MastermindAnswers

1.

While in college in 1970, X was the General Secretary of his university’s Students’ Union. Once, with only 2 paisa in his pocket and determined not to spend the money, he called his friends for a peanut treat. After eating their fill, X threatened the peanut seller for having the audacity to ask for payment.“Do you know who I am? I am the future prime minister of India. Get lost!”

Who da?

Lalu Prasad Yadav

2.

The laptop was invented to provide user mobility - so we don't end up being chained to our desk computers . But working for hours with the lappy perched on your lap could result in discoloured patchy skin. And while you could be enjoying the heat emanating from the device, especially in an air-conditioned area, you could also develop the ________ ____ syndrome.

Also known as “Erythema ab igne”, how is this better known?

Toasted Skin Syndrome

3.___________ _____ is a state of severe alienation and burnout. When the pressures of life and the evils, insanity and corruption of the outside world are too much and you build a mental wall and you shut yourself out from everything and everyone. You just want to retreat by watching TV or listening to music a LOT to take you from your inner pain but your attention span is so minimized you may wind up on the couch looking up at the ceiling and constantly changing TV channels with the remote. Certain scenes or sounds may bring up painful emotions and make you cry. So you try to quench the pain by smoking, drinking or doing dope.

Urban Dictionary description of which famous song?

Comfortably Numb

4. This is a movie poster. Id movie.

5.In an event alternately described as one of the most heroic or disastrous episodes in British military history, Lord James Cardigan leads a ____________________ cavalry against well-defended Russian artillery during the Crimean War. The British were winning the Battle of Balaclava when Cardigan received his order to attack the Russians. His cavalry gallantly charged down the valley and were decimated by the heavy Russian guns, suffering 40 percent casualties. It was later revealed that the order was the result of confusion and was not given intentionally. Lord Cardigan, who survived the battle, was hailed as a national hero in Britain.

This battle is remembered for the piece of literature it spawned.Just FITB.

Charge of the Light Brigade

6.

Id these gentlemen.

Bob Marley & Jimi Hendrix

7.

X is eligible to represent Belgium through birth and passport, Albania through his ethnic Albanian parents, and Serbia due to the disputed status of his parents' homeland of Kosovo. He is also eligible to represent Kosovo, although they don’t have a recognised team. There is also the possibility that he might receive an approach from Turkey.

Generating considerable interest in recent weeks, who may this be?

Adnan Januzaj

8. FITB• Jal (India) • Keila (Maldives)• Thane (Myanmar) • Murjan (Oman) • Nilam (Pakistan) • Mahasen (Sri Lanka) • ______ (Thailand) • Helen (Bangladesh) • Lehar (India) • Madi (Maldives) • Nanauk (Myanmar) • Hudhud (Oman) • Nilofar (Pakistan) • Priya (Sri Lanka)

Phailin

9.• Put M=1.8986×1027 kg• G = 6.67×10−11 m3 kg−1 s−2

• r0=69,911 km

If you substitute these parameters in the final equation, what do you get?

(give specific answer)(*In news this month)

Jupiter’s Escape Velocity

10.Conversation between two people from Uncyclopedia. Give both names.

God vs Nietzsche

11.*Who be X?

• In 1992, X was photographed alone at the Taj Mahal on a bench now affectionately known as X’s Seat.

• Many foreign Presidents visiting India have partaken in the custom of clicking a photo with their spouse on the X Seat.

• Last week, X’s Seat was in the news as Miss Universe Olivia Culpo participated in a photo shoot for a footwear brand on X’s seat at the Taj Mahal, kicking up a controversy.

• (image follows)

Lady Diana

12*.Connect

Bollywood adaptations of Romeo & Juliet

13*. Id X & Y, two important characters from the Mahabharata.Vichitravirya, the son of Santanu and Satyavati, ascended the throne after his father, and married Ambika and Ambalika, two girls found for him by Bhishma. But Vichitravirya soon died of tuberculosis. A time-honoured custom existed whereby if a man died childless it was incumbent on his nearest male relative to father a child on his widow. Satyavati appealed to Bhishma to perform this office, but he refused. She, then, summoned her first-born Ved Vyasa, who agreed. Ambika and Ambalika both expected to see the handsome Bhishma, and were horrified to see the wild and unkempt Vyasa. In her fright, Ambika closed her eyes, and the son she conceived, X, was born blind. Ambalika turned pale at the sight of Vyasa and her son Y was therefore born pale.

X – DhridharashtaY - Pandu

14*. Id this dangerous woman.

Mata Hari

15*. What is this sharp tool of philosophy?X is a principle of parsimony, economy, or succinctness used in logic and problem-solving. It states that among competing hypotheses, the hypothesis with the fewest assumptions should be selected.In science, X is used as a heuristic (rule of thumb) to guide scientists in the development of theoretical models. An oft-quoted version of Einstein’s Constraint (which is an analogy of X) says "Everything should be kept as simple as possible, but no simpler.“It has applications in Biology, Chemistry, Medicine, Probability, Religion and Ethics.

X is also the title of the 3rd episode of the 1st season of House MD.

Occam’s Razor

16*. Id all 3

Left to right: Andres Iniesta, Victor Valdez and Pep Guardiola

17*. Audio• Id the person speaking.

