Search your questions that power our play engine.
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This Fabergé egg was the first that Tsar Nicholas presented to his wife Alexandra. Its most notable feature was the surprise it revealed - a certain floral component. What name was it thus christened? The word might also remind one of classical cinema's greatest mysteries.
This image is generated using a text-to-image AI model by feeding the title of a 1939 Pulitzer Prize winning book that was adapted into an acclaimed movie the very next year. Which book, set during the Great Depression?
Renowned for its perfect symmetric conical shape, which stratovolcano ranks as the most active in the Philippines? Named after a local myth surrounding the princess Daragang [blank], it has had 54 major eruptions in recorded history and has been under constant monitoring for 400+ years.
What now-common feature seen in all modern sport broadcasts was first introduced in the U.S. during the 1994 FIFA World Cup? ABC and ESPN used this innovation (first conceived by Sky Sports) in a bid to help sponsors showcase their logo. Its constant presence was also a boon for forgetful fans who had trouble keeping track of the game.
Herbert von Karajan introduced several innovations during his stint at the Vienna State Opera. Which opera by Wagner included falcons and hunting dogs during the finale of the first act set in a valley between Venusberg and Wartburg? The act ends with the titular Minnesinger begging to be led to the Landgrave's niece, Elisabeth.
What term (6,4) is used to refer to the first sixty minutes after birth, a critical period for both the infant and the mother to bond and for checking the baby's vital signs? The term is also used for the period before sunrise or after sunset when the sky is infused with shimmering hues.
In 2017, the Hollywood sign was vandalised to celebrate a new California law that would legalise recreational cannabis. It involved replacing one pair of letters with another pair. What was it modified to read?
Which general and strategist armed with a jian (sword) and zhua (clawed staff) takes on Vlad the Impaler in Deadliest Warrior? A theory amongst some historians is that the ancient treatise he is credited with resulted from a collaborative effort among multiple generals.
Launched in 2017, Fenty is a beauty, skin and lingerie brand launched by which celebrity? It focusses on inclusivity, with significantly broader foundation shade ranges and bras sized 30A to 46DDD. She was declared a National Hero when her country became a republic in 2021.
The world's largest mined ruby was discovered in East Africa in the 1950s. In 1976, sculptor Alfonso de Vivanco overlaid it with 50 diamonds and crafted it in the shape of a bald eagle guarding the _______ ____ (7,4) to commemorate the United States 1976 Bicentennial celebration. Identify this ruby (7,4), that was stolen as part of a heist in 2011 and remains unrecovered.
Which shade of standard blue (h = 240°) gets its name from the dark blue (contrasted with white) worn by members of a branch of the British Royal armed forces since 1748 and subsequently adopted by other similar branches around the world?
Who (3,6) is this layered shot, made using Grenadine, Galliano or banana liqueur, and Creme de Menthe, named after? A rudimentary Google search for the "___ ______ (3,6) shot" will yield results for a 1970s assassination attempt instead of the drink.
Which one-hit wonder novel takes its title from a quote in an essay by Jonathan Swift - "When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the ______(6) are all in ___________ (11) against him."? It was published in 1980 thanks to the persistent efforts of the author's mother, which earned the author a posthumous Pulitzer Prize.
Which porous root vegetable is the source material for and gives a popular K-Beauty sponge its common name? The vegetable is used in Asian cooking to make flour or jelly or add texture. Several sources confuse it with elephant foot yam, but the two are not the same species.
The theme for which 1982 film has been performed by the orchestra here? The arrangement of horns, oboes and strings in the score evoke both childlike wonder and uplifting freedom, both key elements of the film.
The tail of the Air India Express aircraft VT-BXM depicts what GI-tagged handloom technique featuring fine gold or silver thread (zari) woven onto borders on white or off-white cotton and silk fabrics? Native to Kerala, this technique is used for sarees and mundu (dhoti) worn for festivals.
The 1309 relocation of the papacy to Avignon weakened Church authority and encouraged secular political thought, whereas its return in 1377 restored Rome as a cultural center, setting the course for the Renaissance. This happened after St. Catherine of Siena pleaded the seventh and last Avignon pope to return to the Eternal City. Who was this?
In 2020, the photo on the left was used in anti-socialist propaganda with the miscaption "a priest giving the last rites to a farmer who was being executed because he refused to work for the regime." Although this Pulitzer Prize-winning photo is authentic, it is not of a farmer but of a corporal, formerly of which dictator's army? The dictator was overthrown by the socialist regime in 1959.
"Charred Landscape" is a 1960 Abstract Expressionist work by which artist, who created a series of paintings called “Night Journeys” after the car crash of her artist husband? Using the drip style most associated with her partner, she turned the melancholy of her heart into dark slashes of paint.
This ice cream is flavoured with the finely ground powder of specially grown and processed green tea leaves. What flavour, popular in Japan, is this?
