This document contains questions from multiple rounds of a science quiz competition called Samasya Finals. Round 1 includes 12 multiple choice questions about concepts like drag force, lightsabers, and Sheldon's spot from The Big Bang Theory. Round 2 poses 5 short answer questions about how common items like lipstick and car tires are made. Round 3 has 12 questions that appear related to weather instruments, space missions, nuclear weapons, and more, with a potential theme of women in science.
3. 1.
If something is moving through the air at some velocity, it experiences a drag force due
to air resistance. The drag force increases exponentially with velocity. Thus X needs to
exert an exponentially increasing force to the ground. Also X needs to be resistant to
sweltering heat, as friction is one of the implications of what he does best.
Who is X?
6. 2.
Beams of light are tricky to contain because photons are very difficult to turn around or
stop mid-air. Perhaps the easiest way to create a 3-foot-long beam would be a mirror
opposite to reflect the light.
Also ,the power of a visible light laser pointer would need to be upped by a factor of
about a thousand before it could do any damage, and a laser of that power would
require an extensive cooling system.
These are some of the reasons why people have questioned the authenticity of a very
famous object. Which object?
9. 3.
In Boston, lived ____, as did ____,
Who gained mgh on a hill.
In their liquid pursuit,
____ tripped on some trash in the sand.
He changed his potential
To kinetic, torrential,
But not before grabbing ____'s hand
How do we more popularly know this scientific rendition?
15. 5.
"In an ever-changing world it is a single point of consistency. If my life were expressed as
a function on a four-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system, that spot, at the moment
I first sat on it, would be (0,0,0,0).”
What is (0,0,0,0)?
18. 6.
Metamaterials are tiny, artificial structures are smaller than the wavelength of light and
exhibit negative electromagnetic properties that affect how an object interacts with
electromagnetic fields. In 2006, Duke University's David Smith took an earlier theory
posed by English theoretical physicist John Pendry and used it to create a metamaterial
capable of distorting the flow of microwaves. Smith's metamaterial fabric consisted of
concentric rings containing electronic microwave distorters. When activated, they steer
frequency-specific microwaves around the central portion of the material.
What highly popular fictional object could these metamaterials make a reality in the
near future?
21. 7.
A self-centered person is excessively concerned with himself and his own needs. Self-
centered people tend to ignore the needs of others and only do what's best for them. In
the seventeenth century, however, self-centered meant "fixed or stationary."
Give us both the scientific concept, and the metaphor related to it, to describe the
above?
24. 8.
The formula for converting between kinetic energy and thermal energy is 1/2mv2 = mcT.
The average __________ weighs about 0.4kg, the average ____ has a velocity of 11 m/s
and average ______ weighs 1kg, and has a specific heat capacity of 2720 J/kgc and has
to reach a temperature of 2050C. 1 average ____ would generate a temperature increase
of 0.0089 degrees celsius. Thus the velocity needs to be 1665.65 m/s.
What question stands answered by the above, which recently put many social media
sites into a thinking fix?
27. 9.
X is an annual contest ,started in 2008 by science journalist John Bohannon,under the
auspices of continuing sponsors Science Magazine and the American Association for the
Advancement of Science. The winners are chosen by an expert panel of scientists and
artists. X has become popular in trying to explain a usually mundane concept in an
interesting and expressive way.
How is this done?
33. 11.
The shortcomings of traditional indicators and the multitude of scientific performance
dimensions led to the development of innovative, alternative measures. Altmetrics is
“the study and use of scholarly impact measures based on activity in online tools and
environments. The goal of this paper is to investigate whether ________ _____ for
unpublished manuscripts that are uploaded to the Internet could be used as an early
indicator of the future impact of the scientific work, as ________ _____ always express a
clear positive semantic meaning.
Fill in the blanks with a possible indicator.
56. ROUND 3
The 11th hour is here
12 questions
+10/-5 on Pounce, +10 on Bounce
The questions/answers are related to a particular theme.+50 if you guess the
theme correctly
57. 1.
