FUNDAMENTALS
Around 5,000 people have summited the world’s highest peak, however Mt. Everest still continues to sway people’s imagination. Take this quiz on the peak, also known as Sagarmatha and Chomolungma. Write in with your suggestions, questions (with answers) to senjam@gmail.com.
MT. EVEREST
1. Mt. Everest, before it was named Mt. Everest, was called Peak XV. What was it called before it was code-named Peak XV? 2. Following the successful conquest of the Everest, the signal transmitted by the radio operator at Namche Bazaar to the British ambassador in Kathmandu said: ‘Bad weather expedition cancelled’. Why? 3. George Everest was not the Surveyor General of India when the height of Mt. Everest was officially calculated and the peak declared as the highest in the world. So why is the peak called Mt. Everest? 4. Junko Tabei is the first woman to climb Mt. Everest. Who is the first woman to have reached the summits of the highest peaks on all seven continents? 5. In 1980, Italian Reinhold Messner climbed for three days all alone from his base camp at 6,500 metres without the use of artificial oxygen. He thus became the first person to make a solo climb. Two years back in 1978, he, along with a compatriot, made the first ever ascent without bottled oxygen. Who was his companion? 6. Do you remember the second man to break the 10 second barrier in 100 metres or the second man to break the four minute barrier in a mile? I will not test your patience by asking you to name the mountaineers who made the second ascent of Everest. Ernst Schmied and Juerg Marmet made the second ascent, after Hillary and Norgay. My question: They were a part of the Everest expedition of which country? 7. John Hunt was the leader of the first successful expedition to Everest. He was, however, not the first choice. Initially, the choice was to appoint a joint leader. The proposal of joint leadership was not taken kindly by the original choice, who withdrew. Name this personality.
ANYTHING GOES
1. Nilesh Kulkarni only played 15 Tests for India, retiring in 2010. What unique record does he hold in Indian cricketing history? (P.S.Nivritee Sreelekha, Secunderabad) 2. What is an employee who has fewer personal responsibilities and so can work long hours, travel frequently, or be called in to work at short notice, called? (Philip Joshua, Secunderabad) 3. The world’s tallest selfsupporting communication tower is also the second tallest structure in the world after Burj Khaleefa. Identify. (Adithya Jeevan, Thiruvananthapuram) 4. In the 140 years of Test cricket, only two batsmen scored a century on their Test debut but suffered the ignominy of never being selected for a Test match again. Andy Ganteaume from the West Indies is one of them. Name the other. (BK Harinath, Mysuru) 5. This product was made by the Chesebrough Manufacturing Company until the company was purchased by Unilever in 1987. The inventor of this product was such a believer in it that he claimed to have eaten a spoonful of it every day till his death at the age of 96 years. Name it. (Dee Surendranath, Hyderabad) 6. Sachin Tendulkar is married to Anjali Mehta. Her father Anand Mehta is also a National champion in a sport. Name it. (D. Sharanya, Hyderabad) 7. What is common to Juarez, Sinaloa, Beltran, Los Zetas, Gulf and Tijuana? (Rajeev Lochan, Kolkata)