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Cricket Live Scores

2012-03-10T21:41:00.001+05:30

Now we have the Live Cricket Scores right on our blog! :)

Formula One Live Updates

2012-03-10T21:39:00.002+05:30

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General Knowledge and Technology 037

2012-03-10T18:34:00.000+05:30

1. Identify the structure below. It was built by David Jin, an entrepreneur from Las Vegas with the help of architect Mark Ross Johnson.

Answer: Grand Canyon "Skywalk"

2. What is special about this stamp?

Answer: It is India's first ever perfumed postage stamp. It gives out sandalwood fragrance every time it is rubbed.

3. Identify the robot below and mention its purpose.

Answer: It is called "The Battlefield Extradition Assist Robot" or simply "BEAR". It is developed by Vecna Technologies for the US Army. It's main purpose is to carry out the injured soldiers away from the battlefield so that they can be given medical attention, and also to perform some other tasks considered dangerous for humans in the battlefield.

4. What is special about these shoes?

Answer: Developed by Electrolux it is called "Dustmate". The shoes vacuum as you walk around, the base of the shoe collects the dust without requiring any effort.

5. Identify the person below.

Answer: Joseph Kony (He is a Ugandan guerrilla group leader, head of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). He recently caught fame due to the 27 minute documentary titled "Kony 2012" by film maker Jason Russell.)

Information Technology 016

2012-03-06T19:46:00.000+05:30

1. Identify this Nokia Model below and mention its specialty.

Answer: Nokia 808 PureView (It has a 41 Megapixel Camera)

2. Identify the camera below and mention its specialty.

Answer: Sony Cybershot G3 (It was the first Wi-Fi Camera)

3. Identify the gadget below.

Answer: Moser Baer Zap (It is a Credit Card shaped USB Flash Drive)

4. What do you see below and by whom was it invented?

Answer: Invisible Car by Mercedes (For more information on it: http://www.pcworld.com/article/251249/mercedes_makes_invisible_car_is_tricky_to_find_in_a_parking_lot.html)

5. Identify the person below and name the company he founded and is the current Chairman of.

Answer: Ajit Balakrishnan (He is the founder, current Chairman and C.E.O of Rediff.com)

General Knowledge 036

2012-03-04T18:32:00.001+05:30

1. Identify the roller coaster below and what record does it hold?

Answer: Formula Rossa (It is the world's fastest roller coaster located at Ferrari World, Abu Dhabi, U.A.E. with a top speed of 240 km/h.)

2. This is sometimes referred to as the "flying bicycle" because it was designed and invented by a French engineer and bicycle manufacturer in the year, 1907. What are we talking about?

Answer: Helicopter (French inventor Paul Cornu designed and built a Cornu helicopter which lifted its inventor to 1 foot (0.3 m) and remained aloft for 20 seconds. It was reported to be the first truly free flight with a pilot.)

3. What is being displayed in the picture below?

Answer: This is the picture of the base of the Leaning Tower of Pisa where tonnes of lead counterweights are placed in order to stabilize the tilt of the Tower.

4. Below is the picture of the official mascot of a very famous game. The official mascot was initially known as Rich Uncle Pennybags but later was rechristened in 1998 by the game producing company to Mr. _________. Which game are we talking about?

Answer: Monopoly, the mascot was renamed to Mr. Monopoly in 1998 by the board game company, Hasbro.

5. X was originally founded as the Tata Airlines in 1932, a division of Tata Sons by J.R.D. Tata before being bought by Y in the year 1953. Identify X and Y.

Answer: X - Air India
Y - Government of India

General Knowlede 035

2012-03-01T21:30:00.001+05:30

1. What was was founded by the Portuguese as São Sebastião __ ___ __ ______ on 29th February, 1565?

Answer: Rio de Janeiro (It was founded as São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro. Rio de Janeiro means the "River of January" )

2. Identify the structure below, which was completed on 29th February, 2012 and what feat does it hold?

Answer: Tokyo Sky Tree earlier known as the "New Tokyo Tower" is the tallest tower in the world. It is is a broadcasting, restaurant, and observation tower in Sumida, Tokyo, Japan. With the height of 634 metres (2080 ft) it is the second tallest structure in the world, only behind Burj Khalifa)

3. Identify the person below.

Answer: Gioachino Rossini (A tendency for inspired, song-like melodies is evident throughout his scores, which led to the nickname "The Italian Mozart". Until his retirement in 1829, Rossini had been the most popular opera composer in history. His birth anniversary was marked by a Google Doodle (Pictured Below) dedicated to him yesterday (29th February, 2012)

4. WhichIndian state does “Utkala” in ourNational Anthem, refer to?

Answer: Orissa

5. Identify the four men below.

Answer: Warner Brothers (Harry, Jack, Sam and Albert (Clockwise))

General Knowledge - 26th January Republic Day

2012-01-27T16:50:00.000+05:30

1. This note is a type of fantasy money issued in India as a means of helping to fight systemic political corruption. The notes are paid in protest by angry citizens to government functionaries who solicit bribes in return for services which are supposed to be free. What are these notes called?

Answer: Zero Rupee Note

2. It was previously known as Anniversary Day, Foundation Day, and ANA Day. It is the official national day of the country. Which day are we talking about?

Answer: Australia Day (Celebrated every year on 26th January)

3. Identify the person below.

Answer: Pingali Venkayya (Designer of India's national flag.)

4. Identify the woman below. She is the first female in her country to hold the post she holds presently. She came to India as the Chief Guest for the Republic Day Function. Who is she?

Answer: Yingluck Shinawatra (She is the first female Prime Minister of Thailand and also the youngest at the age of 44 in over 60 years.)

5. This ceremony is conducted on January 29th ever year at Raisina Hills and an adjacent square, Vijay Chowk, with the President of India as its Chief Guest. Which ceremony are we talking about?

Answer: Beating Retreat (It officially denotes the end of Republic Day festivities)

DID YOU KNOW?

On August 29, 1947, the Drafting Committee was appointed to draft a permanent constitution, with Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar as its Chairman.

General Knowledge 034

2012-01-24T19:57:00.000+05:30

1. Identify and name. What extraordinary record does it hold?

Answer: Sunswift Ivy (It is the fastest solar car which recently recorded a speed of 88 km/hr.)

2. Below is a picture of a very famous ad campaign. Identify this mascot and the service which uses them.

Answer: United States Forest Service. The mascot is "Smokey Bear" famous for the ad campaign to educated people about the dangers of forest fires.

3. Below is the ad of which non profit institution?

Answer: National Geographic Kids(The ad suggests that the channel can be watched by parents and their kids together.)

4. Identify the girl below and what record does she hold?

Answer: Laura Dekker (She is youngest person to sail solo around the globe.)

5. What is being signified in the below doodle?

Answer: Chinese New Year or the "Spring Festival" which was celebrated yesterday (23rd January, 2012).

DID YOU KNOW?

Sir Isaac Newton was an ordained priest in the Church of England.

General Knowledge Questions 033

2012-01-23T17:52:00.000+05:30

1. "Ittefaq, Etemad, Qurbani" was a slogan coined by which famous Indian?

Answer: Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose (Today marks his 115th Birth Anniversary)

2. Name the woman below and why is she famous?

Answer: Graca Machel (She is the only woman in the world to have been first lady of two different

countries (not at the same time). She was the wife of late Mozambican president Samora Machel (11 November 1975 - 19 October 1986) and then after his death she got married to Former South African President Nelson Mandela (18 July 1998 – present) during his reign of Presidency.)

3. Inwhich sport would you use the sandiron/sand wedge in?

Answer: Golf

4. What's the funda behind this picture below?

Answer: Its the only place in the world where McDonald uses non-yellow arches. (In Arizona, yellow arches were not allowed as they would poorly contrasts the red soil, hence McDonald suggested the color turquoise and hence the picture.)

5. Named after a horse, this popular confectionery item was sold and marketed under the name "Marathon" in the UK and Ireland until 1990. What am I talking about?

Answer: Snickers

DID YOU KNOW?

The word "checkmate" in chess comes from the Persian phrase "Shah-Mat," which means the king is dead.

General Knowledge and Technology 032

2012-01-21T17:26:00.000+05:30

1. What does this traffic sign pictured below, in Dresden, East Germany signify?

Answer: It stands for "NO ENTRY"

2. Hard disks when impregnated with X can increase the amount of data that can be held by the disk by almost six times. Name the substance X.

Answer: Table Salt (NaCl).

(For more information on this: http://www.geekosystem.com/salty-terabits/)

3. Name the two people below, with each of them holding their own inventions in the picture.

Answer: (Left) Eastman Kodak, (Right) Thomas Alva Edison (George Eastman Co. founder of Kodak, and Thomas Edison are seen with their inventions in the 1920s. Edison invented the motion picture equipments and Kodak invented the roll film and the camera box, which helped to create the whole of movie industry.)

4. Name the watch and what is so special about this watch?

Answer: Titanic DNA Watch (The metal frames of the watch is actually made of the metal in the hull of the ship Titanic.)

