Literature, Politics & Science General Knowledge Quiz

Shera was the official mascot of the XIX Commonwealth Games 2010 held in Delhi. Shera was a Royal Bengal Tiger, representing India's national animal. The claimed answer (Tiger) is correct.

India did confer the Padma Bhushan on Nelson Mandela in 1990, making this statement true. Mandela received this Indian civilian award while still imprisoned, recognizing his struggle against apartheid. He was awarded the Bharat Ratna (India's highest civilian honor) in 1990 as well.

Laika, a Soviet dog, was the first animal to orbit Earth on Sputnik 2 in 1957. While other animals like Miss Sam (rhesus monkey) and the dogs Pchelka, Mushka, Verterok, and Ugolyok also went to space, Laika was the first to actually orbit Earth.

Stephen Hawking wrote 'A Brief History of Time' which was published in 1988 and became a bestseller explaining cosmology and physics to general readers. Hawking was a renowned theoretical physicist known for his work on black holes and relativity. The book remains one of the most popular science books ever written.

C P Gurnani was appointed as the CEO of Mahindra Satyam (formerly Satyam Computer Services) after the company was acquired by Tech Mahindra. He took over the leadership during the company's recovery period following the 2009 scam. The company was eventually merged with Tech Mahindra in 2013.

Indira Gandhi was the first woman to receive India's highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna, in 1971. Mother Teresa received it later in 1980, while M.S. Subbulakshmi and Lata Mangeshkar were honored in 1998 and 2001 respectively. Indira Gandhi received the award while serving as Prime Minister.

Julia Gillard became Australia's first female Prime Minister in June 2010 after defeating Kevin Rudd in a Labor Party leadership challenge. She led the country until 2013. Kevin Rudd was the Prime Minister before her and later returned to the position in 2013.

Laika, a Soviet dog, became the first animal to orbit Earth in Sputnik 2 in 1957. She was a stray dog from Moscow and her mission paved the way for human spaceflight. Sadly, Laika did not survive the mission as technology for return journeys hadn't been developed yet.

Benigno 'Noynoy' Aquino III became the President of the Philippines in 2010 following the death of his mother, former President Corazon Aquino. He won a landslide election on an anti-corruption platform. The name in the option has a typo with '|||' instead of 'III'.

Stephen Hawking wrote 'A Brief History of Time' published in 1988. This landmark book made complex concepts in cosmology and physics accessible to general readers. Hawking was a brilliant theoretical physicist who worked at Cambridge University despite suffering from ALS.

C P Gurnani served as the CEO of Mahindra Satyam after Tech Mahindra acquired the scam-hit company in 2009. He led the company through its recovery and eventual merger with Tech Mahindra in 2013. Ramalinga Raju was the founder who was involved in the scam, while Sanjay Kalra and M Rao were not CEOs.

David Cameron was the leader of the Conservative Party and served as Prime Minister of the UK from 2010-2016. The Labour Party is the main opposition party in the UK, while the Democratic Party is primarily associated with US politics. Therefore, he belongs to the Conservative Party.

Nirupama Rao served as India's Foreign Secretary from 2009 to 2011. K. Balakrishnan was not associated with this position, and Shashi Tharoor served as Minister of State for External Affairs, not as Foreign Secretary.

Barack Obama served as the 44th President of the United States and is a member of the Democratic Party. The other options refer to political parties in the UK (Labour, Conservative) or are incorrect.

Mahatma Gandhi wrote 'My Experiments With Truth' (original title: 'Satya Ke Prayog'), detailing his life from childhood through 1921. The autobiography covers his principles of satyagraha (truth-force) and nonviolent resistance. The other authors listed wrote different famous works.

Jawaharlal Nehru wrote 'The Discovery of India' during his imprisonment at Ahmednagar Fort (1942-1945). The book traces India's history from ancient Indus Valley civilization through British colonial rule. H.G. Wells was British, Kalidasa was ancient Sanskrit poet, and R.K. Narayan was a different Indian novelist.

Rudyard Kipling wrote 'The Jungle Book' (1894), a collection of stories set in the Indian jungle featuring Mowgli and animals like Bagheera, Baloo, and Shere Khan. Kipling was born in India and the stories draw from Indian jungle settings. Shakespeare, Abul Kalam Azad, and Adolf Hitler did not write this work.

William Shakespeare wrote 'Othello' (c. 1603), one of his great tragedies about jealousy and manipulation. The play follows Othello, the Moor of Venice, who is deceived by Iago into believing his wife Desdemona is unfaithful. Adam Smith wrote on economics, E.M. Foster is E.M. Forster (spelling error), and Indira Gandhi was a political leader.

E.M. Forster wrote 'A Passage to India' (1924), exploring racial tensions between British colonizers and Indians through the trial of Dr. Aziz and the Marabar Caves incident. Indira Gandhi was a political leader, Rabindranath Tagore was a Bengali polymath, and Kuldip Nayar was a journalist - none wrote this novel.