quizzly bears - science quiz finals

QUIZZLY BEARS

DISCLAIMER

RESEMBLANCE TO ANY

QUESTIONS NEW OR OLD

FROM SLIDESHARE AND

OTHER SOURCES IS PURELY

COINCIDENTAL

ROUNDS AND THEN THERE WAS HELP

THE JURY ROOM

WHERE MAGIC HAPPENS

BULB JALEGA BOSS

AND THEN THERE WAS HELP

INSTRUCTIONS

One question for each team.

Every correct answer earns 20 pts

If the team doesn’t know the answer, they can

nominate another team to answer for them. If they

are correct +10 for each team.

No prompting by the other teams to persuade the

team to nominate themselves.

In 1938, a gentleman named Roy Plunkett

was attempting to make a new CFC

refrigerant. He saw that the

tetrafluoroethylene gas in the bottle stopped

flowing before the bottles weight had

dropped to the point signaling “empty‟.

He finally resorted to cut the bottle apart and

found a waxy white material which was

oddly slippery.

What was thus accidentally discovered?

1

AND THE ANSWER IS…..

TEFLON

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease

that results in a chronic, inflammatory disorder

affecting many tissues and organs, but principally

attacks flexible (synovial) joints. It can be a

disabling and painful condition, which can lead to

substantial loss of functioning and mobility if not

adequately treated.

Who, in the world of cricket, is the most famous

person suffering from this disease?

(Hint : think fingers)

Note :- do not think M. MURALIDARAN

2

Alkaloid Theobromine is sometimes used as

a drug to treat high blood pressure. Its

effects are similar to caffeine but on a

smaller scale. However, it can be poisonous

to dogs as they metabolize this compound

very slowly.

What commonly enjoyed food contains

Theobromine and thus should not be given

to dogs?

3

“Put your hand on a hot stove for a

minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with

a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like

a minute.”

Who is the speaker and what is he/she

trying to explain?

4

The Scoville scale, used for the measurement of

something which is usually measured by a method

that uses high performance liquid chromatography

(HPLC). This identifies and measures the

concentration of chemicals necessary for the scaling.

X topped the Scoville scale from 2007 until

February 2012 with an average of 1 million SHU

and an individual highest of 1.5mn. It was surpassed

by Carolina Reaper with 2.2mn SHU in 2013 and

holds the record till date.

What does Scoville scale measure? Also, Identify X.

5

BHUT JOLOKIA

What memory-aiding peculiarity links the

following zoological creatures (among others) that

you’ll never find in botanical ones?

6

TRIPLE TAUTONYMY

a) Common Rat – Rattus rattus rattus

b) Black Cobra – Naja naja naja

c) European Toad – Bufo bufo bufo

d) American bison – Bison bison bison

e) Red Jungle Fowl – Gallus gallus gallus

f) Coastal Gorilla – Gorilla gorilla gorilla

g) Barbary Leopard – Panthera panthera panthera

h) Common buzzard – Buteo buteo buteo

Not allowed in plant nomenclature

THE JURY ROOM

INSTRUCTIONS

• One question for each team.

• Every correct answer earns 20 pts

• The next question will be addressed to the team

next to the one which has answered the previous

question.

• The question will pass till a team answers it

correctly. +20 pts. for them too.

These are glass igloos, extensively found as a tourist

attraction in Finland. What are they meant for?

1

To see the Northern lights

X is a hydrated magnesium silicate with the chemical

formula H2Mg3(SiO3)4 or Mg3Si4O10(OH)2. In loose

form, it is the widely used substance known

as ________ (aka X). It is the softest known mineral and

listed as 1 on the Mohs hardness scale. As such, it can

be easily scratched by a fingernail. It has a specific

gravity of 2.5–2.8, a clear or dusty luster, and is

translucent to opaque.

2

TALCUM POWDER (DERIVED FROM TALC)

X is characterized by multiple, symmetric, circular skin

creases, or bands, on the forearms, lower legs, and often

the neck that are present at birth. The creases disappear

later in life. They are reminiscent of these of Bibendum,

the mascot of Y, hence the name of the syndrome is X.

Associated abnormalities vary and may include facial

dysmorphism, upslanting palpebral fissures, genital

anomalies, mild developmental delay, ureterocele, smooth

muscle hamartoma etc..

