Monday, February 28, 2011

End of Open Season

The end of Open Season is nigh
We'll be releasing all the answers by tomorrow, so get your last guesses in soon.
We'll be starting for the month of March by tomorrow.
Regards
Pai.






Sunday, February 27, 2011

Question 547: Clock's Ticking on this one

Simple one given the fact that kost people who should be glued to books are watching India vs England
ID the person being referenced in the cartoon


Saturday, February 26, 2011

its Duck Season, No Rabbit Season. No its...



A great Chance for all to catch up on the scoreboard, the questions from 536 onwards will remain open till the end of the month.
We'll also be starting a new bifurcated theme round tonight, and the rules will be put up by afternoon.
Only the theme round won't be open
The answers will be put up by monday.
Regards
Pai.


Friday, February 25, 2011

Question 546: Lilli-puts in place its rivals

__X__ is an app recently released for iOS
Recently, it achieved something no other app has in a long time.
Question:
1) ID app
2) ID what it achieved



Thursday, February 24, 2011

Answer before the questions are closed.

^^
Read the title.

We'll release the answers for few of the open questions(See the list a few posts below).
So Answer away, if you haven't.a

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Question 545: Hum Logo Samaj Sako to, question answer karo

If that made any sense whatsoever in any language, my skills have definitely improved
lol

Onward ho to the logo.
(the words in dark are part of the logo)

The original logo of ___X___ was part of a quote from  Euclid and his Modern Rivals by Lewis Carroll; due to the the logo's nature, only part of the text can be read.


In one respect this book is an experiment, and may chance to prove a failure: I mean that I have not thought it necessary to maintain throughout the gravity of style which scientific writers usually affect, and which has somehow come to be regarded as an ‘inseparable accident’ of scientific teaching. I never could quite see the reasonableness of this immemorial law: subjects there are, no doubt, which are in their essence too serious to admit of any lightness of treatment – but I cannot recognise Geometry as one of them. Nevertheless it will, I trust, be found that I have permitted myself a glimpse of the comic side of things only at fitting seasons, when the tired reader might well crave a moment’s breathing-space, and not on any occasion where it could endanger the continuity of the line of argument.

The second logo included the following quote (in bold), taken from Thomas Hobbes's Leviathan, Part I, Chapter VI:

Desire to know why, and how, curiosity; such as is in no living creature but man: so that man is distinguished, not only by his reason, but also by this singular passion from other animals; in whom the appetite of food, and other pleasures of sense, by predominance, take away the care of knowing causes; which is a lust of the mind, that by a perseverance of delight in the continual and indefatigable generation of knowledge, exceedeth the short vehemence of any carnal pleasure. 

Just leaving you with  small piece as a clue to guide you to the logo.




So lady and gents 
ok who are we kidding, just gents,
1) Logo Peechano.
2) How does the clue figure in the answer
Also, if you want me to stop speaking Hindi, leave a comment.
Regards.

Question 544: On the Pav Droll

Sorry,
I really couldn't resist posting this one!
Quite obviously a parody.
Have fun!! XD

Id X and Y ! :D

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Question 543:To Join or not to Join

The rulers of Kashmir, Hyderabad, and Junagadh were among the last to formally join the the Indian union shortly after independence. The first two rulers were reluctant to join because both had dreams of becoming completely independant. The Nawab of Junagadh, however attempted to join Pakistan despite sharing no boundaries with it for a rather different reason. What was it?

Question 542: Sweet Tooth



















Yes, they're all come under confectioneries.
Give me the other connect.



I have a dream...that we'll come up with a theme.

If you like the title, woot!
*Hi5*

If not, cut me some slack. Like I said, I had a busy day.
Moving on, our tentative plan is to start a new theme round tomorrow. As of now, that's about all we've decided on. Once we finalise on other details (such as: what on earth is this theme that I speak of?!?!!?) we'll update you'll about it.

That's all for now.

Oh, and answer all these open questions if you haven't already:


534
535
536
537
538
539
540
541

:)

Monday, February 21, 2011

Question 541: Winging It




Right, so this is mostly because Pai and Pi have a problem with my using xkcd.
Which ofcourse means I have to go all out and post xkcd questions :D
Plus I had a busy day.

Onto the question:





Simple.
Just tell me what REAL  PROGRAMMERS in the last panel of the top row use.
Explain it if you feel like.

Question 540: Incompetence Incognito


The ___X___ effect explains a cognitive bias in people performing poorly in a task lack the meta-cognitive capacity to properly evaluate their performance.  Remaining unaware of their incompetence, such people fail to accordingly take any self-improvement measures that might rid them of their incompetence. 

Amongst the first experiments featured a group of undergraduate students who were asked to rate their performance for the class just completed - just as they walked out of an exam. In particular they were asked how well they had mastered the course material, and what they predicted their raw score to be for the test just taken.