Arsene Wenger• Poaching talent since 1669.

18*.

The next slide has pictures of glass paintings done by Jian Guo depicting scenes from something very famous in pop culture.What?

Lord of the Rings

19*.

This practice is attributed to the Greeks where they would do it to represent the glow of the moon. They also believed that the smoke from this carried their prayers and wishes to their gods who lived in the skies. Some scholars do not attribute this practice/tradition to the Greeks but to the Germans. It was done in Germany as a way to represent “the light of life”. Today we do it as a way of habit as opposed to superstition and tradition.

What practice am I talking about that has been done by everyone here at least once a year?

Candles on the Birthday Cake

20*.

• The ___________ live a hedonistic lifestyle. Their lives are easy: their every need is taken care of by technology: their home is a futuristic wonderland where limitless food is provided by technology and even their cleaning needs are taken care of.

• The loudspeakers that appear throughout the land clearly represent the speakers and posters that would spread the will of Stalin to the people. The bald kid is clearly a homage to Vladimir Lenin.

• NooNoo, the lovable vacuum cleaning pal, is obviously a representation of a socialist government- it is always there to make sure that everyone is on equal footing, by cleaning up their messes at the expense of the more fortunate.

• Clearly, all of these messages confirm my hypothesis: The _____________ are communists. Cold-blooded, vodka-drinking, left-winged communists.

• Possible subliminal message carried by what? FITB.

Teletubbies

21. Jigga what?• Qs cost around Rs 50,000. They are powered by diesel engines

originally intended to power agricultural irrigation pumps. They are known for poor brakes, and cannot go faster than about 60 km/h. The vehicle often carries more than 20 people at a time in remote locations and poor road conditions. Today, a Q is one of the most cost-effective transportation solutions for rural Indians.

• Though no statistical data is available, it is reported that there are a number of instances of failing brakes, requiring a passenger to jump off and manually apply a wooden block as a brake. These vehicles do not have any vehicle registration plate as they are not registered with the RTO. Hence, no road tax is paid on them.

• Qs are not officially recognised as road-worthy, and despite a few proposals to regulate them, vote-bank politics have trumped safety concerns. The improvised vehicles have now become rather popular as a means to transport all manner of burdens.

(Picture follows)

Jugaad

22.

To qualify for the Forbes 15 Richest Fictional Characters list, members must be "both fictional (in the sense that there are no mythological and folkloric figures) and characters (meaning they are part of a narrative story or series of stories)," in addition to being wealthy. The one exception to the rule was X, a mythological character whom Forbes decided was an "irresistible" addition, although he has been absent from the list since 2006. Forbes stated, "We still estimate X's net worth as infinite, but we excluded him from this year's rankings after being bombarded by letters from outraged children.”

Santa Claus

23. What has been blanked out?

Nigeria

24. Cosplay for which superhero?

Spaceman Spiff

25. Id X• X are terrestrial tree kingfishers native

to Australia and New Guinea. They are large to very large, with a total length of 28–42 cm. They are best known for their unmistakable call, which sounds uncannily like loud, echoing human laughter. 

• They are better known in the world of sports.• The Australia men's national field hockey team

are nicknamed the X.• Olly, the X was a mascot of the Sydney Olympics.• X is also a company associated with cricket

equipment.

Kookaburra

26. Connect these people from the world of sports. (incomplete list)

• Zeeshan Ali – 1990• Ramesh Krishnan – 1991, 1992, 1993• Kevin Ullyet – 1992, ‘95, ’97• Todd Nelson – ’92, ‘93• Stefan Kruger – ’93• Daniel Nestor – 1994, 2013• _________ - 1994-2006, 2008, 2009-2011• Jonas Bjorkman – 1999, 2004• Michael Llodra – 2002, 2013• Nenad Zimonjic – 2003, 2005• Radek Stepanek – 2004, 2006, 2012, 2013• Aisam ul-Haq Qureshi – 2006• Rohan Bopanna – 2007, 2012• Vishnu Vardhan – 2012• Sanam Singh – 2013• Danielle Bracciali - 2013

Leander Paes’ doubles partners

Mahesh Bhupati fills the blank.

27. Put funda

Game of Thrones• Lord Varys• The Unsullied army• Theon Greyjoy

28. What fruit?

Originally the Aztecs called this fruit Ahucati after their word for testicle. This is may be partly due to the fruit's resemblance to a testicle, but also because it was supposedly believed to be an aphrodisiac. They are also sometimes called Alligator pears. The etymology of this is far more obvious; the skin of these fruits is dark green, thick, leathery, and knobbly, rather like that of an alligator.

Avocado

29. Answer to what ancient mystery?The most commonly heard vocalizations are a quick series of barks, and a scream-y variation. All the vocalizations are high-pitched, partly because _____ are small. The barks are very high-pitched, almost yippy. It's commonly mistaken for an owl hooting.The scream-y howl is most often heard during the breeding season, in the springtime. The bark and scream are very loud, so they're often heard, but most other vocalizations are quiet and used for communication between individuals in close proximity. The most unusual is called “gekkering”; it's a guttural chattering with occasional yelps and howls.

30. Video

Id the band from this muted video.

The band is famous for this particular song, which has been used elsewhere, where it shot into prominence.

Barenaked Ladies – History of Everything