It was originally described by Ross in 1969. Only Twenty

such cases of this disorder have been reported.

< pic on next slide>

3

MICHELIN BABY SYNDROME

IDENTIFY THIS HISTORICAL SITE ?

4

NEWTON’S APPLE TREE

The material used to make X is an alloy of 2 rare

Earth elements. The estimated cost of the most

advanced version of X is a few hundred million

dollars. Some of the many “unbelievable” features

of X are the User Interface and the computer

providing offline support to the person using X.

And the manner in which the energy from the power

source is converted to a stabilized electricity supply

to allow the various components of X to function in

the less than ideal situation in which an X may be

used.

What is X ?

5

X was invented by Y. Y obtained patents for his

invention in 1867. After its introduction, X rapidly

gained wide-scale use as a safe alternative

to blackpowder.

Y combined Ammonium Cyanate with Glycerine

forming a compound Tri Nitro Glycerine (TNG). It was

kept in a bowl while Y was researching in his lab. On

the floor was Kieselguhr (diatomaceous earth) and the

bowl fell on it. Hence the compound X was created.

(Hint: Following its discovery, the world economy had

a huge “boom”)

6

INSTRUCTIONS

•Each correct answer earns +20

•Each team gets two spells both of which can be

used only once.

•The First spell : Give me some sunshine

•The Second Spell :You take the bait

•However only one spell can be used per question

•Each team will face 2 questions each in this

round.

• +10 for passing and +5 if the 1st spell has been

used.

A couple of years ago, the local

government of this place launched a

project that included five local

farmers to plant sunflowers

incessantly in plots covering 1.3

hectares that were currently in

bloom. The project sought to

emulate the positive effect of

another such instance decades ago.

The idea was to let the sunflowers

act on the upper layers of the soil to

accomplish the necessary task.

Where exactly? And purpose do the

sunflowers serve?

1

Fukushima Nuclear Plant

Sunflowers Are Good Absorbers Of

Radioactive Wastes In The Soil.

According to Google Calculator, “___ ___

___" is equal to 1.16699016 × 10-8 hertz. If

the mean length of time between ____ ____

(2.7145 years according to Google) is

metricated and converted to a frequency

(by calculating the multiplicative inverse),

it can be expressed in terms of hertz.

Explanation of which English phrase?

2

The word X was introduced by Czech writer Karel

Čapek in his play R.U.R. in 1920. He later

explained that he had originally wanted to call the

creatures laboři. However, he did not like the word,

and sought advice from his brother Josef, who

suggested the word "X".

The word means literally "self labor", and

figuratively "drudgery" or "hard work" in Czech

and also in many Slavic languages.

What is the word X ?

3

When Germany invaded Denmark in World War II,

Hungarian chemist Hevesy put the Nobel Prizes of

German physicists Max Laue and J. Franck in X to

prevent the Nazis from confiscating them. The German

government had prohibited Germans from accepting or

keeping any Nobel Prize.

Hevesy placed the resulting X on a shelf in his

laboratory at the Bohr Institute. It was subsequently

ignored by the Nazis who thought the jar contained

common chemicals.

After the war, de Hevesy returned to find the solution

undisturbed and precipitated the gold out of X.

What is X ?

4

In 19 century Europe, opium had become very popular. It

was addicting and soon the Britishers introduced it in India.

By chemical processing of opium - acetic anhydride,

activated charcoal, ethyl alcohol, ether, and acetone, it was

converted to another drug. This drug taken in small amounts

was said to cure any disease you name (at that time).

So it was called SUPER DRUG, DOCTOR DRUG or HERO

OF DRUGS. But being a drug, people became addicted to it.

Hence it was named X (which is the more common name)

NAME THE DRUG.

5

Humphry Davy is best remembered today for

his discoveries of several alkali and alkaline

earth metals, as well as contributions to the

discoveries of the elemental nature of chlorine

and iodine; as well as the inventor of the Davy

lamp, a variant of the safety lamp.

He, however, is supposed to have claimed

“something” else as his greatest discovery.

What ?

6

The X is an equinoctial sundial, consisting a

gigantic triangular gnomon with the hypotenuse

parallel to the Earth's axis. On either side of the

gnomon is a quadrant of a circle, parallel to the

plane of the equator.