After comparing the student's own impressions with their actual performance, a clear pattern emerged in the data: Worse students grossly overestimated their own performance, while top students somewhat underestimated theirs. For the bottom quartile, while their actual performance may have "put them in the 12th percentile, they estimated their mastery of the course material to fall in the 60th percentile and their test performance to fall in the 57th". Bottom performers tended to overestimate their performance by roughly 30%; a general pattern that has been replicated many times over since. Thus, people fail to grasp their own incompetence, precisely because they are so incompetent. 

The authors of the study won the Ig Noble for their work. The logical extensions of the study have been applied to describe phenomenon seen across the spectrum of human behavior - from climate debates to Sarah Palin, and reality TV to False Consciousness.

Name X

Question 539: __X__ is My Favorite MC

Although discovered by 2 gentlemen in the 19th centruty (ie, 1800s), an individual ___X____ became obsessed with it, and is associated with such items
Id X from the pic
& what the pic is (what it shows)

Brownie points for identifying where the title comes from

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Question 538: I Won. Finally.

One for the tennis enthusiasts.
Spin a web around these images,  and arrive at a connect.
Order is important.
No, it's not repeated by mistake.

The answer's another player.
These images can be considered, well, his.. umm.. journey of sorts.








Saturday, February 19, 2011

Question 537: Famous Last Words

The most accurate measure of a man could be how funny,memorable, or just plain stupid his last words are


1. "Pardon me, sir. I did not do it on purpose."


2."I don't have the passion anymore, and so remember, it's better to burn out than to fade away. Peace, Love, Empathy." 


3."I am dying as i have lived, beyond my means"


4."Now, now, my good man, this is no time for making enemies."(when asked by priest to renounce Satan) 


5."Die, my dear? Why that's the last thing I'll do!"


6."Dying is easy, comedy is hard." 


Identify.


And to all you googlers out there, really whats the point?

Question 536: Blood is thicker than water? But there are other Links.


On the 14th of April, 1865 a certain president was shot at by a certain well known actor with the aim of continuing the Civil War which had by then lost all its fervour and was at its tail end.

Now you all know who they were, but that's not the question.

Moving on to the question:


A

Something to help you id A


B



__A__, was quite a well known figure in his time. Unfortunately for him, through no fault of his own, today he is generally remembered for a reason different than the one that made him famous. Though he's occasionally remembered for that as well.

__B__ was a lawyer and the Secretary of War. The only one of four brothers to live past his teenage years,(bet he wouldn't have been able to do that on his own) he lived to be 82.

Identify A and B.
Once you've done that, tell me what the story between them is.
Also, tie up any loose ends and throw in whatever else you believe is relevant.
 5 points for identifying and 5 for the story.


Friday, February 18, 2011

Question 535: Don your thinking caps, coz all Wells that ends Well.

In the pic below, are given 2 cultural phenoms in their own right, both from the world of literature. Just ID them both, simple enough.

Note, as much as I would appreciate it, XKCD is not a cultural or literary phenom
YET.
smirk

The last panel shows the second literary giant (he's been blanked out)



Question 534: Noble Profession


Sorry for the abruptness of the question but I'm pressed for time :P

Anyway:
A certain gentleman, born in 1932 in some part of Egypt as a Melkite Greek Catholic. He took to acting in 1953 and became quite a successful actor in his time.






 He was also known for something else.

Id the man and what the other thing was.


Thursday, February 17, 2011

Be blunt if you don't have a point

Due to various factors and reasons, some feel the scores were


With that being the reason (see pic above, all of it. The words as well people), they were soon solved.
But understand that tabulating the scores is like


Mainly because someone that small is actually handling the scoreboard (No, this isn't a Nihar joke this time,lol)

So let us know if there are any problems with the scores.
Check the scoreboard & tell us
After all:


Who's keeping score?

Good evening, one and all.

Please go check the monthly scoreboard and comment on this if any rectifications need to be made. If you think your score is less tell us. If it's more, keep mum...and do a little jig if you feel like it :)
If there is an error, it's most likely in Questions 522, 523 or 524. Google Docs didn't save all the changes made due to reasons unknown.

Also, kudos to Pranav for Question 526. It got 26 comments. The highest on the blog!
Congratulate him :)

That is all.

Question 533: Cost and worth and terms and conditions.

 Okay, so there's this classic story about this guy and how he's willing to give up everything that matters to him, or what he thinks shouldn't matter to him, in return for something which he believes is more valuable. Over the years this tale has been retold and has undergone some changes and has had a few different endings.



Modern application of an old concept


1) Forfeit your own what?

2) Who encounters the what?

3) Based on the story of?



Question 532: Some, Not All!


I like playing good-cop, bad-cop. Yup, just like Inspector Clouseau. Both roles by the same person.
Connect.
And explain the connect.
I hope this question's irritating.
Thanks.

Id each element, too. Yup, that's not really a problem for you, is it?
Slightly round about.
Think laterally.



Id

l

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

A New Phase, Better late than never!

