Answers 13th Nov 2010

13Nov10 #Q1. We come across the term 'jwala mukhi' frequently in Indian art and literature. But there is only one active volcano in India. Where is it?

A: Barren Island. It is a remote island in the Andaman group. There are no volcanoes on the Indian mainland. More: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barren_Island_(Andaman_Islands)

Correct answers: @dubash, @arvindsaraswat, @rushikeshgk, @quietist, @PiSingh_, @KiranKS, @kishor_narayan

13Nov10 #Q2. Which scientist would you associate the ship HMS Beagle with? Last year was the 150th anniversary of his most famous work.

A: Charles Darwin. The observations that he made on the HMS Beagle voyage led to his theory of evolution, which was put forward in "The Origin of the Species" (1859.) Nice read here: http://history1800s.about.com/od/innovators/a/hmsbeagle.htm

Correct answers: @dubash, @arvindsaraswat, @amargov, @kishor_narayan, @rushikeshgk

13Nov10 #Q3. The concentration of which hormone rises in the blood when you are afraid or excited?

A: Adrenaline or Epinephrine. It plays a central role in the socalled 'fight or flight' response. Whenever you are faced with a dangerous situation, the adrenal glands inject a shot of adrenaline into your blood to give you that extra boost to escape or fight successfully. That's not all: http://stress.about.com/od/situationalstress/a/adrenaline0528.htm

Correct answers: @dubash, @KiranKS, @rushikeshgk, @kishor_narayan

13Nov10 #Q4. The "Chandrashekar limit", named after Indian-origin astrophysicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, is related to which phenomenon ?

A: The formation of a white dwarf. Stars continuously burn themselves out and when they age and run out of fuel, they turn into either of three kinds of objects: white dwarfs, neutron stars or black holes. If the mass of a star is less than the Chandrashekar limit (equal to 1.44 times of the sun), it remains as a white dwarf. Subrahmanyan Chandrashekar won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1983.

Correct answers: @KiranKS, @kishor_narayan

13Nov10 #Q5. Dry ice is the solid form of which gas?

A: Carbon dioxide. It is used in cooling applications. When exposed to room temperature, it does not melt and simply sublimates into the air.

Correct answers: @Karmasura, @quietist, @Vijay_Vikram, @rushikeshgk, @kishor_narayan

Scores

@kishor_narayan 50

@rushikeshgk 40

@dubash 30

@KiranKS 30

@arvindsaraswat 20

@quietist 20

@Vijay_Vikram 10

@amargov 10

@Karmasura 10

@PiSingh_ 10

Well done guys!