The instrument is intended to measure the time

of day, correct to half a second and declination

of the Sun and the other heavenly bodies.

How do we know this instrument ?

7

Zbtb7 is a gene that may act as a master switch

for cancer, and is responsible for the

proliferation of cancer throughout surrounding

cells. The gene is unique in that it is needed for

other oncogenes to cause cancer.

Discovery of the gene was first published in the

January 2005 issue of Nature. It was originally

called “Pok Erythroid Myeloid Ontogenic

factor” but was renamed to Zbtb7.

Why was it renamed ?

(HINT: copyright violation)

8

Part of whose diary ?

“…How long have you been here? She seems to be

trying to remember. Three weeks. What is this? I show

her a pencil. A pen. A purse, key, diary and cigar are

identified correctly. At lunch she eats cauliflower and

pork. Asked what she is eating she answers spinach.

When she was chewing meat and asked what she was

doing, she answered potatoes and horseradish. When

objects are shown to her, she does not remember after

a short time which objects have been shown…”

9

Vitalism is an obsolete scientific doctrine stating that "living

organisms contain some non-physical element or are

governed by different principles than are inanimate things".

Berzelius gave his theory that no chemical compounds could

be created synthetically.

In 1828, the German chemist Friedrich Wöhler obtained X

artificially by treating Silver Cyanate with Ammonium

Chloride. After it was created about 60,000 new compounds

were created in the next 5 years and now 1000 new

compounds are being created every week.

For this discovery, Wöhler is considered by many to be the

father of organic chemistry.

Identify X that led to the downfall of Vitalism.

10

Archaeologists at world-famous Taj Mahal in Agra have

found a formula to save the marble monument from the

corrosive effects of industrial pollution X , recipe consisting

of soil, cereal, milk and lime.

The sticky brown mixture is smeared on the smut-stained

marble surfaces and washed off with warm water after 24

hours.

The archaeologists at Taj Mahal found that the substance,

known as X , drew black and yellow impurities from the

marble and left its surface gleaming white for the 1st time in

decades.

Similar “packs” are being developed to treat blackened

marble statues in Rome and Florence, the report said.

11

He was conferred a knighthood, and medals and honorary doctorates by various universities. He was confident of winning the Nobel Prize in Physics hence he stitched 17 suits altogether later to be worn on ceremonies, but was disappointed when the Nobel Prize went to Richardson in 1928 and to Broglie in 1929.He was so confident of winning the prize in 1930 that he booked tickets in July, even though the awards were to be announced in November.He did eventually win the 1930 Nobel Prize in Physics "for his work on the scattering of light and for the discovery of the __________ .

Identify Him.

12

INFINITE POUNCE

INSTRUCTIONS

• One question for each team.

• Each Direct answer (to be written) earns 20 pts.

• While the other teams that know the answer can

pounce on their tables and write the answer.

Correct answer gives +10 while incorrect gives -5

pts

• NO PASSING

________ Day is celebrated on October

23rd. It officially starts at 6:02 A.M.

and ends at 6:02 P.M on that day.

1

“Glenn T. Seaborg

Lawrence Laboratory,

Berkeley

California

America”

What is so special about this old mailing

address of Glenn Seaborg?

2

Whose epitaph reads - “ He lies

buried somewhere here”

(Hint : Think Quantum

Mechanics)

3

W. HEISENBERG

Originally a student of Plato and later a

contemporary, he first disagreed with Plato’s

hypotheses and presented counter theories.

However he later agreed with Plato and

supported him.

This action of his led to coining of a word in

Latin and English.

Identify Him.

4

This gas is known for its characteristic pungent

smell. It has been named after the Egyptian Sun

God as the Romans found its salt deposits on

the walls of this God’s temple in Egypt.

Gaseous form was first isolated by Joseph

Priestley in 1774 and was termed by him

"alkaline air". Eleven years later, Louis Claude

ascertained its composition.

Identify the Gas ?

5

AMUN RA

EGYPTIAN SUN GOD

Shown here is a customs

form filled by three persons

in June 1969

They were temporarily

leaving the borders of the

United States for a duration

of twelve days

They were travelling with

equipment worth billions of

dollars. Name any two of

them.

6

quizzly bears - science quiz finals

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