Which European city served as the concluding stop for the 2011-12 edition of The Ocean Race? Deriving its name from the word 'gaillimh' meaning "stony river", this city marks the halfway point of the 2,600 km Wild Atlantic Way which runs from County Donegal to County Cork.
Which film features the Tower of Babel as a recurring motif? It reflects how Joh Fredersen's struggle to become God-like is the reason that his society fails. In 2001, this 1927 silent-era classic became the first film to be inscribed in UNESCO's Memory of the World International Register.
For which film does Letterboxd change its webpage colours to represent the national flag of the titular protagonist? This 2023 film was nominated for Best Costume Design and Best Production Design but was considered a commercial and critical failure.
Which scent obtained from this plant's hairy leaves is a base note of Chanel No. 5? This member of the mint family is described as having a powerful, woody, and earthy scent, and its common name is derived from Tamil for "green leaf".
From the opening moments of this 2016 episode of Carpool Karaoke, name the singer whom Corden is inviting in this humorous way.
Dishes with royal connections are not always named after rulers: which dish is named for the one-armed cook Haji Murad Ali who invented it as a successor to his earlier invention, the Galouti kabab, that was soft enough to not require chewing and hence satiate the aging Nawab Asa-ud-Daula?
Several characters across media have been inspired by the Superman archetype. Identify this character who was created as a narcissistic-villainous version of Superman by Garth Ennis. This leader of The Seven sports a cape based on the U.S. flag, a symbol to represent his native country.
Which was the FIRST OF THE FIVE DYNASTIES that ruled as the Delhi Sultanate? This dynasty was in power from 1206 to 1290, and consisted of 11 short-lived rulers, with the longest being Iltutmish who ruled for 25 years and the shortest being Rukn ud din Firuz, who ruled for less than 7 months. Qutb al-Din Aibak and Razia Sultana were other famous rulers in this dynasty.
14 Peaks begins with Purja attempting to climb which peak, statistically the most deadly mountain amongst the 14 in terms of the ratio of successful ascents to total deaths? At 8091m, this tenth-highest mountain in the world was actually the first of the eight-thousanders to be summited when a French expedition led by Maurice Herzog climbed its north face in 1950.
Xenon’s high solubility in lipids combined with a fast elimination rate makes it more potent than the usual nitrous oxide for what purpose in medicine? Other substances used widely for this purpose are isoflurane and desflurane.
This is an India @ F1 quad, so you're expecting to see Force India. Here it is. Vijay Mallya formed the Sahara Force India team in 2008 after buying out the Spykar F1 team. They competed for a decade, after which Mallya's financial woes forced the team to be bought out by a consortium of investors led by Lawrence Stroll in 2019. What name did this new team compete under? They later rebranded to Aston Martin in 2021.
Name this cell organelle found in most eukaryotic cells, marked #9 in the diagram, which acts as a source of chemical energy. Alternately you can also give us the popular nickname coined by Philip Siekevitz in a 1957 article.
After seeing his young daughter struggle at a soda fountain parlour in San Francisco, what innovation did Joseph Friedman come up with by wrapping dental floss around an object to crimp it? Although now universally used by all, it was first used by immobile patients in hospitals in the mid-1940s.
Published between 1951-1975, which 12-volume collection of satirical novels traces events in the lives of a number of characters from Britain’s upper classes following them from the 1920s - 1970s? Chosen by 4 participants in Desert Island Discs, the collection is inspired by and named for this painting by Nicholas Poussin.
In volleyball, many moves or situations are given visually evocative names. Identify this type of situation (5), where two opposing players make contact with the ball over the net simultaneously. It evokes the image of two knights facing off in a medieval contest with their lances raised.
Anand Gandhi's career in media began in 2000 when he wrote the screenplay for the first 82 episodes of which Ekta Kapoor show featuring Ronit Roy as Mihir Virani and now-Cabinet Minister Smriti Irani?
Which Norwegian game-based learning platform uses an "!" as part of its logo? It was originally founded in 2006, but gained massive popularity in 2020 thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.
What portmanteau word is used for these trousers, indicating that these are made from denim, but stretchable and close-fitting, great for casual wear?
Blair Waldorf in Gossip Girl often has dreams where events in her personal life get mixed up with her favourite films. Identify the film in this dream.
The Parker Duofold and Parker 51 were used in 1945 to sign different versions of which agreement? The pens were used in Reims and on the deck of the USS Missouri respectively, with the treaty's three-worded name highlighting the end of military conflict.
Identify the "opposite" pair of terms used to refer to the sites within a battery or electrochemical cell.
- The "positive" side where oxidation takes place.
- The "negative" side where reduction takes place.
Saphira, Thorn, and Glaedr are dragons that appear in the Inheritance Cycle by which Italian-American author? Set in the fictional world of Alagaësia, the novels focus on the adventures of a teenage boy named Eragon and his struggle to overthrow the evil king Galbatorix.
