|
|
|
| ||||
|
Tuesday, 17 April 2012 |
|
|
|
The world just commemorated the centenary of the sinking of the RMS Titanic. What happened on the night of April 14 and 15, 1912 shook and horrified the world. Its reverberations are felt even today, a century later. The tragic disaster also inspired many works of art: poems, paintings, stage plays, and number of films – some in cinematic or theatrical release, and others made for television (TV). This includes the 1997 blockbuster that became the highest grossing feature film of all time, and remained so for a decade. Today, we return to the Titanic theme, but from an artistic perspective. 1.The Convergence of the Twain (Lines on the loss of the Titanic) was a poem by a leading English novelist and poet, which was published in 1915. Some interpret this poem as contrasting the materialism and hubris of humankind with the integrity and beauty of Nature. The poet might be seen as adopting an almost satirical manner as he shows little compassion, and makes no reference, towards the massive loss of life that accompanied the ship’s sinking. Who wrote this poem, one of the best known inspired by the tragedy? 2.What is widely regarded as the most accurate of all Titanic movies is A Night to Remember, a 1958 British feature film recounting the final night of the RMS Titanic. It was directed by Roy Ward Baker, and produced by Irishman William MacQuitty.
The production team used blueprints of the ship to accurately create the sets, while Titanic fourth officer Joseph Boxhall and ex-Cunard Commodore Harry Grattidge both worked as technical advisors for the film. The story was adapted by Eric Ambler based on a 1955 book of the same name written by which author? 3.Probably the best known film about the Titanic disaster is the 1997 movie Titanic, made by United States (US) filmmaker James Cameron. It was the highest grossing movie of all time up to 2009, and won 11 Oscar Awards including those for the Best Director and Best Picture. Titanic is being re-released in 3D in April 2012, to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the actual ship. Which now famous line of the lead character Jack Dawson (played by Leonardo DiCaprio) did Cameron utter when accepting his Oscar for Best Director at the 1998 Oscar Awards ceremony? 4. Six years after his acclaimed and successful feature film Titanic, James Cameron made a documentary film about the ship. This was based on an expedition to the wreck of the Titanic that Cameron and a group of scientists made in August and September 2001 using Russian deep-submersibles to obtain more detailed images than anyone has before. With the help of two small, purpose-built remotely-operated vehicles nicknamed ‘Jake’ and 'Elwood,’ the audience too can see inside the Titanic wreck on the ocean floor and with computer generated imagery, audiences can also visualize the ship's original appearance superimposed on the deep-dive images. What was this documentary, released by Walt Disney Pictures and Walden Media, called? 5. Science fiction writer Arthur C Clarke, born in England five years after the Titanic sank, often said that the maritime tragedy had haunted him all his life. He twice wrote about attempts to salvage the Titanic’s wreck. In Imperial Earth (1976), he mentions as a sub-theme bringing the wreck to New York to mark the Quincentennial of the US in 2276.
