A list of puzzling questions: A literary edition
Editor’s note: Every week, we feature three questions from our quiz master Shantanu Sharma—who is a researcher-writer, and has a side hustle as a professional quiz guru. He’d love to hear from you—so send your feedback/suggestions or just say ‘hi’ over at sharmashantanu312@gmail.com or @shantorasbox on Twitter.
How this works: Every correct answer is worth 10 points. If a question has multiple parts, each is worth 5 points. You have until Friday 12 pm to send in your answers to talktous@splainer.in or via DMs on Insta or Twitter. The correct answers will be published every Monday. The grand prize for the winner at the end of the month: a quarterly subscription for anyone of your choice—including the option of adding three months to your sub. That’s Rs 499 in value—so it’s pretty darn good:)
Rule to note: We will pick winners each month using a lucky draw.
The answers: to the previous week’s quiz are at the bottom—as are the winners for the second week of November.
One: The ‘graphic’ details of this speaker’s celebrated work are more timely than ever. Here he is speaking at a recent event in New Delhi.
Two: Keeping with the literary theme, find the element—recently in the news—that connects these:
a) Retail giant
b) Coloured area surrounding the black spot
c) Planets in their trajectories
Three: Fill in the blanks of this alliterative book title—published as a three volume-series in the early 1990s. We recommend you swap it for your smartphone on your next ‘break’.
About last week’s quiz…
Here are the answers to the previous edition of the splainer quiz:
One: As you come to terms with the results, name the US election platform founded by a data-driven sports enthusiast in 2008.
Answer: FiveThirtyEight (or 538)
In 2008, Nate Silver brought statistical rigour to political forecasting, accurately predicting state outcomes. His success challenged traditional polling methods and established data journalism as a respected field through FiveThirtyEight. The site grew from a blog to a major media property, moving from ESPN to ABC News. The name comes from the total number of votes/electors (538) in the Electoral College, of which a majority of 270 votes is required to elect the President. Nate exited ABC News last year to start his new newsletter, Silver Bulletin. You can check out the 24 reasons that Trump won here.
Two: Be gentle and identify the architectural style shared by these buildings—soon to be immortalised on the silver screen. Also: which Indian state capital is home to these structures? (5+5)
Answer: Brutalism and Ahmedabad
Tagore Memorial Hall, Mill Owners' Association Building, and CEPT University in Ahmedabad are the three buildings in order. Brutalism probably comes from the adaptation of the French phrase beton brut (rough concrete) to describe the material qualities of many buildings in Europe after World War.
Le Corbusier (yes, the Chandigarh guy) also left a mark on Ahmedabad, designing several notable buildings in the industrial city between 1951 and 1957. His minimalist ‘box of miracles’ style inspired figures like BV Doshi, who later brought more Brutalist designs to the city. The upcoming film in question is Brady Corbet’s ‘The Brutalist’ which is slated to release on December 20 in the US. Watch the epic trailer here.
Three: Where exactly has this swimming pool been installed—as a poor consolation to disappointed tourists?
Answer: Trevi Fountain in Rome
The Trevi Fountain was drained and closed off in early October as it is undergoing €300,000 worth of renovations. Plans include adding an elevated walkway for closer viewing, which will help manage tourist flow ahead of a planned €2 access fee, flocked by four million annual visitors. A temporary pool has been installed to let tourists participate in the coin-throwing ritual. The tradition has left a lasting mark on pop culture, with memorable portrayals in classic films such as ‘Three Coins in the Fountain’ (1954). Believer or not, do read this fascinating account of the myths and rituals of coin tossing.
And the winners are…
Here are the top five scorers for the second week of November. Congratulations!