To cut a short story shorter,
We got ourselves a facebook page------->
Like.
Follow! :)
Thanks, and spread the word!

Question 531: Elvis Meets The President(They made of movie on that you know)

In the year 1970, the king of rock and roll, Elvis Presley met President Nixon at the White House, where he asked for a government job and proudly proclaimed that he was indeed the ultimate patriot. What made the meeting interesting however was the fact that Elvis warned the President about a certain person of note proclaiming him to be a threat to "American freedom" and a "communist". And no Mr.Limbaugh, its not Obama.
Name the guy.

File:Elvis-nixon.jpg


Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Question 530: I Said Keep Up the GOOD Work, NOT the **** Work....

ID the players below for a point each, but tell me what's the binding context through all the photos for 5 points straight. I need a VERY accurate ID on this binding context - not just a half-stop one.
Bonus points for IDing the individual contexts as well.






Question 529 : *Wink wink*

__X__  started a still hinted-at controversy in 1999 due to his carrying a bag that looks much like a woman's handbag. __X__ was alleged to be a  "gay role model" who was a hidden symbol of homosexuality meant to brainwash the children. The official response given was,  "He's not gay. He's not straight."

In May, 2007, the matter was revisited and an enquiry was planned by one Ewa SowiÅ„ska."I noticed that he has a woman's handbag, but I didn't realize he's a boy," SowiÅ„ska told a magazine in an interview adding, "Later I learned that there could be some hidden homosexual undertones." SowiÅ„ska said she would ask her office's psychologists to look into the allegations, and judge whether it can be shown on public television and whether the suggested problem really exists.

But on 30 May 2007, SowiÅ„ska said in a public statement that she no longer suspected the allegation of promoting homosexuality. She said: "The opinion of a leading sexologist, who maintains that this series has no negative effects on a child's psychology, is perfectly credible. As a result I have decided that it is no longer necessary to seek the opinion of other psychologists."

Id X.


Monday, February 14, 2011

Question 528: Put one over me

This man is one tough son-offa-gun.

Interviewed by Naomi Campbell, he spent no time hesitating to rip her a new one.
Once made a famous quote attacking President Bush's silly little Scottish Terrier, the infamous Barney; saying that the dogs from his country "mean" business.
His hobbies include white water rafting on his country's notorious rapids, bareback riding, motorbike racing, judo fighting, hiking shirtless in the Cedar forests and swimming the butterfly to escape freezing in cold lakes.
A raving animal conservationist, he is responsible for the very successful national Tiger protection program, and has extended his obvious influences to protect the bears as well; citing them to be examples of how his father fought the wars. He's even taken the head honchos of government on a tiger-spotting trip in the wild.
He spent his spare time spying on visiting heads of state, often blending in with the crowd in now infamously bad disguises.


Give me his name.

Question 527: Can't think of a title.


What's this?


Sunday, February 13, 2011

Question 526: Anything to Declare? ...... Come again?

Link the four pictures below to an unbelievably obvious binding entity.
1 point per correct ID on a picture, 5 points for just the binding thingy and full points for all 4 IDs and the binding what-cha-ma-call-it.

Pic 1:

Pic 2:

 Pic 3:

Pic 4:

Question 525: Kiss and tell?

Donald Bonsack, John Edmonson, Wallace C. Fowler, Clarence "Bud" Harding, Walker Irving, James Kearney, Marvin Kingsburg, Arthur Leask, George Mendonça, Jack Russell,  Bill Swicegood, Carl Muscarello and Glenn McDuffie.

Edith Shain, Greta Friedman and Barbara Sokol.

All these people have something in common with regard to an event that occured in 1945. Over the years they've all made claims about how it was them and have made great efforts to prove it.

What was the event and what did they claim?


May the Open Source be with you

Due to technical errors experienced by airtel, (read this announcement

"Its better for me to be bold Minister than for you to be stumped" From Yes Minister")

Most of the questions may have been missed
So before we publish the answers, here's a chance for you to answer them all

We go to the presses with 519 & 520 at 6pm IST
Regards
Pai


We're all Confused

Owing to those annoying connecting-to-the-blog problems we've been experiencing over the past few days, the question numbering has indeed gone haywire.
So, please see 521, which has been posted only now.

Please bear with us!
Trying times!

We're all upset.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Question 524: Move Over Casanova




This famous philanderer and con artist is considered as the original master of disguise. Even though he was mostly occupied with women and scams, he occasionally lent his expertise to the police to aid them in their pursuit of his fellow tradesmen. He is credited with founding the worlds first criminal agency and as the father of criminology. He was renowned for for his uncanny knack for dressing up like a woman, a skill he originally developed to accompany his slightly older and unhappily married mistresses on family vacations when he was young. His account of his rather colorful life should be made required reading for all of us who frequents a quiz blogs. And needless to say he was French.

Name the guy

Question 523: It is ON!









These three pictures connect to a rather enterprising man.
Who?
Explain your answer.