5. It is called RashinCoatie in Scotland, Zezolla in Italy, and Yeh-hsien in China. Who are we talking about?

Answer: Cinderella

DID YOU KNOW?

The colour blue has a calming effect. It causes the brain to release calming hormones.

General Knowledge 031

2012-01-18T18:29:00.001+05:30

1. As technologyAdvisor to the Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi in the 1984s, He heralded thetelecom revolution in India. He has served as Chairman of the NationalKnowledge Commission (2005–2008). He is currently Advisor to the Prime Ministerof India on Public Information Infrastructure & Innovations. Who are wetalking about?

Answer: Satyanarayan Gangaram Pitroda popularly known asSam Pitroda.

2. It was formulated at the Eagle Drug and Chemical Company, a drugstore in Columbus, Georgia, by John Pemberton. The first sales were at Jacob's Pharmacy in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 8, 1886. It was initially sold as a patent medicine for five cents.

What are we talking about?

Answer: Coca Cola

3. This was the first logo of which company?

Answer: Renault

4. Whoholds the second highest batting average of 71.64 in 1st class cricket, behindonly Don Bradman?

Answer: VijayMerchant

5. What is being displayed in the pictures and why?

Answer: The pictures show Google and Wikipedia blacking out on January 18th in protest against the SOPA and PIPA bills which are to be tabled in the US Parliament.

DID YOU KNOW?

Lachanophobia is the fear of vegetables.

General Knowledge 030

2012-01-16T20:31:00.000+05:30

1. Which was the first thirty minute cartoon to be aired on television during the prime time?

Answer: Flintstones

2. The first Shatabdi train was started in 1988 to commemorate whose centenary birthday?

Answer: Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru

3. What is being displayed in the picture below?

Answer: The wearing of the five classes of Legion of Honor (1 - Chevalier ; 2 - Officier ;3 - Commandeur ; 4 - Grand Officier ; 5 - GrandCroix.)

4. Name the tree displayed in the below picture and also give its significance.

Answer: It is the Baobab Tree or the "Upside down tree", the national tree of Madagascar. (It is named so after an Arabic legend which claims that a devil pulled out the tree and planted it upside down. The tree is capable of storing water and have usual root like branches.)

5. What does the illumination of a special green colored light in the night, above the Big Ben's clock faces signify?

Answer: It signifies that the British Parliament is in session.

DID YOU KNOW?

It is not the clock tower which is the Big Ben but the largest bell in the clock that is called the Big Ben. It is not visible from the outside of the tower.

Lateral Thinking 004

2012-01-14T08:43:00.000+05:30

Connect the following:

Answer: PRINCE CHARLES
Left: The manufacturers of this biscuit fund for the Prince Charles Organisation.
Middle Top: Logo of 'The Prince's Trust'
Right: Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, whose birthday is shared by Prince Charles.
Middle Bottom: Flag of Wales. Prince Charles in the Prince of Wales.

General Knowledge and Technology 029

2012-01-13T18:01:00.001+05:30

1. What is being displayed in the pictorial diagram below?

Answer: Nanocar (It is the world's smallest car (one molecule in size). It takes 10 pulses of electrons to move the vehicle 6 nanometres.To keep the car moving requires a pulse of electrons every half turn. It was developed by Netherlands based researchers.)

2. Name the wristband and what is special about it?

Answer: It is the "UP Wristband" produced by Jawbone. It is the combination of a wristband and iPhone application that tracks your activity and sleep and inspires you to move more, sleep better and eat smarter.

3. It is an extremely radioactive synthetic element that on Earth can only be created in a laboratory. It is a d-block element whose name was approved by the IUPAP on November 4, 2011 making it the last element in the Periodic Table to have a permanent name (presently). It has been named after a very famous Renaissance Astronomer. Which element are we talking about?

Answer: Copernicium (It is named after the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus)

4. A very famous video game character is now an emblem of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party's Presidential candidate, Tsai ing-wen, in Taiwan. Identify the character.

Answer: Red Angry Bird

"Angry Birds" Sculpture made of piggy banks
outside her campaign office in Taichung.

5. Who is going to mostly top the list of the top-paid C.E.O. of 2011 in US with a total value of around $378 million?

Answer: Timothy D. Tim Cook (The Apple C.E.O.'s worth is more than the top 10 of the 2010 list combined.)

DID YOU KNOW?

Armored knights raised their visors (hats) to identify themselves and also a gesture of respect when they rode past their king. This custom has become the modern military salute.

General Knowledge 028

2012-01-12T19:08:00.000+05:30

"Choose the highest ideal and live your life upto that. Look at the "ocean" and not at the wave." - Swami Vivekananda
Today is his 150th Birth Anniversary, and also the National Youth Day in India.

1. Rene Descartes came up with this theory by looking at a fly walk across a tiled ceiling. He was a french mathematician and philosopher who used the name Cartesius in Latin. Which theory are we talking about?

Answer: Theory of Co-ordinate Geometry

2. Name the three wheeler below.

Answer: "HyAlfa" (Produced by Mahindra and Mahindra, it is the world's first hydrogen powered three wheeler. It was showcased at the Auto Expo 2012 which concluded yesterday (11-01-2012).)

3. What is displayed in the picture below?

Answer: It is the world's lightest material (It is an ultralight metallic microlattices. It is mainly composed of air and a very minute amount of Nickel Phosphorous.)

4. Which was the first hotel in India to have refrigeration , laundry, all-day dining restaurant and the first 24-hour coffee shop? It was also the first building in its city to be lit by electricity.

Answer: Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, Mumbai. (It was converted into a six hundred-bed hospital during the World War I)

5. Identify the person below.

Answer: Nitin Nohria (He is the 10th and the current dean of Harvard Business School. He is the first Indian origin dean and only the second dean to be born outside United States.)

DID YOU KNOW?

The little bags of netting for gas lanterns (called 'mantles') are so radioactive that they are capable of setting of an alarm at a nuclear reactor.

Information Technology 015

2012-01-10T18:09:00.000+05:30

1.What was Christopher Latham Scholes biggestcontribution to the IT World?

Answer: Heinvented the type writer and also the “QWERTY” Keyboard; He is also called “The father of typewriter”.

2.This gadget was invented by the CambridgeUniversity’s Science Department. The first of it was pointed at the Trojan Room coffee pot.Which gadget are we talking about?

Answer:Webcam (That first camera was finally switched off on August 22, 2001.)

3. Which famous company acquired DoubleClick (It develops and provides Internet ad serving services)?

Answer: Google Inc.

4. It is an infra-red imaging system used in cricket presently. The technology was in fact founded by French scientist Nicholas Bion. Which controversial technology are we talking about?

Answer: Hot Spot

5. In Greece, it is papaki, In Japan, it is attomaaku, in South Africa, it is called aapstert.

Answer: '@' sign on keyboard

DID YOU KNOW?

The day after Internet Explorer 4 was released, a few Microsoft employees left a 10 by 12-foot Internet Explorer logo on Netscape’s front lawn with a message that said “We love you” at the height of the browser wars in the late 90’s.

Information Technology 014

2012-01-09T18:05:00.000+05:30

1. Whois the author of the book ‘Long Live the Web’?

Answer: Tim Berners Lee

2. It wasdeveloped by American programmer Justin Frankel and Russian programmer DmitryBoldyrev, and its popularity grew quickly, along with the developing trend ofMP3 file-sharing. Which entertainment software are we talking about?

Answer: Winamp

3. Whichis the world’s fastest supercomputer?

Answer: KComputer producedby Fujitsu in Kobe, Japan named after the Japanese word, kei which stands for 10 quadrillion. In Novemeber 2011, it exceeded 10 petaflops.

4. Israelbanned the imports of this gadget in their country. After two months of theban, they lifted the ban and returned the confiscated gadgets. Then thePrinceton University and The Yankees Stadium in New York too banned this gadgetdue to issues with Wi Fi and network. Name this gadget.

Answer: Apple iPad

5. Thisproblem was the electronic equivalent of the El Nino and was possibility ofnasty surprises around the globe. It was also called the Millennium Bug. Whatwas the problem called?

Answer: Y2K Problem

DID YOU KNOW?

The largest on-line auction site eBay started in 1995 when founder Pierre Omidyar posted for sale a broken laser printer and someone bid $15.

Information Technology 013

2012-01-07T19:36:00.001+05:30

1. “ArkhamAsylum” is a popular version of which game series published by EidosInteractive for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC?

Answer: Batman Series

2. Who is credited to have invented the printers?

Answer: The Father of Computers himself, Charles Babbage

3. Ifwe related Apple to iPhone, in the same way which product would we relate toGoogle?

Answer: Nexus One (The Nexus One (codenamed HTC Passion)was Google's flagship Smartphone manufactured by Taiwan's HTC Corporation)

4. Whichgaming console has gaming joysticks named “Six Axis Motion Controller”?

Answer: Playstation 3 (The PlayStation 3 competes withMicrosoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation ofvideo game consoles)

5. BenQlaunched a Series of Notebook PCs (Laptops). By what name are these series ofnotebooks known as?

Answer: JoyBook (BenQ is a Taiwanese multi-nationalcompany that sells and markets consumer electronics, computing andcommunications devices under the "BenQ" brand name, which stands forthe company slogan Bringing Enjoyment and Quality to life)

DID YOU KNOW?

The phonograph - the first machine that could both record and reproduce sound - was invented by Thomas Edison in 1877.

Information Technology 012

2012-01-06T18:49:00.001+05:30

1. TheChairman and Co-founder of MindTree resignedfrom the company in March 2011 and established a new business company, Happiest Minds Technologies Private Limited.Who are we talking about?

Answer: Ashok Soota

2. This is 3D computer graphics software. Originallydeveloped by Alias Systems Corporation (formerly Alias Wavefront) and currentlyowned and developed by Autodesk, Inc. This software was also used in a fewfilms of Harry Potter Series for the special effects. It is surprisingly namedafter a Hindu word for illusion. Whichis this software?

Answer: Autodesk Mayacommonly shortened to Maya.

3. The person below is in news. Why and who is he?

Answer: He is Scott Thompson he is in news recently because he was appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer of Yahoo Inc.. He formerly was the President of PayPal.

4. Whatis being displayed by the woman in the below picture?

Answer: i2R E-Paper(A group of Taiwan Scientists have developed an environmentally-friendly formof re-writable electronic paper that works without electricity.)

5. Jackie Chan is the product spokesperson forwhich Antivirus company?

Answer: KASPERSKY

DID YOU KNOW?

Data actually is plural of datum.However, these days it is common practice to use data as a singular word.

General Knowledge 027

2012-01-05T18:29:00.002+05:30

1. Which organisation holds the Guinness World Record for the largest choir in the world?

Answer: Art of Living

2. Identify the occasion by the below picture.

Answer: It's the pink day to raise awareness for breast cancer and to support the McGrath Foundation.

3. Whats this structure below?

Answer: Ice Disneyland (It is made entirely of ice and snow has been built in China's freezing northern city of Harbin as part of the city's Ice Festival.)

4. Identify the famous personality below.

Answer: Mark Andrew Spitz (He won 7 Gold Medals at the 1972 Munich Olympic only surpassed by Micheal Phelps)

5. Identify this very famous Indian.

Answer: Homi Jehangir Bhabha (He is known as the father of India's Nuclear Program)

DID YOU KNOW?

Prince Charles and Prince William, never travel together onthe same airplane because if it crashed or was sabotaged both the apparentheirs to the kingdom might both be killed hence they travel separately so thatin case of such a tragic event only one of them would die.

General Knowledge 026

2012-01-04T17:32:00.001+05:30

1. Who was the first cricketer to be awarded the AIPS Fair Play Award?

Answer: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (For calling back Ian Bell during the England Test)

2. What does the below image signify?

Answer: It commemorates the 100th Test hosted by the Sydney Cricket Ground, which is being played between India and Australia. It is only the 3rd venue to have achieved this feat.

3. Identify the person below.

Answer: Trevor Bayliss (He was the former coach of Sri Lankan Cricket Team between the years 2007 and 2011. He also has coached the New South Wales for 3 years. He was appointed as the head coach of the IPL Team, Kolkata Knight Riders recently)

4. Name the car below.

Answer: RE60 (This was built by Bajaj Auto in partnership with Nissan and Renault. It promises to provide a mileage of 35 km/l. It is fitted with a 200 cc engine. It is the first four wheeler launched by Bajaj Auto. It has a seating capacity of 1+3 or 2+2. It has a top speed of 70 kmph. Its launch is yet a few months away. It's a rear engine 4 wheeler and hence the name. )

5. This is a series of French Comic Books written by René Goscinny and has been illustrated by Albert Uderzo. It first appeared on October 29, 1959 in the french magazine Pilote. It has been translated to English by Derek Hockridge and Anthea Bell. Which comic series are talking about?

Answer: Asterix

DID YOU KNOW?

In 1631, two London bibleprinters accidentally left the word "not" out of the seventhcommandment, which then read, "Thou shalt commit adultery." Thislegendary book is now known as the "Wicked Bible."

General Knowledge 025

2012-01-02T18:55:00.001+05:30

1. Who designed the first wills/navy cut cigarette packets?

Answer: Satyajit Ray

2. Identify the person below.

Answer: Hardeep Singh Puri (He is the current permanent representative of India in the United Nations.)

3. Who was appointed as the new cricket coach of the Pakistan cricket team?

Answer: Davenell Fredrick Whatmore (He hence resigned as the coach of the IPL team Kolkata Knight Riders.)

4. This ground is the home ground of the New South Wales Blues cricket team, and ________ Swans, of the Australian Football league. It also hosts rugby league and rugby union matches. Which ground are we talking about?

Answer: Sydney Cricket Ground (The Australian football team is Sydney Swans)

5. The SWAT team is an elite tactical unit in various national law enforcement departments. What is the full form of SWAT?

Answer: Special Weapons And Tactics

DID YOU KNOW?

Barack Obama is the 22nd cousin two times removed of U.S.Senator John McCain, who was Obama's opponent in the 2008 U.S. presidentialelection

General Knowledge 024

2012-01-01T00:01:00.000+05:30

New years come and new year go,

Pieces of time all in a row.

As we live our life, each second and minute,

We know we are privileged to have you in it.

Our appreciation never ends,

For our greatest blessings: our family and friends.

- Joanna Fuchs

FORGET THE PAST, FORGET THE TEAR,

BECAUSE GOD GAVE US ANOTHER CHANCE WITH YET ANOTHER YEAR!

1. Which isthe one and only place in the United Kingdom where the Queen/Monarch is notallowed to enter?

Answer: The House of Commons of the United Kingdom (Thisis because the Queen/Monarch is not considered to be a “commoner”)

2. Whichsport would you be witnessing if you were seated in velodrome?

Answer: Track Cycling

3. Identify the person below.

Answer: Bernard Charles 'Bernie' Ecclestone (The President and CEO of Formula One)

4. If England has its 'Barmy Army', in the same way what does India have?

Answer: 'Swami Army' (The Barmy Army is a group of English Cricket Fans who follow the English team in the overseas tours, similarly is the Swami Army for India.)

5. Whois the only woman in the world to have been first lady of two differentcountries (not at the same time)?

Answer:Graça Machel (She was the wife of lateMozambican president Samora Machel (11 November 1975 - 19 October 1986) andthen after his death she got married to Former South African President NelsonMandela (18 July 1998 – present) during his reign of Presidency.)

DID YOU KNOW?

The Mayan Long Count calendar shows time ends on December21, 2012.

An elder of the New Zealand Maori reports that the Maorishave taught for centuries that the great curtain over the world will be “torn”in 2012.

Not to forget 2012 is going to be a leap year, with 53 Sundays.

Information Technology 011

2011-12-31T11:32:00.000+05:30

1. Which company bought out the LCD TV division of Sony for 1.08 trillion won?

Answer: Samsung (Making S-LCD a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung)

2. Identify the product which is being advertised below.

Answer: Gorilla Glass

3. Identify the C.E.O. below.

Answer: N. Chandrashekharan(C.E.O. of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS))

4. Whose logo do you see below?

Answer: Alexa

5. Whose first tweet was this: "I'm 01100110 01100101 01100101 01101100 01101001 01101110 01100111 00100000 01101100 01110101 01100011 01101011 01111001 00001010" ?
Answer: Google (It's the binary form of "I'm feeling lucky")
DID YOU KNOW?
Google rents goats from a company called California Grazing to help cut down the amount of weeds and brush at Google HQ.

Deaths of 2011

2011-12-29T15:45:00.002+05:30

"No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away."
- Steve Jobs

“Death must be so beautiful. To lie in the soft brown earth, with the grasses waving above one's head, and listen to silence. To have no yesterday, and no to-morrow. To forget time, to forgive life, to be at peace.”

- Oscar Wilde

"Because I could not stop for Death,
He kindly stopped for me.
The Carriage held but just ourselves
And Immortality"

- Emily Dickinson

"Our death is not an end if we can live on in our children and the younger generation. For they are us, our bodies are only wilted leaves on the tree of life."
- Albert Einstein

"Death smiles at us all, all a man can do is smile back"
- Movie Gladiator

May their souls Rest in Peace.

MUSIC

Bhupen Hazarika

Jagjit Singh

Amy Winehouse

WRITER

Christopher Hitchens

TECHNOLOGY

Dennis Ritchie

Steve Jobs

MOVIES

Dev Anand

Elizabeth Taylor

Shammi Kapoor

ARTISTS

Mario Miranda

M F Hussain

SPORTS

Dan Wheldon

Marco Simoncelli

Joe Fraizer

Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi

POLITICS

Valcav Havel

Kim Jong -li

General Knowledge 022

2011-12-29T12:18:00.001+05:30

1. Identify the country by the flag below. This flag was adopted in August 2011.

Answer: Libya (It replaced the previous green flag after the fall of Gadaffi Government)

2. The name of this temple is derived from a Sanskrit word which translated to English means Corner Sun. It was built by King Narsimhadeva I in the 13th century. Which temple are we talking about?

Answer: Konark Sun Temple (also known as Black Pagoda)

3. This bridge is nicknamed "The Coathanger" because of its arch based design. It's the world's widest long-span bridge. Which bridge are we talking about?

Answer: Sydney Harbour Bridge

4. It was originally known as the High Court of Assam and Nagaland. It has the largest jurisdiction in terms of states in India. Which High Cort are we talking about?

Answer: Gauhati High Court (It covers the states of Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram, Tripura, Manipur, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh)

5. It is India'a first six-lane concrete, high speed, access controlled expressway? It spans a distance of 93 km connecting two major cities of India. Which expressway are we talking about?

Answer: Mumbai-Pune Expressway (Officially known as the Yashwantrao Chavan Expressway)

DID YOU KNOW?

During the making of the movie "Fight Club," actor Brad Pitt chipped his tooth. However, he did not get his tooth capped until after the movie was done filming as he thought it would look better chipped for his character.

General Knowledge 021

2011-12-28T19:32:00.000+05:30

1. Who was adjudged as the Time Person of the Year for the year 2011?

Answer: The Protester

2. The 2011 World Cup for this sport was held on the Randall Island in New York City with about 100 teams taking part in it. Vratsa Vultures is one of the famous teams having won the Championship 7 times. Which sport are we talking about?

Answer: Quidditch

3. Identify the animal below.

Answer: Llama (A south american camelid)

4. Who said the following lines, "India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grand mother of tradition. Our most valuable and most astrictive materials in the history of man are treasured up in India only!" ?

Answer: Mark Twain

5. Who was the first woman Governor of a state in India?

Answer: Sarojini Naidu (She was the Governor of then United Provinces/ Uttar Pradesh from 1947 - 1949)

DID YOU KNOW?

Today Indian National Congress celebrates their 126th anniversary today (28-12-11). It was founded in 1885 on this day by A. O. Hume, Dadabhai Naroji and other Indians.

General Knowledge 020

2011-12-27T12:32:00.000+05:30

1. Identify the famous Building below.

Answer: The Washington Monument (Its the tallest obelisk in the world named after the founder of America, George Washington)

2. Identify the famous leader below.

Answer: Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (He was the last head of the state of USSR)

3. Identify the extinct bird whose recreation is displayed below.

Answer: Dodo

4. Identify this famous Indian Musician below.

Answer: Rahul Dev Burman

5. Identify the country from the flag below.

Answer: Vatican City

DID YOU KNOW?

The Indian National Anthem- " Jana Gana Mana" celebrates its 100th Anniversary today since it was first sang at the Calcutta Session of INC in the year 1911 on the same day.

General Knowledge 019

2011-12-26T16:43:00.000+05:30

1. He was a French author who laid the foundations for the genre of fairy tales. His most famous works include Le Petit Chaperon rouge, Cendrillon and Le Chat Botté. Who are we talking about?

Answer: Charles Perrault (Le Petit Chaperon rouge- Little Red Riding Hood, Cendrillon- Cinderella and Le Chat Botté - Puss in Boots)

2. Identify the famous cricketer below.

Answer: Allan Robert Border (The famous Australian Cricketer. Today marks the beginning of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy between India and Australia at Melbourne Cricket Ground)

3. This day is known as Day of Goodwill in Ireland, St. Stephen's Day or Day of Wren in Ireland. How do we know this day more commonly?

Answer: Boxing Day

4. Who is going to be awarded the Grammy Trustees Award along with Dave Bartholomew, Rudy Van Gelder in the year 2012?

Answer: Steve Paul Jobs (For revolutionizing the way music is consumed throughout the world)

5. Who is the only Indian to have received the highest civilian award from both the countries India and Pakistan?

Answer: Morarji Desai (In his tenure as the PM of India he promoted peace between the two countries, he was also the first PM who was not from the Congress Party.)

DID YOU KNOW?

The concept of Boxing Day, which is on December 26th, was to give boxes of food and clothing to the poor. It is now viewed in some countries as a time to get merchandise from stores at reduced prices.

General Knowledge 018 Christmas Special

2011-12-25T16:36:00.000+05:30

Break the bread and pour the wine,

To remember the Divine.

Its time for the world to make merry,

With puddings and cakes topped with cherry.

Happy Birthday Dear Jesus,

Or should I rather say Merry Christmas!

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYBODY!

1. Identify the famous personality below.

Answer: Atal Bihari Vajpayee (Former Prime Minister of India. He celebrates his 88th Birthday today (25-12-11)

2. "Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica" is the famous work by which famous scientist which was first published on 5th July, 1687?

Answer: Sir Isaac Newton (Today is also his 369th Birth Anniversary, in accordance with the new calendar used by us.)

3. Canada Post has assigned the postal code H0H 0H0 to which geographical location on earth.

Answer: The North Pole (The postal code signifies Santa's traditional exclamation of "Ho Ho Ho!")

4. Identify the person below.

Answer: Sinterklaas (More formally known as Saint Nicolas. His feast on December 6 came to be celebrated in many countries with the giving of gifts. However, in the Netherlands the Dutch celebrate on the evening of December 5, with a celebration called "pakjesavond")

5. This was written by James Lord Pierpont published in 1857, for a different occasion than for what it is used today. What are we talking about?

Answer: Jingle Bells (It was written and sung for the Thanksgiving but today it is most commonly thought as of a Christmas Song.)

DID YOU KNOW?

Christmas Pudding originates from an old, Celtic dish known as 'frumenty'.

General Knowledge 017

2011-12-23T20:21:00.003+05:30

1. Identify the woman below.

Answer: Carla Bruni-Sarkozy (She is the current First lady of France. She celebrates her birthday today (23-12-11))

2. Which was the first city in the World to get its computerized traffic signal system?

Answer: Toronto

3. Which was the sister ship of Titanic, which provided twenty-five years of service?

Answer: Olympic

4. This word is derived from the Greek word "adamas," which means "unconquerable." Which famous word are we talking about?

Answer: Diamond

5. What is the dot on the 'i' called?

Answer:Tittle

DID YOU KNOW?

A newly hatched fish is called a "fry".

General Knowledge 016

2011-12-22T19:33:00.000+05:30

1. In which sport do you use a 'sand wedge'?

Answer: Golf

2. If your friend offers you an 'akoori', which is scrambled eggs with toast, which community would he belong to?

Answer: Parsi Community

3. This English word was derived from the Hindi word, which means a place where the balls are kept in Hindi. Which English word are we talking about?

Answer: Gymkhana (In India, the term gymkhana is commonly used to refer to a gymnasium)

4. Who has been the President of the Western Australian Cricket Association since 2004?

Answer: Denis Lillee

5. Who is the author of the famous novel, 'A Journey to the Center of the Earth'?

Answer: Jules Verne (He is also the author of the famous novel, 'Around the world in 80 Days')

DID YOU KNOW?

Apples actually are part of the, Malus domestica specie in the rose family (Rosaceae).

General Knowledge 015

2011-12-21T17:13:00.001+05:30

1. Where was the Israel-Egypt peace treaty signed?

Answer: Washington

2. In which state was India’s first mobile court inaugurated?

Answer: Haryana

3. Which famous Indian poet wrote MCBETH in 1957?

Answer: HarivanshRai Bachchan

4. ‘Sishu’ is the literary work of which famous Indian author?

Answer: RabindranathTagore

5. Which Indian book could possibly be banned in Russia against which the ISKCON followers protested in Central Delhi?

Answer: The Bhagvad Gita

DID YOU KNOW?

Toronto was the first city in the world with a computerized traffic signal system.

General Knowledge 014

2011-12-19T19:13:00.000+05:30

1. Identify the person below.

Answer: Vaclav Havel ( He was a Czech playwright, essayist, poet, dissident and politician, last president of Czechoslovakia and the first President of the Czech Republic (1993–2003). He passed away yesterday (18-12-2011) at the age of 75)

2. Identify the person below.

Answer: Kim Jong-il (He was the dictator of North Korea, ruling it since 1948. His son Kim Jong-un is the heir. He passed away on 17-12-2011.)

3. In Hindu and Buddhist religious art, which general shape is represented by 'mandala'?

Answer: Circle

4. Which Indian city is known as the Manchester of South India?

Answer: Coimbatore

5. Which political leader won the Nobel Prize for literature, in 1953?

Answer: Winston Churchill

DID YOU KNOW?

English sailors were referred to as "limeys" because the sailors added lime juice to their diet to combat scurvy.

Information Technology 010

2011-12-16T16:00:00.000+05:30

1. Simon, the world’s first smartphone was made in collaboration between Bell South and which IT giant?

Answer: IBM (International Business Machines)

2. Which Hindi Daily has partnered with Yahoo India, to promote the content in Hindi for Yahoo India?

Answer: Dainik Jagran

3. What was originally to be named '80586' but couldn't be trademarked that way.What was it later named?

Answer: Pentium

4. Which company was originally called Amazin' Software?

Answer: Electronic Arts (EA)

5. YouTube, launched a new channel which will be showing a new Bollywood blockbuster every month. It was first released for Bollywood movies and soon its going to be available for Tamil movies. Which service are we talking about?

Answer: Box office

DID YOU KNOW?

The world ‘e-mail’ was been banned by the French Ministry of culture. They were required to use the word ‘Courriel’ instead, which is the French equivalent of E-mail. This move became the subject of ridicule from the cyber community in general.

Information Technology 009

2011-12-15T18:21:00.001+05:30

1. By what name is Apple Inc. known on the NASDAQ and NYSE market?

Answer: APPL

2. Which is the first restaurant chain to open Online Booking?

Answer: Pizza Hut

3. Expand JAR.

Answer: Jave ARchive

4. GO is a handheld gaming console from which company?

Answer: Sony

5. Sun Microsystems has been acquired by which famous company?

Answer: ORACLE

DID YOU KNOW?

The blue colored links on a web page is just a browser default because way back on the days when monitors only had 16 colours, blue was the darkest colour that did not affect text legibility.

Information Technology 008

2011-12-14T16:17:00.000+05:30

1. It was known as DIX when created by Dell, Intel and Xerox and was a very important part of the technology world. What are we talking about?

Answer: Ethernet

2. Which was the Open Source Operating System developed by Apple in 2000?
Answer: Darwin OS

3. It was first suggested by Ben Hammersley, it is a series of digital media file that are released in episodes. What are we talking about?

Answer: Pod casting

4. Who invented the Oak Programming Language while working for Sun Microsystems and then later on joined Google?
Answer: James Gosling (Java was initially named Oak.)

5. Which was the first registered domain?
Answer: Symbolics.com

DID YOU KNOW?

Google’s famously sparse homepage is considered a classic design in the online world. The Google logo, however, wasn’t actually centered on the page until March 31, 2001. As early users will remember, the homepage had a bias to the left-hand side, and even earlier — back in 1998 — Google sported a Yahoo-style exclamation mark.

Information Technology 007

2011-12-13T17:46:00.000+05:30

1. What is the unit of measurement for the speed and movementdirection of a computer mouse?

Answer: Mickey

2. Whose 84th birthday (12th December, 2011) does the below Google doodle signify?

Answer: RobertNoyce (He was nicknamed "the Mayor of Silicon Valley"; He co-founded Fairchild Semiconductor in 1957 and Intel in 1968.)

3. Identify the C.E.O. below.

Answer: Margaret Cushing "Meg" Whitman, current C.E.O. of Hewlett-Packard

4. The immediate predecessors of this file format were “Optimum Coding in the Frequency Domain” (OCF), and Perceptual Transform Coding (PXFM). This format was made at the Fraunhofer Society. Which file format are we talking about?

Answer: MP3 (MPEG-2 Audio Layer III)

5. "Quietly Brilliant" is the tag line of which famous mobile manufacturing company?

Answer: HTC formerly High Tech Computer Corporation.

DID YOU KNOW?

The order of the name of Hewlett-Packard was decided by a coin toss, Packard won the toss but choose Hewlett-Packard.

General Knowledge 013

2011-12-12T20:01:00.001+05:30

1. Identify the person below.

Answer: Mario Miranda (He was an Indian cartoonist based in Loutolim in the Indian state of Goa. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2002, and Padma Shri in 1988.He passed away in Goa on 11th December ,2011)

2. Who was the first occupant of the Rashtrapati Bhavan?

Answer: Edward Frederick Lindley Wood, 1st Earl of Halifax popularly known as Lord Irwin.

3. The "Navketan Films" production house was co-founded by whom?

Answer: Chetan Anand and Dev Anand

4. Which award was instituted by the Government of India in 1969 for Lifetime contribution to the film industry?

Answer: Dadasaheb Phalke Award

5. Which company constructed and owned the Titanic?

Answer: White Star Line

DID YOU KNOW?

Today is the 100th Anniversary of Delhi becoming the Country's capital. Delhi was proclaimed as the capital of British Raj on December 12,1911, shifting from Kolkata, by then Emperor of India George V.

Meta Generator

2011-12-12T18:04:00.000+05:30

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General Knowledge 012

2011-12-11T12:19:00.001+05:30

1. These were used extensively as protection from shelling during World War I in the Western Front. They were an important part of the trench warfare as they were used as an area to rest and carry out other activities such as eating. Suddenly this term has become famous due to T20 Cricket. What are we talking about?

Answer: Dugouts

2. Bob Burns, an American radio and film comedian during the 1930s coined this word for his invention of a musical instrument. During the World War II, the G.I's borrowed this name for one of their military devices which is used even today. What are we talking about?

Answer: Bazooka

3. Which country released the first 3-D postage stamp?

Answer: Bhutan

4. Which product does the picture below advertise?

Answer: Jeep (Signifying its capability to take on both kind of extreme conditions.)

5. Identify the child below, who today is one of the most famous billionaires.

Answer: Mark Zuckerberg

DID YOU KNOW?

Prior to a major homepage redesign back in 2007, Facebook’s front page used to feature a man’s face partly obscured behind a cloud of binary code as seen below.

According to a recent revelation, the image is a manipulated photo of Al Pacino created by a friend of Mark Zuckerberg.

I DIDN'T KNOW THAT!

2011-12-10T23:36:00.001+05:30

We all know, that Baskin Robbins is a global chain of ice cream parlours. It was founded by Burt Baskin and Irvine Robbins. The interesting thing to note, is that the order of naming the company, i.e, Baskin first, or Robins first was decided by a COIN TOSS! Baskin Robbins came out with the concept of '31 flavours' , so that a person could taste a new flavour each day of a month, till he found a favourite. Have you noticed that the pink part of the Baskin Robbins logo reads '31' ?

General Knowledge 011

2011-12-10T20:35:00.001+05:30

1. Identify the person below.

Answer: Sarosh Homi Kapadia, the current Chief Justice of India.

2. He was once an Ambulance driver for the Red Cross and then he went to become one of the most influential figures of the 20th Century in the field of entertainment. He was also offered a role in movies but he declined the offer. Who are we talking about?
Answer: Walter Elias "Walt" Disney well known as the co-founder of Walt Disney Productions.

Walt Disney

3. This was formed by the merger of Burt's Ice Cream Shop and Snowbird Ice Cream whose current name order was decided by a toss of coin. Which global chain are we talking about?

Answer: Baskin-Robbins

4. Identify the two people below. Their theatrical work has won them 7 Oscars and 8 Emmy's.

Answer: William Hanna and Joseph Barbera known for their great work in the animation industry.

5. It was designed by Frédéric Bartholdi and dedicated on October 28, 1886. It was a gift to the United States from the people of France. What are we talking about?

Answer: The Statue of Liberty

DID YOU KNOW?

In 1865, the U.S. Secret Service was first established for the specific purpose to combat the counterfeiting of money.

General Knowledge 010

2011-12-09T22:27:00.001+05:30

Question 1:
Identify this Logo:

Answer: We see this logo almost everyday, but it mostly goes unnoticed. This is the logo of the Reserve Bank of India, which can be found on every Indian currency note .

Question 2:

Identify this road, on which Winston Churchill may have once traveled.

Answer: M.G Road, Bangalore .

Winston Churchill lived in Bangalore, and was a member at the Bangalore club. A ledger on display in the main building at the Bangalore Club is open to a page that has a list of 'irrecoverable debts'. One of this is the sum of Rs.13, owed by Mr. Winston Churchill.

Lateral Thinking 003

2011-12-09T22:07:00.001+05:30

Connect the following :

Question 1 :

Answer: TIMES OF INDIA GROUP
Solution:
Top Left: Arnab Goswami, Editor in chief, Times Now ( Which is a part of Times group).
Top Right: A mirror. Mirror is a daily published by the Times group.
Bottom Left: Lead India Campaign, by Times of India.

Bottom Right: Bennett Coleman and co. , the flagship company of the Times group.

Question 2:

Answer: TAJ MAHAL

Solution:

Top Left: Saif Ali Khan and ustad Zakir Hussain, brand ambassadors of Taj Mahal Tea.

Top Right: Shah Jahan, the emperor who built the Taj Mahal, sitting in the Peacock Throne.

Bottom Left: A poster of the Taj Mahal movie.

Bottom Right: The Taj hotel, Mumbai

Question 3:

Answer: ANIL KUMBLE

Solution:

Top Left: The character Jumbo. Anil Kumble's pet name is Jumbo.

Top Right: Jim Laker, who is the only person other than Anil Kumble to get 10 wickets in an innings.

Bottom Left: Anil Kumble is the president of Karnataka State Cricket Association

Bottom Right: Anil Kumble is the brand ambassador of ING Vysya.

Say Wah! What a Knock !

2011-12-09T20:30:00.001+05:30

Yet another double century, by yet another Indian! Congratulations to Virender Sehwag for his superb knock of 219 !!!
His Love for 19s:
Highest Test Score: 319
Highest ODI Score: 219
Highest T20 Score: 119

India also made its highest team score of 418 surpassing the 414 made against Bermuda in the 2007 World Cup.

General Knowledge 009

2011-12-08T17:36:00.001+05:30

1. Identify the person below.

Answer: Hamid Karzai current president of Afghanistan.

2. Which city in India is known as the "Yellow City"?
Answer: Erode, Tamil Nadu (Because it is the world's largest producer of turmeric)

3. Xwas supposedly devised by snack vendor Ashok Vaidyaoutside Dadarstation in 1971. This dish was initially started as the most cheapest form of ameal for low income group, but due to its brilliant taste, X has became popularin many sophisticated hotels as well. What is X?
Answer: Vada Pav

4. Identify the comic strip character below.

Answer: Phantom

5. Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of which country?

Answer: Uruguay

DID YOU KNOW?

The expression cooked "al dente" means "to the tooth." What this means is that the pasta should be somewhat firm, and offer some resistance to the tooth, but should also be tender

Kepler-22b

2011-12-07T21:50:00.001+05:30

Kepler-22b is the first confirmed extra solar planet whichcould be a Super-Earth orbiting in the habitable zone of a Sun-like stardiscovered by NASA's Kepler Space Telescope.

Discovery

The discovery was announced December 5, 2011. The planet wasoriginally discovered on Kepler's third day of science operations in mid-2009.The third transit was detected in late 2010. Additional confirmation data wasprovided by the Spitzer Space Telescope and ground-based observations. Theplanet's radius is roughly 2.4 times the radius of Earth; it is 600 light yearsaway from Earth, in orbit around the G-type star Kepler 22.

Composition and structure

To date, its mass and surface composition remain unknown. Ifit has an Earth-like density (5.515 g/cm3) then it would contain 13.8 Earthmasses, while its surface gravity would be 2.4 times Earth's. If it haswater-like density (1 g/cm3) then it would mass 2.5 Earths and have a surfacegravity of 0.43 times Earth's. The planet may fall into the category of planetsknown as super-Earths, depending on what the actual mass is.

Possibility of life

The distance from Kepler-22b to its host star is about 15%less than the distance from Earth to the Sun, but the luminosity (light output)of Kepler-22b's star is about 25% less than that of the Sun. This combinationof a shorter distance from the star and a lower stellar luminosity areconsistent with a moderate surface temperature. Scientists estimate that in theabsence of an atmosphere, the equilibrium temperature would be approximately-11°C. If the atmosphere provides a greenhouse effect similar in magnitude tothe one on Earth, the planet would have an average surface temperature of 22 °C(72°F).

At 2.4 times the size of the Earth, Kepler 22b issubstantially larger than Earth and may therefore have a different composition.For example, the newly discovered planet may not be Earth-like, but rather morelike Neptune, which is mostly ocean with a small rocky core. Nonetheless,Natalie Batalha, one of the scientists on the project, speculated "it'snot beyond the realm of possibility that life could exist in such anocean."

Source: http://www.wikipedia.org/

General Knowledge 008

2011-12-07T19:14:00.001+05:30

1. The teddy bears get their name from?
Answer: Former United States President Theodore Roosevelt whose nickname was "Teddy".

Theodore Roosevelt

2. What was offered by King George II of Britain to Robert Walpole, the first Prime Minister as a gift?
Answer: No. 10, Downing Street (The Official residence of the PM of UK)

10, Downing Street

3. The flag below is of which country?

Answer: Cambodia

4. There is no single traffic light in which Asian country?
Answer: Bhutan

5. Which game did Alfred Butts invent in 1949?
Answer: Scrabble.

DID YOU KNOW?

Colgate faced a big obstacle marketing toothpaste in Spanish speaking countries because Colgate translates into the command "go hang yourself."

General Knowledge 007

2011-12-06T14:58:00.001+05:30

1. How do we know Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu better as ?

Answer: Mother Teresa, the founder of Missionaries of Charity, in Calcutta.

Mother Teresa

2. India is known to have one of the largest railway network. What is so special of the 'Jeevan Rekha Express' ?

Answer: The Jeevan Rekha Express (Meaning lifeline), is a mobile hospital. This hospital on wheels goes to various villages, where there is poor healthcare facilities, to help the people in need.

Jeevan Rekha Express

3. It is called 'Buvos Kocka' in Hungary. Sometimes it was referred to as Hungarian Horror. The world knows it by the name _______ ?

Answer: Rubik's Cube (Buvos Kocka literally means Magic Cube.)

Rubik's Cube

4. This famous person was born on 14th of November, 1948 . He finished his education at Cambridge university, where he was awarded a Master of Arts degree. Identify this person.

Answer: The Prince of Wales, Prince Charles. (If you thought Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, think again. The year is 1948, one year after India received independence.)

5. Identify the company/ country/organization that makes these necklaces (picture below).

Answer: The Red Cross Organization. It makes these necklaces, and sells them to make money for charity.

6. We all know who the President of India is, but how many of us actually know who the Vice President is?

Answer: Mohammad Hamid Ansari (He was elected the 12th Vice President of India on 10 August 2007 and took office on 11 August 2007. As the Vice President of India he is the ex-officio Chairman of the Upper House, i.e. Rajya Sabha)

Mr. Hamid Ansari

DID YOU KNOW?

A chicken with red earlobes will produce brown eggs, and a chicken with white earlobes will produce white eggs.

Lateral Thinking 002

2011-12-04T18:02:00.001+05:30

Connect the following:
Question 1 :

Answer : 'COMMONWEALTH'
Solution:
Top: Logo of Glasgow Commonwealth games, 2014.
Right: Logo of the Commonwealth bank.
Left: Flag of commonwealth of nations.

Question 2 :

Answer: 'ADIDAS'
Top Left : Sachin Tendulkar, who uses Adidas bat .
Top Centre: Logo of FIFA world cup, 2010 , where the Adidas Jabulani ball was used.
Top Right: Kevin Pietersen, who also uses an Adidas bat.
Bottom Right: Reebok, a subsidary of Adidas.
Bottom Centre: Flag of Germany. Adidas is a German company.
Bottom Left: Ashworth, a subsidary of Adidas.

Information Technology 006

2011-12-03T18:36:00.001+05:30

1. The two people below are the founders of ________?

Answer: Flipkart(It is an Indian online shopping company headquartered in Bangalore, India, whichwas established in 2007. It is among India’s largest online retail businesses. In picture: Sachin Bansal (R) and Binny Bansal)

2. In 1971, Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney founded a firm,Syzygy Engineering. How do we better know this company now?

Answer: Atari

3. “Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computersand Humans Apart” is better known to us as what?

Answer: CAPTCHA (It is a type of challenge-response test used in computing as an attempt to ensure that the response is generated by a person and not by a computer)

A Facebook CAPTCHA

4. Identify the person below.

Answer: Ronald GeraldWayne (He founded Apple Computer (now Apple Inc.) with Steve Wozniak and thelate CEO Steve Jobs but soon gave up his share of the new company for a totalof $2,300.)

5. Whose birthday does this Google Doodle signify?

Answer: GregorJohann Mendel signifying his 189^th Birthday on 20^th July.(He is often referred to as the, “Father of Modern Genetics”)

DID YOU KNOW?

If you opened up the case of the original Macintosh, you will find 47 signatures. One for each member of Apple's Macintosh divison as of 1982.

Information Technology 005

2011-12-03T14:01:00.001+05:30

1. What is the present name of the Alexander Bell TelephoneCompany?

Answer: AT &T

At the 1997 Macworld Expo, Steve Jobs announced that Applewould join _________ to release new versions for the Macintosh. For this theaudience booed for 42 seconds. Identify this company?

Answer: Microsoft

Go is a programming language from which company?

Answer: Google

Logo of "Go"

If Street view: Google, then Street side: ________

Answer: Bing

It is a bit rate measure of available or consumed datacommunication resources expressed in bits/second or multiples of it(kilobits/s, megabits/s etc.). What is this term?

Answer: Bandwidth

DID YOU KNOW?

The NASDAQ stock exchange in the USA - a world centre of capitalism - was totally disabled in December 1987 when a squirrel burrowed through a telephone line.

Information Technology 004

2011-12-02T21:41:00.001+05:30

1. What in the world of computers is called “The Three FingerSalute”?

Answer: Control+Alt+Delete(It forces a soft reboot, brings up the task manager (on Windows and BeOS) or ajump to ROM monitor. It was developed by David Bradley at IBM.)

2. Identify the logo below.

Answer: Google Wallet (It is a mobile payment system developed by Google that allows its users to store credit cards, loyalty cards, and gift cards among other things, as well as redeeming sales promotions on their mobile phone.)

3. Where in Bangalore would you find the six buildings, named Discoverer, Innovator , Inventor, Explorer, Navigator, Creator, and Pioneer?

Answer: International Tech Park Bangalore or simply ITPB (earlier known as ITPL) (It is developed and managed by Ascendas, is India’s first hi-tech park of its kind designed to provide a complete "work and play" environment for IT and technology-related businesses opened in 1998.)

4. Identify the logo below.

Answer: The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN, it is responsible for the coordination of the global Internet's systems of unique identifiers and, in particular, ensuring its stable and secure operation.)

5. India's fastest supercomputer, SAGA 220 (Supercomputer for Aerospace with GPU Architecture-220 TeraFLOPS) was developed by which organisation?

Answer: ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation)

DID YOU KNOW?

The separation of the name of the user from the name of the machine on which the user is working by the @ sign in all e-mail addresses was the idea of Ray Tomlinson sometime in 1972.

IT Acronyms

2011-12-01T17:49:00.001+05:30

HTTP-Hypertext Transfer Protocol
EDGE-Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution
GSM- GlobalSystem for Mobile Communications, originally Groupe Spécial Mobile
AMOLED-Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode
ICANN-Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
ccTLD-country-code Top Level Domain
MPEG-Moving Pictures Expert Group
GPRS- GeneralPacket Radio Service
CDMA-Code Division Multiple Access
PIXEL-Picture Element
JPEG-Joint Photographic Experts Group
Wi Max- Wireless Interoperability for Microwave Access
URL-Uniform Resource Locator
RSS– RDF Site Summary
CPC-Cost Per Click
DNS -Domain Name System
HDMI High-DefinitionMultimedia Interface
P2P -Peer To Peer
PDF -Portable Document Format
PPI -Pixels Per Inch
Wi Fi –Wireless Fidelity
Y2K -Year 2000
RTF -Rich Text Format
RTE -Runtime Environment
SD -Secure Digital
FLOPS - Floating Point Operations per Second

DID YOU KNOW?

'.ch' is not the domain of China, but Switzerland because in Latin Switzerland is : Confœderatio Helvetica, hence the domain. China has the domain name '.cn'.

Information Technology 003

2011-11-30T19:34:00.001+05:30

1. If we related Apple to iPhone, in the same way which productwould we relate to Google?

Answer: Nexus One(The Nexus One (codenamed HTC Passion) was Google's flagship Smartphonemanufactured by Taiwan's HTC Corporation)

2. “Arkham Asylum” is a popular version of which game seriespublished by Eidos Interactive for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC?

Answer: BatmanSeries

3. Identify the company from the logo below.

Answer: Radio Shack(It is an American franchise of electronics retail stores in the United States)

4. Identify the person below.

Answer: StephenElop (President and C.E.O. of Nokia)

5. Identify the following character, _~,situated above the “TAB” button on the keyboard.

Answer: Tilde (Itis a grapheme with several uses. The name of the character comes fromPortuguese and Spanish, from the Latin titulus meaning "title" or"superscription".)

DID YOU KNOW?

The QWERTY keyboard - used by virtually all typewriters, word processors and computers- was invented as a means of slowing down the speed of typing so that the rollers on early typewriters would not jam.

Jan Lokpal

2011-11-30T16:41:00.001+05:30

ABOUT JAN LOKPAL BILL

Too busy to Read?

Watch this video (In Hindi) : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8zUo9np1b8&feature=player_embedded)

Salient features of Jan Lokpal Bill

An institution called LOKPAL at the centre and LOKAYUKTA ineach state will be set up
Like Supreme Court and Election Commission, they will becompletely independent of the governments. No minister or bureaucrat will beable to influence their investigations.
Cases against corrupt people will not linger on for yearsanymore: Investigations in any case will have to be completed in one year.Trial should be completed in next one year so that the corrupt politician,officer or judge is sent to jail within two years.
The loss that a corrupt person caused to the government willbe recovered at the time of conviction.
How will it help a common citizen: If any work of anycitizen is not done in prescribed time in any government office, Lokpal willimpose financial penalty on guilty officers, which will be given ascompensation to the complainant.
So, you could approach Lokpal if your ration card orpassport or voter card is not being made or if police is not registering yourcase or any other work is not being done in prescribed time. Lokpal will haveto get it done in a month’s time. You could also report any case of corruptionto Lokpal like ration being siphoned off, poor quality roads been constructedor panchayat funds being siphoned off. Lokpal will have to complete itsinvestigations in a year, trial will be over in next one year and the guiltywill go to jail within two years.
But won’t the government appoint corrupt and weak people asLokpal members? That won’t be possible because its members will be selected byjudges, citizens and constitutional authorities and not by politicians, througha completely transparent and participatory process.
What if some officer in Lokpal becomes corrupt? The entirefunctioning of Lokpal/ Lokayukta will be completely transparent. Any complaintagainst any officer of Lokpal shall be investigated and the officer dismissedwithin two months.
What will happen to existing anti-corruption agencies? CVC,departmental vigilance and anti-corruption branch of CBI will be merged intoLokpal. Lokpal will have complete powers and machinery to independentlyinvestigate and prosecute any officer, judge or politician.
It will be the duty of the Lokpal to provide protection tothose who are being victimized for raising their voice against corruption.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE EXISTING SYSTEM AND WHAT WE WOULD WANT

Existing System	System Proposed by civil society
No politician or senior officer ever goes to jail despite huge evidence because Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) and CBI directly come under the government. Before starting investigation or initiating prosecution in any case, they have to take permission from the same bosses, against whom the case has to be investigated.	Lokpal at centre and Lokayukta at state level will be independent bodies. ACB and CBI will be merged into these bodies. They will have power to initiate investigations and prosecution against any officer or politician without needing anyone’s permission. Investigation should be completed within 1 year and trial to get over in next 1 year. Within two years, the corrupt should go to jail.
No corrupt officer is dismissed from the job because Central Vigilance Commission, which is supposed to dismiss corrupt officers, is only an advisory body. Whenever it advises government to dismiss any senior corrupt officer, its advice is never implemented.	Lokpal and Lokayukta will have complete powers to order dismissal of a corrupt officer. CVC and all departmental vigilance will be merged into Lokpal and state vigilance will be merged into Lokayukta.
No action is taken against corrupt judges because permission is required from the Chief Justice of India to even register an FIR against corrupt judges.	Lokpal & Lokayukta shall have powers to investigate and prosecute any judge without needing anyone’s permission.
Nowhere to go - People expose corruption but no action is taken on their complaints.	Lokpal & Lokayukta will have to enquire into and hear every complaint.
There is so much corruption within CBI and vigilance departments. Their functioning is so secret that it encourages corruption within these agencies.	All investigations in Lokpal & Lokayukta shall be transparent. After completion of investigation, all case records shall be open to public. Complaint against any staff of Lokpal & Lokayukta shall be enquired and punishment announced within two months.
Weak and corrupt people are appointed as heads of anti-corruption agencies.	Politicians will have absolutely no say in selections of Chairperson and members of Lokpal & Lokayukta. Selections will take place through a transparent and public participatory process.
Citizens face harassment in government offices. Sometimes they are forced to pay bribes. One can only complaint to senior officers. No action is taken on complaints because senior officers also get their cut.	Lokpal & Lokayukta will get public grievances resolved in time bound manner, impose a penalty of Rs 250 per day of delay to be deducted from the salary of guilty officer and award that amount as compensation to the aggrieved citizen.
Nothing in law to recover ill-gotten wealth. A corrupt person can come out of jail and enjoy that money.	Loss caused to the government due to corruption will be recovered from all accused.
Small punishment for corruption- Punishment for corruption is minimum 6 months and maximum 7 years.	Enhanced punishment - The punishment would be minimum 5 years and maximum of life imprisonment.

Should the Prime Minister be brought within the purview ofthe proposed Lokpal?

The Lokpal Is only an investigative body. If someone comeswith credible proof of corruption by the PM, No less than seven members of theeleven members of Lokpal will look into the evidence and decide whether toinvestigate the PM or not. If it is a frivolous or unsubstantiated complaint,the complainant will be suitably punished. If the complaint has substance theLokpal will investigate the matter. The 5 ministers from the government saidthat if any enquiry starts against the PM, the PM would lose all authority togovern and take decisions. We reminded them that in Bofors case also, the thenPM was under scanner. But that did not deter him from taking decisions. If thePM takes many portfolios under himself, then all those ministries will becomeexempt according to the governments logic. Even in this governments own Lokpalbill, the PM was included with some qualifications. Even today, the CBI caninvestigate the PM but the problem is that the CBI is under the PM’sadministrative control so effective investigation is not possible due toconflicts of interest. Therefore, we believe that the PM cannot be exemptedfrom corruption investigation by the Lokpal.

Source: http://www.indiaagainstcorruption.org/index1.html

Information Technology 002

2011-11-29T17:03:00.001+05:30

1. Identify the gadget below.

Answer: This is the first computer mouse as created by Douglas Carl Engelbart.

Douglas Carl Engelbart

2. Identify the person below who made a major contribution to the IT world.

Answer: Dennis MacAlistair Ritchie (He created the C programming language and, with long-time colleague Ken Thompson, the UNIX operating system. He died on 12th October, 2011, a week after Steve Job's Death.)

3. Identify this famous Indian born American.

Answer: Vinod Khosla (Hewas one of the co-founders of Sun Microsystems, where he served as its firstCEO and Chairman in the early 1980s. Presently he owns the Khosla Ventures.)

4. Identify the person below.

Answer: Stephen Gary "Woz" Wozniak (He co-founded Apple Computers now Apple Inc. along with Steve Jobs and Ronald Wayne. He single-handedly created the Apple I and Apple II computers in the mid-1970s, which contributed significantly to the microcomputer revolution of that era.

