Easy like Sunday morning: What has October 15 ever given us?
1 / 10 |
Born on October 15 in 1542, this person became a Mughal emperor at the age of 13. It is believed that he might have been dyslexic, so had trouble reading and writing. To overcome this, he appointed nine literary greats to guide his rule. Who was this emperor, who envisioned unity amongst all his subjects by creating a religion where people could practice their own faith along with others?
2 / 10 |
On on October 15 in 1860, 11-year-old Grace Bedell wrote a letter to a politician, telling him to grow a beard. In it, she mentioned that growing one would be better as his face was thin. He responded asking if it would be silly to start growing one. He eventually did grow a full beard, which became iconic. Who was this person, whose face is the only one with a beard carved on a huge mountain in South Dakota?
3 / 10 |
Born on October 15 in 1881, this English novelist and playwright is renowned the world over for his wit and humour. His first name was ‘Pelham’, but as a child he used to pronounce it as ‘Plum’, and that name stuck. He sent his first novel to a friend with a (prophetic) note stating: ‘These first fruits of a GENIUS at which the world will shortly be AMAZED’. Who was this author?
4 / 10 |
On October 15 in 1878, this person started an Electric Light Company in his name. It was basically to provide financial support for all his experiments with light, in return for control of the eventual patents. Who was this person, who took the word ‘filament’ from the original inventor Joseph Swan and made it his?
5 / 10 |
On October 15 in 1924, US President Calvin Coolidge declared the Statue of Liberty as a national monument. The internal design of this friendship gift from France was by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, who passed away, but was replaced by another engineer who designed the more modern, flexible, skeletal system. Who was this engineer, who gives his name to another famous monument?
6 / 10 |
On October 15 in 1928, the first commercial transatlantic passenger flight service started operations. A giant hydrogen-filled rigid airship, it started on petrol but switched to fuel later. It had a crew of 35 and carried 24 passengers. It was named after a German count who invented it. What was the name of these airships, which is also familiar to fans of classic rock?
7 / 10 |
Born on October 15 in 1931, this engineer was the son of an imam at a local mosque. His family ran a boat ferry and he used to distribute newspapers. He went on to obtain seven doctorates and eventually became the first scientist (and bachelor) to occupy the office of Rashtrapati Bhawan. Who was this iconic person?
8 / 10 |
On October 15 in 1932, JRD Tata flew India’s first commercial flight from Karachi to Mumbai via Ahmedabad. He had a load of mail onboard his Puss Moth and flew at a then scary 160 km/hr. This flight led to an enterprise that currently flies to 40 international destinations. What enterprise is this?
9 / 10 |
Born on October 15 in 1949, Prannoy Roy is an Indian journalist who started his career covering India’s general election for the BBC and became famous for his popular tv show ‘The World This Week.’ In 1998, what channel did he and his wife launch — the production house that revolutionised the news industry in India?
10 / 10 |
On October 15 in 1991, the highest-energy cosmic ray ever known was observed at the University of Utah HiRes observatory. Its energy was 320 million TeV, which is 40,000,000 times that of the highest energy protons produced in a particle accelerator. Its name is a reference to the fact that they discovered it while looking for the ‘God’ particle, and it was the expression the scientists uttered when they saw it. What is the name of the particle that can be expressed in three letters?
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