19 Jun 2016

Quiz 11 - 10 questions on Pen, Pencil and Eraser - Answers

1.Established in 1958, Hindustan Pencils Pvt. Ltd. are the largest pencil manufacturer in India. Which two well known brands do they own ? (Both Required)

Ans. Nataraj and Apsara.

2. Prior to the invention of the eraser in 1770 by Edward Nairne (better known for making the marine barometer), what was used by people in Europe to erase pencil marks?

Ans: De-crusted, moistened and balled up bread pieces.

3. Hymen L. Lipman is credited with registering the first patent for a pencil with an attached eraser on March 30, 1858. In 1862, Lipman sold his patent to Joseph Reckendorfer for $100,000, who went to sue a pencil manufacturer for infringement. In 1875 the Supreme Court of the United States ruled against Reckendorfer declaring the patent invalid because his invention was actually a combination of two already known things with no new use.
Which pencil maker won the case ?

Ans: Faber.

4.  The small hole in the cap or lid of a pen is recommended by ISO 11540:2014. What is its purpose?

Ans: The hole is a measure to minimize the risk of children accidentally inhaling pen caps. Also if a child inhales a pen cap and it does gets lodged below the larynx, the hole in the cap will allow air to flow and prevent asphyxiation.

5.What was invented by Yukio Horie of Japan in 1962 and was ideally suited to the strokes of Japanese writing, which is traditionally done with a pointed ink brush ?

Ans: The Fiber-tip pen.

6.If you recollect your early school days you will remember a practice in which one used to keep a plane paper over a embossed surface and lightly rub it with a pencil, thus creating a image of the embossed surface on the paper. Such technique is also used in visual art in which an impression of the surface texture of a material, such as wood, is created by placing a piece of paper over it and rubbing it with a soft pencil or crayon and often provides a starting point for more elaborate compositions such as paintings and collages.What is this art technique called?

Ans: Frottage and was used by artisit like Max Ernst and other members of the Surrealist movement

7.The Japanese Kokuyo Co. Ltd. is a major share holder of which Indian company ?
Clue: When Kokuyo purchased 51% stake in 2011, it flipped its backward looking logo to forward looking.

Ans: Camlin.

The new logo

 The old logo, camel walking back.



8. When the swadeshi movement started in India, all the pens used for writing were imported from abroad. One day Gandhi met Kosuri Venkat, a local entrepreneur and encouraged him to start manufacturing pens. Thus this company was launched in 1932 and began manufacturing fountain pens at Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh. N Subba Rao Pantulu and S Kasturi Ranga Iyengar, the founders/managers of what is now The Hindu Group were the first people to buy these pens and were soon followed by Nehru, Gandhi and other Congress leaders. The pens are available even today and are handmade and take about 2 days to manufacture. Which company?

Ans: Ratnam Pens. They have a facebook page where you can place an order for one.
Deccan Grand Ebonite pens.

9. You can buy this pen made by the Italian car designer Pininfarina for 89 euros ...
or go for this cheaper Jac Zagoory pens for about 25euros...
What is their USP or what is special about these pens?

Ans: These are inkless pens and suppose to last for very long time (limitless they call it).
The writing tip oxidises the paper and leaves a trail like that of a pencil. The markings however cannot be erased and hence called a pen.

10. Frederick George Miles was a British aircraft designer and manufacturer of light civil and military aircraft . In 1943, Miles was shown a prototype of an invention and  he believed it to be of great use to aircraft navigators as it worked equally well at low altitudes and high altitudes. So Miles offered to produce them for the Royal Air Force. The ministry was worried that it would distract Miles from aircraft production but Miles eventually persuaded government officials to let him use 17 unskilled women to produce the invention commercially. At the end of the world war II, the factory employed 700 people, and was named the Miles Martin Company. What Invention am I talking about ?

Ans: The ballpoint pen, invented by  László József Bíró.

1 comment:

  1. Scores of the quiz are as follows:
    Ameya 3
    Annie 5
    Anil Rodrigues 7
    Ancil 4
    Paul 3
    Raghunandan 3
    Julian 4
    PM 2
    Ajey 7
    Akshay Tanna 23
    Vishwanath 10
    Sahil H R 4

    ReplyDelete