A Pyranometer is a device that is used to measure the solar radiation flux density
(W/m2) from the hemisphere above within a wavelength range 0.3 μm to 3 μm..
A Disdrometer is an instrument used to measure the drop size distribution and velocity of
falling hydrometeors.
A Transmissometer is an instrument for measuring the extinction coefficient of the
atmosphere and sea water, and for the determination of visual range.
A Ceilometer is a device that uses a laser or other light source to determine the height
of a cloud ceiling or cloud base.
Where would you find a Pyranometer, Disdrometer, Transmissometer and a Ceilometer,
among other things?
60. 2.
The main engine was referred to as Kumbhakaran, as it was laying dormant for nearly
nine months. However, on 22nd September 2013, it was awakened for exactly four
seconds and corrected the trajectory, and thus paving the path for a successful 24
minute firing in the next couple of days.
Which system’s main engine was called the Kumbhakaran?
66. 4.
(a)Transposition, docking and LM ejection, including SIVB photography
(b) Separation from SIVB and a CSM evasive manoeuvre
(c) SIVB propulsive venting of propellants
(d) Two series of P23 cislunar navigation sightings, star/earth horizon, consisting
of five sets at 06:00 GET and five sets at 24:30 GET
(e) Four midcourse corrections which take place at TLI +9, TLI +24, LOI -22 and
LOI -5 hours with DV nominally zero
(f) Passive thermal control (PTC) will be conducted during all periods when
other activities do not require different attitudes.
(g) LM inspection and housekeeping
(h) LOI1, performed at 75:54:28 GET, ends the TLC phase.
What is being described here, the detailed calculations for which were
performed by human computers?
69. 5.
The first-ever commercial X, dubbed the "Radarange" stood at nearly six feet tall and
weighed 750 pounds, according to the Southwest Museum of Engineering,
Communications, and Computation. It also required a water line to cool the magnetron
tube. That first model was priced at around $5,000 in 1947, the equivalent of
approximately $53,000 today. The models today are more compact and affordable and
are present in nearly all houses.
ID X
72. 6.
The X girls were a group of female factory workers who contracted a form of poisoning
from painting watch dials with self-luminous paint, which contained X. X was initially
used in dials because it was self-emitting and did not require any external energy
source. However, the poisoning of the X girls led to a stop in the usage of X in watch
dials and was soon replaced by Tritium and Strontium aluminate.
ID X.
75. 7.
This term was originally coined by Eugene Wigner, who initially believed in an alternate
model, but was soon convinced by the evidence for this current most popularly accepted
model. It seemed a little out of the ordinary for him, and thus led to the coining of the
word. This is observed in the elements: Helium, Oxygen, Calcium, Nickel, Tin, Lead and
the hypothetical Unbihexium.
What is the term?
78. 8.
This is a simplified version of a graph, which was one of the most important
discrepancies between theoretical predictions and observed data, in the beginning of
last century. What problem is being depicted in this graph?
81. 9.
Although primarily famous in a completely different field, X was where the World Wide
Web was developed, and X put the software in Public domain, and even made it open
license for maximum dissemination. X has now recently started a project to restore the
first ever website, info.X.ch, and also has claims to being associated with one of the first
photos on the web, although indirectly.
ID X.
84. 10.
CPA lasers opened up an industry for more precise machining of a wide range of
materials. This has found particular use in the machining of brittle materials, used
extensively on electronic devices, which is made up of alkali-aluminosilicate and has
great surface strength.
What have these CPA lasers improved production in, without which most of us would
have a tough time?
87. 11.
X Y is a collection of biographical essays ,published by the Indian Academy of Sciences.
It’s name was derived from X, which was a treatise written Bhaskara, and deals with
arithmetics, algebra, geometry, etc. through poetic conversations with his daughter,
which signifies the theme of the biographical essay.
ID X Y .