Just like blackface is the practice of (usually) white people decking up as black people for performances, Hollywood has had many examples of what has been termed 'yellowface', i.e. white people using make up to play Asian characters. Which German actress is seen here from 'The Good Earth', where her portrayal of a Chinese farmer's wife won her the Best Actress Oscar for 1937?
By the 1950s, Wimbledon outfits reflected the cinched waists, decorative cardigans, and feminine skirts of the era. Which player was famed for playing the game in pleated skirts and collared T-shirts, similar to the one popularised by Fred Perry? This legend won Wimbledon in 1957 and 1958.
This Chris Riddell illustration accompanies which Phoebe Bridgers song from Punisher? Its two-word title refers to a psychological state of delusions and grandeur where one belives that they are responsible for rescuing others. "Messiah" and "Christ" are used as alternate terms for naming this condition.
Shakespeare uses Proteus to illustrate versatility because Proteus was specifically the god of the elusive nature of water bodies. What sobriquet does Homer ascribe to him, one that implies his wise stature and his domain? You can also arrive at the answer by replacing the word "and" with "of" in the title of a famous 1952 novella.
ZQL Cultish S2 GW7 - Games 701-720. This alternative to plastic straws is made from the seeds of what semi-aquatic grass? With tapioca starch as the binding agent and vegetable dyes giving its colour, it is made using a staple food of over half of the world's population.
Based on a 1930s short story by Robert May that has spurred many songs, an animated Christmas TV special that came out in 1964 is the longest running holiday special in TV history. If we told you the story isn't about Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen, Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen, WHO IS IT ABOUT?
Obstetrician Ian Donald, who studied radar and sonar while serving in the RAF in World War II, partnered with engineer Tom Brown to develop the first prototype system of what device based on an instrument for metal flaw detection in ships? They pioneered the first medical use of this device in 1956. One particular obstetric use of this device is illegal in India as it abets female abortion.
Considered one of the most tranquil types of waterfall, a _________ (9) fall flows down in a constricted form and then spreads out into a wide catch pool. What is it called (9), owing to its resemblance to a vessel used for storing/serving an Indian-origin drink made typically with alcohol, sugar, lime juice, water, and spices?
The steep par-4 Hole No. 10 at the Masters has an abundance of flowering shrubs that belong to a genus honouring a 17th-century Jesuit botanist. Identify this genus, which includes the tea plant, whose species name is “sinensis”.
The Tropic of Cancer passes through seven countries/territories in Africa from west to east. What country is missing from this list?
Western Sahara
[blank]
Mali
Algeria
Niger
Libya
Egypt
Name the cell fluid in plant and animal cells, marked #11 in the diagram, which contains all the other organelles and is itself contained by the cell membrane.
The performers in this Tamil street theatre form wear partial face masks over heavy makeup, and costumes include golden shoulder plates, bright skirts, and crowns. Which art form is this, that shares its name with a high-energy music genre?
Joe Bravo paints vivid icons rooted in Mexican heritage by singeing his "canvas" over an open flame and applying multiple coats of varnish to prevent mould from growing on it. What medium does he use for his artworks?
A lūstrum was a term for a five-year period in Ancient Rome. Such a period was chosen because a certain activity was carried out every five years in ancient Rome. This activity is still carried out by governments globally today though not necessarily at 5 year intervals. What activity?
In 1973, the CIA bankrolled the coup against which leader fearing he would inspire other leftist movements in Latin America through democratic means? He is believed to have died by suicide in the Palacio La Moneda while it was being bombed by the Fuerzas Armadas de [blank].
What term used to refer to a score of "0" in a particular sport originated when a newspaper wrote of Edward VII that he "retired to the royal pavilion on a [blank]"?
Who directed the Orphic Trilogy? An accomplished theatrician and poet, this French polymath was renowned for being one of the foremost artists of the surrealist and Dadaist movements.
Identify the 90s classic from these six illustrations in sequence from the film.
What words fill in the title of Hasan Minhaj's second stand-up special The [BLANK] [BLANK] (4'1, 6) released in 2022? It refers to a character in a medieval royal court who is expected to entertain guests. In the special, Minhaj takes on this role of making you laugh, before asking some uncomfortable questions.
As part of the mosaic artwork The Awakening of the Muses, which non-British actress does Boris Anrep depict as Melpomene, the Muse of Tragedy?
While discussing Romeo & Juliet, Cunk says "Romeo from one side spots Juliet from the other. It's love at first sight... but from a distance. Just like on [BLANK]." (6) Which present-day reference does she make?
The "Highly Commended" category at the 2023 WCPA included a photo clicked by Jagdeep Rajput at an opportune moment, where an Indian sarus crane attacked a nilgai from behind to protect its nest, driving it away. The photo is named after what mythical creature?