Answers to another one
MM
Response was encouraging. Here are the answers:
1. Incorporated as Computing-Tabulating-Recording company in
1911, it formally changed its name in 1924. How do we better know this
company today?
IBM
2. The HAL 9000 computer, the inimitable star of the classic
Kubrick and Clarke film "2001: A Space Odyssey," Was and is the
computer of the FUTURE. But what we don't realize is that HAL was
named due to a specific reason …. WHAT ????
(Before Answering this I would like to put a HUGE Foreword; if ever
there was a Question which had Two answers, like "Coffee or Toffee" or
"Egg or the Chicken" then This Q would definitely be ranked as the
Foremost in Computer Trivia, Cause of the Following Answers)
Ans:
(a) In the standard English alphabet, the letters H, A, and L
immediately precede the letters I, B, and M, respectively
(b) IBM is the technology giant in question, a company often
mistakenly credited as the basis for the HAL 9000's three-letter name.
In the standard English alphabet, the letters H, A, and L immediately
precede the letters I, B, and M, respectively.
The coincidence is so striking that many have often assumed that the
HAL initials are a veiled reference to Big Blue. The fact that a
number of fake IBM products appear in the film—including several
monitors and a spacesuit control—only served to reinforce this
assumption.
In actuality, HAL's real-world creator, Arthur C. Clarke, and his
instructor in the novel, Dr. Chandra, both profess that the HAL name
is shorthand for heuristic algorithm, purportedly the mathematical
principle that serves as the basis for HAL 9000's artificial
intelligence. Clarke has also gone on record to say that, had he
noticed the IBM-HAL connection before the release of the film or
novel, he would have named the computer something else.
And just to hammer home the point, when Clarke penned the sequel to
2001 in 1982, 2010: Odyssey Two, he didn't name HAL's twin the HAL
9001 or the HAL 9000-B but instead chose SAL 9000. Whether that will
put the HAL-IBM issue to rest is a matter of debate—and of great Geek
Trivia.
3. Intel recently offered a $10000 prize for anyone who can give
them this item. David Clark, a 57-year-old employee of Philips
Electronics, found it under the floorboards of his home in Surrey ,
England and walked away with the prize. What item?
1965 copy of Electronics Magazine that featured Intel co-founder
Gordon Moore's Law.
4. A story goes like this. A tractor manufacturer M had clutch
problems in his car C. He took it to the manifacturer of the car N to
complain. N refused to meet him, saying a tractor manufacturer doesn't
know a thing about high end sports cars. Later M fixed the clutch him
self, and then started his own car making venture D. Identify, "M and
N" or "C and D".
5. How does Accenture get its name?
Accent on Future
6. What was formed when a Margarine maker company from
Netherlands, joined hands with a soap making company from Britain in
1930, as both used palm oil as raw material and it made perfect sense
for them to join hands , as it will make importing palm cheaper for
both.
Unilever
7. This company was called Lutsuko and later changed its name to
something that literally means 'to lose money'. Which one?
SONY
8. With which famous brand would you associate The Spirit of Ecstasy?
Rolls Royce
9. Which famous corporate's head quarters is known as 'Bush House'?
BBC
10. Easy one to end with! This world famous direct marketing
company was founded by Rich Devos and Jay Van Andel in 1959. Name it?
Amway
Scores:
Indrani - 10
Sachin - 9
Neeta - 9
Rajiv - 8
Mandar - 6
Amit - 5
Suhel - 5
Good works fellows. Till next time.
MM
I'm diagonally parked in a parallel universe