5. Identify the keyboard layout below named after its creator.

Answer: It is the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard (DSK) patented in 1936 by Dr. August Dvorak. Dvorak proponents claim the Dvorak layout uses less finger motion, increases typing rate, and reduces errors compared to the standard QWERTY keyboard. But still it has failed to replace the much used QWERTY Keypads.

DID YOU KNOW?

"Time" magazine's "Man of the Year" for 1982 was not a man at all but a machine - The Computer.

Roger Federer - The God of Tennis

2011-11-28T22:32:00.001+05:30

Roger Federer created history once again, by becoming the first player to win 6 ATP World Tour Finals Championships. The Swiss God did not drop even a single match en route to this great victory. What makes it more special is the fact that this was his 100th final! Now that he has got a perfect finish to this tennis year, we hope that he carries his form forward into next year, and hopefully achieves what everyone has been waiting for- The Golden Slam. Hopefully he gets his No.1 ranking back by next year end.
You're the best Roger! :D

Information Technology 001

2011-11-28T17:49:00.001+05:30

1. “goo.gl” is the URL Shortening service createdby Google; “t.co” is the URL shortening service created by which company?

Answer: Twitter (It issometimes described as the "SMS of the Internet.")

2. Blackcomb, Vienna, Loghorn, Mojave, Whistler,Memphis. What are we talking about?

Answer: Codenames of DifferentWindows OS (Those were the codenames given to different Operating Systemsduring their development stage.

a. Blackcomb, Vienna – Windows 7

b. Loghorn, Mojave – Windows Vista

c. Whistler – Windows XP

d. Memphis – Windows 98

3. What is the Google headquarters called?

Answer: Googleplex (referenceto googolplex, the name given to the large number 10^10^100)

4. Which company’s logo do you see below?

Answer: Alienware (It is anAmerican computer hardware subsidiary of Dell, Inc.)

5. Identify the person below.

Answer: Suneet Singh Tuli (CEO, Datawind, the company manufacturing the“Aakash” Tablets for India)

DID YOU KNOW?

Larry Page and Sergey Brin originally nicknamed their search engine "BackRub", because the system checked back-links to estimate the importance of a site. Eventually, they changed the name to Google, originating from a misspelling of the word "googol" where googol means the digit 1 followed by 100 zeros.

Lateral Thinking 001

2011-11-27T10:04:00.001+05:30

You are expected to solve this questions in less than 20 seconds!
Use the given images as clues, and give the connection between them.
(Click on the picture below to enlarge the image)

Answer : 'PHOENIX'
Solution:
Top: Logo of Mozilla Firefox, which was initially named phoenix.
Right: The city of Phoenix.
Bottom: Ancient Phoenix coins of Greece.
Left: The Phoenix logo of the Sun's basketball team on their 40th anniversary.

General Knowledge 005

2011-11-27T00:00:00.000+05:30

1. Which river forms India’s waterway No. 1?

Answer:Ganga

2. On 9^th July 2011 , _______ became the 193^rdcountry of the world.

Answer:South Sudan

3. In which administrative services would one beconferred with the “Meghdoot Awards”?

Answer:India Post

4. Identify this famous author below.

Answer:Dan Brown (He is an American author of thriller fiction, best known for the 2003 bestselling novel, The Da Vinci Code.)

5. Identify this politician holding a veryimportant portfolio in the cabinet presently.

Answer:Dinesh Trivedi (He is currently the Minister of Railways; he took over the post after Mamta Banerjee resigned from the post due to her election as the CM of Paschimbanga (West Bengal)).

DID YOU KNOW?

Honey is used sometimes for antifreeze mixtures and also in the center of golf balls.

General Knowledge 004

2011-11-26T12:12:00.001+05:30

1. Which tree is regarded as the state tree of Karnataka?

Answer:Sandalwood

2.What is written on the green/silver strip ofevery currency note along with “भारत”?
Answer: RBI

3. The Head of which country resides at the 24,Sussex Drive?

Answer:Prime Minister of Canada

4. In 2010, Forbes Magazine described ManmohanSingh as “India’s best Prime Minister since ______________.” Fill in theBlanks.

Answer: Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru

5. Identify the person below.

Answer: Jayanthi Natarajan (Since July 2011, she has been the Minister of Forests and Environment.)

DID YOU KNOW?

Thomas Edison designed a helicopter that would work with gunpowder. It ended up blowing up and also blew up his factory.

General Knowledge 003

2011-11-25T22:57:00.001+05:30

1. What does ‘N’ stand for in PNR?

Answer:Name (Passenger Name Record)

2. Who holds the record of highest number (63) offifties in Test Cricket alongside Sachin Tendulkar at the moment?

Answer:Allan Border

3. In June 1889, to honour the Queen consort ofItaly, Margherita of Savoy, the Neapolitan chef Raffaele Esposito created adish to represent the colours of the Italian flag. Which dish did he create?

Answer:Pizza Margherita

4. Which is the World’s Hottest Chilli recognisedofficially by Guinness World Records as of March, 2011?

Answer:Trinidad & Tobago Scorpion Butch T pepper - at 1,463,700 Scoville heat units

5. Cows: Herd :: Crows: ___________?

Answer:Murder

DID YOU KNOW?

A group of people that are hired to clap at a performance are called a claque

Current Affairs 001

2011-11-24T23:11:00.001+05:30

1. Whowas declared as the successor of the Tata Sons by its current Chairman, RatanNaval Tata?

Answer:Cyrus P Mistry (He will take office from 2012; he will be the sixth and theyoungest Chairman of the Tata Group and only the second non-Tata after SirNowroji Saklatvala to head the group; he is also the largest single shareholder(18.4 %) in Tata Sons making his worth about Rs. 38,000 Crore)

Cyrus P Mistry

2. Who is thecurrent Governor of Reserve Bank of India?

Answer: DuvvuriSubbarao (His term has been extended until September 4, 2013)

Duvvuri Subbarao

3. Who is theCurrent Chief Election Commissioner of India?

Answer: ShahabuddinYaqoob Quraishi (He succeeded Navin Chawla as C.E.C on 30 July 2010)

S Y Quraishi

4. Who wasawarded the Arthur Ashe Humanitarian Award for a foundation which focuses on socialwork and development aid particularly on childhood and youth?

Answer: Rafael"Rafa" Nadal Parera for his contributions through the Rafa NadalFoundation

5. Who wonthe International Man Booker Prize for 2011?

Answer: PhilipRoth

Philip Roth

DID YOU KNOW?

Baskin Robbins plain vanilla ice cream is the number one selling flavour and accounts for a quarter of their sales.

2011-11-24T19:20:00.001+05:30

Our Logo

General Knowledge 002

2011-11-23T21:31:00.004+05:30

1.       Name the parent company of Rolls Royce Motor Cars.
Answer: Bayerische Motoren Werke (BMW) (In English: “Bavarian Motor Works”. The circular blue and white BMW logo or roundel is portrayed by BMW as the movement of an aircraft propeller, to signify the white blades cutting through the blue sky)

2.       Who is the current Governor of Reserve Bank of India?
Answer: Dr. Duvvuri Subbarao (His term was to end in September 2011. But breaking from tradition, the Prime Minister's Office put out a statement announcing that Subbarao, a former finance secretary would now retire on September 4, 2013.)

3.       Who took over the post of CEO from Steve Jobs in the Apple Inc.?
Answer: Timothy D. "Tim" Cook (He also serves on the Board of directors of Nike.)

4. It is held the last Wednesday in August, during the week of festivities of Buñol. Identify this festival that has suddenly become popular, especially in India.
Answer: La Tomatina/ Tomato Day due to the movie “Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara”

5.   He is a prominent poet, playwright, folklorist, film director in Kannada language and the founder-vice-chancellor of Kannada University in Hampi. He has been conferred with the Jnanpith Award 2010 in 2011. Who are we talking about?
Answer: Chandrashekhara Kambara

DID YOU KNOW?

The Great Pyramids used to be as white as snow because they were encased in a bright limestone that has worn off over the years

General Knowledge 001

2011-11-22T20:44:00.001+05:30

1. The only English alphabet that does not appear in the names of any compound throughout the periodic table

Answer: Letter ‘J’

2. What was the gold colour version football, used in the Finals of FIFA 2010 called?

Answer : JO’ BULANI (REASON: As the finals was held in Johannesburg commonly nicknamed as Jo’Burg)

3. What is the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan called?

Answer: Durand Line (It is named after Henry Mortimer Durand, the Foreign Secretary of British India at the time.)

4. What is named after the Brahmaputra River in India and Moskva River of Russia?

Answer: BrahMos (A Supersonic Cruise Missile. It is the world's fastest cruise missile in operation. It can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft or land.)

5. How do we know SAMPOORAN SINGH KALRA (an INDIAN lyricist, poet and director) better as?

Answer: GULZAR SAAB (“Gulzar” is his pen name and he is a winner of an Oscar for Best Original Song, “Jai Ho” in Slumdog Millionaire)

DID YOU KNOW?

Mars is the home of Olympus Mons, the largest known volcano in our solar system.