The ____ hypothesis, proposes that organisms interact with their inorganic surroundings on Earth to form a self-regulating, complex system that contributes to maintaining the conditions for life on the planet. Topics of interest include how the biosphere and the evolution of life forms affect the stability of global temperature , ocean salinity, oxygen in the atmosphere and other environmental variables that affect the habitability of Earth.
Fill in the blank, which is also a figure from Greek mythology.
Category: Science
[334]
X are a parody awards given to genuine scientists and researchers for their off beat inventions. The stated aim of the prizes are “first make people laugh, and then make them think”. Some of the recipients of the awards have been:
a bra that can be converted into a pair of gas masks
research on the “five-second rule”
converting old Russian ammunition into diamonds
discovery that chimpanzees can identify other chimpanzees individually from seeing photographs of their rear ends
Id X.
[320]
X is a valley about 10 km east of Duesseldorf in Germany where a discovery was made in 1856. While it was not the first of its kind, it coincided with publishing of one of Darwin’s books.
This made the efforts to study the discovery serious, and the discovery itself ended up being named after the valley X.
What am I talking about?
[306]
In 1880s, Wilbur Atwater conducted experiments burning food items. A highly simplistic outcome of this experiments was the following equation:
X = 4*Carbohydrates + 9*Fat + 4*Protein
This output is followed the food industry till date.
What is this equation supposed to measure?
[287]
These type of drugs were originally created to fight Type 2 diabetes, however a happy side effect found was that they helped in reducing obesity. They work by introducing compounds like semaglutide, tirzepatide, etc. which reduce hunger & slow food movement hence making the person feel faster for longer.
Already a $10 billion market, these drugs are expected to become cash cows for their companies in the future.
Can you name the category of these drugs?
[260]
This method has been successful due to the abundance of Carbon in organic matter and half life of its isotopes to be 5,730 years.
It has been used for scientific methods, like proving the validity of Dead Sea Scrolls, while also disproving the authenticity of artifacts like the Shroud of Turin.
Identify the method/science.
[245]
Often called the forgotten astronaut, can you name the third person on the Apollo 11 mission to the moon?
[193]
Connect the following to the world of technology:
1. A pack animal from South America
2. A boy’s name of French origin
3. A Zodiac constellation
4. Sanskrit for something which is not natural
5. An invented word for the Martian language, meaning deep understanding
[191]
Endosymbiosys is the process in which one species is engulfed by another, and continues to live inside the host in a symbiotic relationship.
Roughly 2.2 billion years ago an archaea virus absorbed a bacterium to create X.
1.6 billion years ago, cyanobacteria was absorbed by some advanced organism creating Y.
Can you identify X & Y, which have had life changing impact on Earth?
[189]
ENSO is a weather phenomenon which was originally named after Jesus Christ and is caused by the variation in winds blowing over the Pacific Ocean. It typically occurs every 2 to 7 years and is responsible for heavy rainfall on one of the Pacific, to droughts on the other.
Can you identify this weather phenomenon?
[188]
At the end of the World War I, the German navy sank their own naval fleet rather than handing it over the British Royal Navy, going against Treaty of Versailles. This was done at Scapa Flow, an archipelago north of UK.
The scrap from the sunken fleet became more valuable after World War II and is being currently used in a scientific tool.
Can you identify how these scraps are being used?
[186]
This word is constructed from Greek words meaning ‘rock’ & ‘blood of Gods’.
The phenomena occurs when plant oils & bacteria in the ground get activated after a dry spell.
Can you identify the good word?
[185]
This element was first discovered through spectral lines of the sun in India in 1868 by French astronomer Jules Janssen. As the element was observed to be coming from the sun, it was named after a Sun God.
It was later found to the the second most abundant element in the universe by mass.
Identify the element.
[172]
The Indian Government gifted a statue of Lord Shiva to be installed at a science facility. The statue is a metaphor for the cosmic dance of the God, which creates & destroys the world. The work of the scientific facility is also similar, which is trying to understand the forces behind creation of the universe.
Which science facility is the statue situated in?
[165]
On March 18, 1937, a natural gas leak caused an explosion and destroyed the London School in New London, Texas, United States. The explosions was one of the deadliest in the history of Texas, leading to 600+ deaths & injuries.
The question is, what regulation did this tragedy give rise to, which is followed till today.
Show AnswerOdourization of combustible gases, for example, natural gas, LPG, etc.
In fact, the incident was considered so big at the time, even then German Chancellor Adolf Hitler wrote a telegram giving his condolences.
Read More about the incident.
[152]
This society first started by Samuel Shenton in 1956 has the principle idea that as of today is no longer commonly believed. However, the members still claim that the proofs are manipulated and hence its existence even in this 21st century. Its logo draws inspiration from the UN flag.
[144]
X is a concept in physics which talks about the chaotic interaction interaction between bodies. It was especially used to describe the movement of the Sun, Earth & Moon.
X is also the title of a science fiction series by Chinese author Liu Cixin. The series was recently adapted into a series by Netflix.
Identify X.
[142]
“Amber woody perfume X by the house of Givenchy is excellent for eternal explorers and fans of sensual experiments. It has a geometric bottle with perfectly clear lines.”
Why would this perfume would be a hit with mathematicians like Newton & Leonhard Euler?
Show AnswerIt's called Pi, after the mathematical concept. It is also Pi day today, 3/14.
Here's a great Veritasium Video on the concept.
