions
to its dictionary caused predictable outrage. In particular, the inclusion of such
'initialisms' as OMG, LOL, and even WAG.
What?
WORDS
The Oxford English Dictionary's 2011 announcement about the latest revisions
to its dictionary caused predictable outrage. In particular, the inclusion of such
'initialisms' as OMG, LOL, and even WAG.
What?
WORDS
James Chadwick was chasing something else; when he found it, he also called it
'X' (the same name).
Since what Chadwick actually found was bigger than what Pauli had imagined,
Fermi added the Italian suffix that means "little one" to 'X', thus giving the word
'Y'.
James Chadwick was chasing something else; when he found it, he also called it
'X' (the same name).
Since what Chadwick actually found was bigger than what Pauli had imagined,
Fermi added the Italian suffix that means "little one" to 'X', thus giving the word
'Y'.
The latter term was all over the news in 2011 because scientists think
they have found evidence of such particles traveling faster than light.
According to the Princeton Wordnet dictionary, this term could mean:
a notebook containing descriptions and diagrams of the strategies that
a team has practiced (especially an American football team)
WORDS
According to the Princeton Wordnet dictionary, this term could mean:
a notebook containing descriptions and diagrams of the strategies that
a team has practiced (especially an American football team)
One of the shortlisted bids is from a European consortium selling the Eurofighter
Typhoon. The other is built by the French firm Dassault and gets its name from
the French for "gust" or "squall".
Which aircraft?
WORDS
The Indian Air Force is planning to purchase over a hundred "Medium Multi
Role Combat Aircraft" and had received bids from six aviation companies. In 2011,
the Ministry of Defence shortlisted two of the vendors.
One of the shortlisted bids is from a European consortium selling the Eurofighter
Typhoon. The other is built by the French firm Dassault and gets its name from
the French for "gust" or "squall".
Which aircraft?
WORDS
Rafale
As expected, this word was crowned "Word of the Year" for the year 2011 (as
rated by the American Dialect Society). This beat out the likes of "FOMO"
("Fear of Missing Out"), "99%", "humblebrag", and "job creator". Unlike the
choice of "Squeezed Middle" by the OED, this met the approval of critics and
laymen alike.
WORDS
As expected, this word was crowned "Word of the Year" for the year 2011 (as
rated by the American Dialect Society). This beat out the likes of "FOMO"
("Fear of Missing Out"), "99%", "humblebrag", and "job creator". Unlike the
choice of "Squeezed Middle" by the OED, this met the approval of critics and
laymen alike.
WORDS
Occupy.
5th November 2011 was declared a state holiday in Orissa by the state government
to celebrate Presidential assent to two significant (and similar) changes that affect
it. These changes met a long-standing demand; the process to meet the demand
has been in progress in 2011. With the President's formal approval, the changes
came into force.
WORDS
5th November 2011 was declared a state holiday in Orissa by the state government
to celebrate Presidential assent to two significant (and similar) changes that affect
it. These changes met a long-standing demand; the process to meet the demand
has been in progress in 2011. With the President's formal approval, the changes
came into force.
WORDS
The change in the official spelling of the state's name from Orissa to
Odisha, and the state language's name from Oriya to Odia.
PIIGS is a not-so-complimentary acronym used by some economists and
mediamen to denote a bunch of European countries that have been in
economic turmoil for the last decade. This acronym was coined a few years
ago, but has kept coming back into the news, especially in recent times
because the troubles never seem to go away.
Earlier it was just PIGS, and now it has acquired an additional "I".
WORDS
PIIGS is a not-so-complimentary acronym used by some economists and
mediamen to denote a bunch of European countries that have been in
economic turmoil for the last decade. This acronym was coined a few years
ago, but has kept coming back into the news, especially in recent times
because the troubles never seem to go away.
Earlier it was just PIGS, and now it has acquired an additional "I".
WORDS
Portugal
Italy
Ireland
Greece
Spain
Other sets
This ebook had questions from Books, Entertainment & Media, Language
& Etymology. The other three sets are: