Answers 1st Dec 2010

Q1. Which Indian-origin physicist invented the optical fibre and is referred to as the father of fibre optics?

A: Narinder Singh Kapany. He graduated from Agra University before he went to Imperial College, London, for his Ph. D. Wikipedia informs us that "he was named as one of the seven 'Unsung Heroes' by Fortune magazine in their ‘Businessmen of the Century’ issue (1999-11-22)" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narinder_Singh_Kapany

Correct answer: @prashanthkpp, @Saffronizer

Q2. The tallest trees in the world belong to which species (give the common name)?

A: Giant sequoia or Redwood. They are concentrated in California, United States. On an average, they are 50-85 m. tall but the tallest can grow beyond 90 m.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sequoiadendron

Correct answer: @kirankarlmarx, @Prashanth_Krish, @quietist, @Saffronizer

Q3. Which country has the largest number of time zones, and recently reduced it from 11 to 9 to make things more manageable?

A: Russia. Not surprising at all, if you look at the west-east extent of Russia on the map. They will eventually reduce the number to 5 time zones: www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE62R0DS20100328 | @Saffronizer informs us that France has actually 12 time zones. But this number also includes the time zones of its island territories.

Correct answer: @prashanthkpp, @kirankarlmarx, @Prashanth_Krish, @ssudhirkumar, @quietist, @centerofright, @dremtee, @Saffronizer

Q4 Homo sapiens like to think they have the largest brains. But one extinct human species did have a larger brain. Which one?

A: Neandertals or Homo neanderthalensis. They are our closest evolutionary cousins. They had brain sizes going much beyond our 1350 cc (average.) However, the brain size can be misleading as it is the brain size-body size ratio that is more important for intelligence. Homo sapiens have the largest ratio among all human species, and hence are the most intelligent http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neanderthal

Correct answer: @prashanthkpp, @Prashanth_Krish, @Saffronizer

Q5. Unscramble CLITSONAR - antibacterial agent commonly added to toilet soaps, deodorants, toothpastes and handwashes.

A: Triclosan.

Correct answer: @kirankarlmarx, @Prashanth_Krish, @SivaChandan, @Saffronizer

Scores

@Saffronizer 50

@Prashanth_Krish 40

@prashanthkpp 30

@kirankarlmarx 30

@quietist 20

@ssudhirkumar 10

@centerofright 10

@dremtee 10

@SivaChandan 10