At the time, the wreck had not been discovered. He returned to this as a main theme in a full scale science fiction novel written in 1990, which drew on the wreck’s discovery five years earlier. This story deals with two groups, both competing to raise one of the halves of the wreck of the Titanic from the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean in time for the sinking's centennial in 2012. What was this novel called? 6.Of the many acts of heroism on the night Titanic sank 100 years ago, none has captured the public’s imagination quite like that of the ship’s band which played on the main deck to maintain calm onboard. The bandleader and his musicians played lively ragtime tunes while the lifeboats were being lowered, and continued their duty – entirely voluntarily - until the ship went down. None attempted to get into a lifeboat and none survived. Who was the 33-year-old bandleader of this brave and committed group of musicians? 7.The wreck of the Titanic will come under the protection of the 2001 International Convention on the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage once it passes the 100th anniversary of its sinking on April 15, 2012. This action is being taken amid growing concerns at its deterioration as a result of tourist visits and exploration submarines crashing into its structure. Since its discovery in 1985, over 700 divers have visited the wreck site which is more than 4,000m under water off the coast of Canada. The convention gives its signed-up member states the right to prevent exploration deemed unscientific or unethical, seize illicitly recovered artefacts and close their ports to all vessels undertaking exploration that is not done according to its principles. Which United Nations (UN) agency is in charge of this international law? 8.Scouting in Sri Lanka marks its centenary in 2012. The practice of Scouting was introduced to Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) by an English engineer named F G Stevens, who wanted schoolboys in his neighbouring school in the Central Province to put their ‘spare time' to better use rather than be a nuisance to neighbours. So he came up with the idea starting a ‘Boy Scout Core,’ which was already a success in England. He later became the first Chief Scout Commissioner of Ceylon. Which school in the hill country was the first to have scouting? 9.Muwan Pelessa is a popular Sinhala radio drama series. Broadcast on state-owned Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) since 1963, it is the longest radio drama in Sri Lanka and one of the longest surviving radio dramas in Asia. It was started at the suggestion of then SLBC director general who had wanted a rural story showcased on the monopoly radio channel. In its heyday, Muwan Pelessa enjoyed the attention of 80 per cent of the combined radio audience in Sri Lanka (at a time private channels were not allowed). Name the medical doctor turned creative writer who conceived the story and scripted it for many years until he emigrated to the US.
10.The popular Lankan actor, voice artiste and singer who plays the role of arrogant and autocratic Korale Mahattaya (village headman) in Muwan Pelessa has performed that role from the very beginning in 1963 up to date, a record of nearly 50 years (with short breaks in between). At 79, he still gives voice to this character. Who is he? 11.China has been affected by earthquakes throughout history. By far the most deadly earthquakes in history have occurred in China (one earthquake in Shanxi killed approx. 830,000 people in 1556, while another one in 1976 in Tangshan killed approx. 655,000). Historically, there was a great need for an instrument such as the seismograph. A very crude one was developed in the 2nd Century Anno Domini (AD) by a Chinese inventor who could be compared with Aristarchus or Archimedes in his scientific accomplishments. Modern seismographs were not developed in the West until the mid 19th Century. Who was this Chinese inventor? 12.Over the last 12,000 years, the global climate has remained remarkably stable. This has allowed humans to plan ahead, inventing agriculture, cities, communication networks and new forms of energy. In the geological time scale, what is the name given to the current epoch that we are in? It encompasses within it the growth and impacts of the human species world-wide, including all its written history and overall significant transition toward urban living in the present. 13.Name the well known anthropologist and social activist who said: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” 14. Johnny Weissmuller was an Austrian-Hungarian-born American swimmer and was one of the world's top swimmers in the 1920s. He won five Olympic gold medals and one bronze medal. He also won 52 US National Championships and set 67 world records in swimming. After his swimming career ended, he became the sixth actor to portray in films a well known fictional character created by Edgar Rice Burroughs, a role he played in 12 movies. What is this character? 15.The Veddas (also spelt as Veddahs) are indigenous, aboriginal people of Sri Lanka. Their numbers are declining due to cultural assimilation and their continued existence as a distinctive group is in question. Economic development, declaration of natural protected areas, and the Lankan war have disrupted the traditional Vedda ways of life which is as hunter-gatherers. A few years ago, a young man from the Vedda community finished high school and became the first among his people to graduate from a Lankan university. He later wrote a book called Dadabimen Dadabmata, and has become a teacher. What is his name? 1. Queenstown, Ireland 2. MGY 3. SS Californian 4. Argo 5. MV Doña Paz 6. Bakamuna Weedi Basi (Owl On The Street) 7. The Anthropocene 8. Mahagama Sekera 9. James Bond, in Gold finger (1964) 10. Yekaterinburg 11. John Bingham 12. Tipper Gore 13. Mark Twain 14. 1980 Former Yugosla via; 2004 Argentina 15. Middle East |
|
