X was initially designed by John Socha for the original IBM PC. The purpose of X was to prevent phosphor burn-in on CRT and plasma computer monitors. The term X is named so because of this protection quality.
Identify X.
Category: Technology
[331]
OpenAI recently introduced a new model called o1, which is optimized for logical reasoning. According to sources, the internal name of the model is ‘Strawberry’. The fruit can also be seen incorporated into the demo of some of the videos uploaded by the company.
Question is, what is the significance of the fruit to OpenAI & ChatGPT?
[319]
The recently released cover of Time’s take on 100 influential people in the world of AI has two actors (covered in green). Scarlett Johansson & Anil Kapoor
The first is known for their work in movie on AI, which later became a point of issue for the actor.
The second is an Indian actor, who fought and won a case preventing AI to use his likeness.
Can you identify them both?
Show Answer Phoenix
Scarlett known for voicing the AI in the movie 'Her', was at the receiving end when she found that an OpenAI model sounded exactly like her.
Anil won a case in New Delhi, preventing his likeness to be used by AI, which he went on to dedicate to actors across the globe.
The cover has also come under fire for not including biggies of the industry like Elon Musk & Sam Altman.
[307]
Tesla posted the following job description on their website. Which division/product is this required for?
Must be able to walk 7+ hours a day while carrying up to 30 lb
Height between 5’7″ and 5’11″
Must have the ability to stand, sit, walk, stoop, bend, reach, crouch, and twist throughout the day
Ability to travel up to 25% of the time and daily regional driving
[298]
The conflict between Russia & Ukraine has been cited as the first large scale use of this technology in warfare. The ability to neutralize a multi million dollar equipment such as a tank with a $500 weapon has been a game changer.
Looking this trend the Ukrainian government has even created an ‘Unmanned System Forces’ earlier in 2024 to specialize on this front.
Which technology am I talking about?
Show Answer(Warfare) Drones
The war in Ukraine has been characterized by drone deployment of unprecedented scale, with thousands of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) used to track enemy forces, guide artillery and bomb targets.
Read more about use of Drone in Ukraine & State of Drone Warfare.
[294]
X is a network technology indirectly funded by the US military. It works on the principle of Onion routing, used to hide the one’s identify on the internet. X even has an onion for its logo.
Due to its anonymous nature, X is commonly used for accessing the ‘dark web‘ and sites dealing with illicit activities.
Identify X.
[270]
X is usually encountered when something unexpected occurs. While the origin of the term is unknown, according to one theory – it was because there was no logical option give to the user on encountering X.
Over the years, the company behind X tried to soften impact of X by adding an emoticon.
Can you guess what am I talking about?
Show AnswerBlue Screen of Death
Officially called the stop screen, or stop error, the blue screen of death (BSOD) is a most unwanted error, second only to malware or ransomware in indicating that a user is in for a very bad day. It comes with no warning and all unsaved work is immediately lost. And given what it indicates, that could be the least of a user's problems.
Read More about the outage faced by millions of users recently.
[261]
Identify X and give funda.
United States – X
Russia – GLONASS
China – BeiDou
European Union – Galileo
India – NacIC
Japan – QZSS
[255]
The inspiration for the design of X originally came by extending the lines of Morse code. Over the years, there were many configurations (concentric rings, starburst pattern, etc) which were tested, but many were rejected due to issues with ink smearing.
It was IBM’s design which was finally selected, and was first used on a 10-pack of Wrigley’s Juicy Fruit gum.
What am I talking about?
[239]
X is a low cost multi-utility computer originally designed for education purposes. The product was named as an homage to early computer companies being named after fruits.
However, the product became extremely popular & is now being used not just by hobbyists, but also by researchers and corporations. The company behind the product even went for an IPO in this month.
Identify the product.
[216]
X is a “software” co-founded by Monty Widenius & named after his daughter My Widenius.
The software’s mascot is called “Sakila” a feminine name in the SiSwati language from Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), Africa.
Can you identify this software?
[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
[176]
Company X recently announced retirement of its product Y, especially at a time when its product category has seen a lot of coverage. This has been been due to the dated hydraulic architecture of Y.
Known for doing choreographed dancing & being pushed around, the product is named after a mythical character holding the weight of the heavens.
Identify the company X & the product Y.
[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?
[162]
Anguilla is a small island in the Caribbean with a population of about 16000 residents.
The island became a beneficiary of the recent AI tech boom, adding $32m or about 10% in its annual GDP.
How did AI helping Anguilla?
[154]
John X was a Scottish-Canadian farmer who is credited with discovering the X Y.
Jef Raskin is credited with the naming of Y’s Z line of products, inspired by X Y.
The difference between X and Z is of spelling. Jef Raskin deliberately misspelled the name to avoid conflict with a high-end audio equipment manufacturer X Laboratories.
Identify X, Y and Z.
[148]
When started, this company initially had no name and the co-founders just named all their files NV, as in “next version”. When the company was being incorporated they chose the Latin word for “envy” for the company name.
Identify the company.
[140]
The “X Meter” is a phenomenon where there was a sudden influx of business for providers of X in areas with concentrated US government activity (like Washington DC, where the White House and the Pentagon are located) just before major world events in the 1980s and 90s (notable examples being the first Gulf War and the US invasions of Panama and Grenada.)
This was first noticed in 1990 just prior to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, when CIA personnel gathered at the Pentagon to discuss the ongoing issue, and one Frank Meeks realized a lot of his business traffic during that time (especially at night) was directed at the Pentagon. Business continued to boom right into 1991, with business spikes very reliably tied to major announcements from the White House and the Pentagon, a series of events the public dubbed the “X Meter”. Similar trends were spotted in hindsight in the 80s.
Naturally, the powers that be weren’t too amused by this trend being publicized, and government offices were instructed to change their tactics to break this pattern.
What is the X in question?
[138]
Borgholm Castle is a 13th century castle located in Sweden & is noted for its design.
The same design can also be seen representing tourist attractions in Nordic countries.
How is this design related to the field of technology?
[122]
Apeks, Atomic Aquatics, Cressi, Mares, Sherwood, and Zeagle are all popular brands of scuba regulators — but arguably the oldest and best known is another brand that shares its name with a famous 1971 rock “concept” album (and its title song).
What brand?