Quiz 16- 10 Questions on Gases of chemical warfare

Introduction: Nerve gas works by blocking the body’s production of an enzyme called cholinesterase. This allows the neurotransmitter acetylcholine to build up in the body. When this happens, muscles contract but cannot relax. Victims suffer from headaches, runny nose, narrowing of the pupils, and a tightened chest, uncontrollable muscle contractions occur and quickly lead to death by asphyxiation.

1.This war  veteran  took up running as therapy for his lungs, which had been damaged by mustard gas during World War 1. In the 1920 Antwerp Olympic games he managed to beat the favourite Paavo Nurmi in 5,000-metre race and won the Gold. Who?

2. The nerve gas Sarin was used in a terrorist attack in a Tokyo subway station in 1995 that killed 12 people and injured more than 5,000. Which cult was responsible for the attack?

3.  The use of  Gases for  chemical warfare began, when Germany used this gas on April 22, 1915, on fields near Ypres, France against  unprepared Allied lines. At 5 p.m German combat engineers opened 5730 cylinders of this gas and was blown by the wind, towards the allies. Which gas?

4. Mustard Gas, is not a gas but a liquid and was invented by Frederick Guthrie in 1860, who reacted Ethylene with Chlorine, and noticed the toxic effects it had on his own skin.Why is it called "Mustard gas"?

5.  This  nerve agent was accidentally discovered by German scientists in 1938 while researching  organophosphate pesticides. The name is an acronym of the discoverers but was never used by Germany. In 1988, Iraq used it against the Kurds and also during the Iranian soldiers. Although banned by the Chemical weapons convention the gas continues to be used in the Syrian Civil war.   Which gas?

6. VX gas was developed in the Porton Down Chemical Weapons Research Centre, Wiltshire, England in 1952 by British chemist Dr. Ranajit Ghosh. The British traded the technology of VX with the United States of America for what?

7. When Germany was defeated in World war 1, Hitler was lying in a military hospital (1918), what was he hospitalised for?

8.  This nerve gas was the forerunner of all other nerve agents .It is a clear, colourless, tasteless liquid with a faint fruity odour and becomes vapour if heated. Also known as GA it was first developed by Germany as a insecticide in 1936.During the Nuremberg Trials, Albert Speer, testified that he had planned to kill Adolf Hitler in early 1945 by introducing this gas into the Fuhrerbunker ventilation shaft.
During the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s, the Iraqi military fired artillery shells filled with this against Iranian infantry.Which agent?


9. This chemical can be classified as nerve gas itself, but is a suitable antidote to VX gas.This poisonous alkaloid is obtained from plants of the Nightshade family. It is also used medically to stop spasms and cosmetically to dilate the pupils of the eyes (Used by Cleopatra in the hope that she would appear more alluring ) . Which alkaloid?

One eye dilated by the alkaloid. 

10. During the Nazi period this company  took over chemical companies in German-occupied territories, used slave labor in many of its plants, and produced the Zyklon-B gas used for the mass murder of Jews and others. Some of its directors, were convicted of war crimes in 1947. During the war the US government auctioned off all of its American assets, including its name and the name of one of its famous product.These remained outside the company's control until it bought them back from SmithKline Beecham in 1994. Which company?