15 questions that cover the world...
Every week, we presented 15 new questions, and published answers to the previous week’s questions. The newspaper gave away prizes for those who get all the answers right.
I’ve been involved in quizzing most of my life — for over 30 years. I partnered on this with my friend and long-standing quiz enthusiast (and film buff) Vindana Ariyawansa. Vindana too started quizzing as a school boy aged 13, and was later a member of University of Kentucky quiz team for three years. In 2008, he published a Quiz Book in English containing 1,000 questions and answers on general knowledge.
Here, in a single place, are all the weblinks to the weekly Quiz Quiz column as it appeared in Daily News. It ran for 100 weeks during 2011-2013.
Wiz Quiz 1, published on 18 January 2011: Potpourri of 2011
Wiz Quiz 2, published on 25 January 2011: A Handful of Oscars
Wiz Quiz 3, published on 1 February 2011: Wetlands are not wastelands!
Wiz Quiz 4, published on 8 February 2011: Of oil prices and food crises
Wiz Quiz 5, published on 15 February 2011: Fury of a Young Lady (La Nina)
Wiz Quiz 6, published on 22 February 2011: Cricket World Cup is here (scroll down the page to find the quiz)
Wiz Quiz 7, published on 1 March 2011: Films, Canals and Famous Cities
Wiz Quiz 8, published on 8 March 2011: Women Holding Half the Sky
Wiz Quiz 9, published on 15 March 2011: Can Computers Outsmart Us?
Wiz Quiz 10, published on 22 March 2011: Japan’s Struggles with the Four Elements – reflections after Fukushima triple disaster
Wiz Quiz 11, published on 29 March 2011: Hazards of Harnessing Nuclear Power
Wiz Quiz 12, published on 5 April 2011: Celluloid Dreams, East and West – tribute to Sri Lanka’s leading film maker Lester James Peries
Wiz Quiz 13, published on 12 April 2011: Going Where Noone Has Gone Before… (Marks 50th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin’s first spaceflight)
Wiz Quiz 14, published on 19 April 2011: Celebrating Earth Day
Wiz Quiz 15, published on 26 April 2011: Cartoons, No Laughing Matter
Wiz Quiz 16, published on 3 May 2011: Celebrating the Media (to mark World Press Freedom Day)
Wiz Quiz 17, published on 10 May 2011: Of Royal Weddings and Desert Flowers
Wiz Quiz, No new quiz published on 17 May 2011: Answers to (previous week’s) Wiz Quiz 17
Wiz Quiz 18, published on 24 May 2011: National Anthems in South Asia
Wiz Quiz 19, published on 31 May 2011: Marking World Environment Day
Wiz Quiz 20, published on 7 June 2011: Any time is Tea time!
Wiz Quiz 21, published on 14 June 2011: Lankan Artist George Keyt Remembered
Wiz Quiz 22, published on 21 June 2011: Islands Around the World
Wiz Quiz 23, published on 28 June 2011: Celebrating Problem Solvers (about the Right Livelihood Award)
Wiz Quiz 24, published on 5 July 2011: Asian Actresses with a Cause
Wiz Quiz 25, published on 12 July 2011: The Expanding World of Google
Wiz Quiz 26, published on 19 July 2011: Indian Novelists: The Empire Writes Back!
Wiz Quiz 27, published on 26 July 2011: Goodbye, Space Shuttle!
Wiz Quiz 28, published on 2 August 2011: Have a Rice Day! (about rice in our lives and culture)
Wiz Quiz 29, published on 9 August 2011: Celebrating Nelson Mandela
Wiz Quiz 30, published on 16 August 2011: Pluto’s New Identity
Wiz Quiz 31, published on 23 August 2011: Maldives on the Frontline (small island states impacted by climate change)
Wiz Quiz 32, published on 30 August 2011: Race to the bottom of the Sea (about deep ocean exploration)
Wiz Quiz 33, published on 6 Sep 2011: Real and celluloid Bridge on the River Kwai
Wiz Quiz 34, published on 13 Sep 2011: Lankans in the Night Sky
Wiz Quiz 35, published on 20 Sep 2011: Satyajit Ray as a Writer
Wiz Quiz 36, published on 27 Sep 2011: United Nations General Assembly
Wiz Quiz 37, published on 4 Oct 2011: Greenpeace Turns Forty
Wiz Quiz 38, published on 11 Oct 2011: Celebrating peace makers with Nobel Prizes
Wiz Quiz 39, published on 18 Oct 2011: Goodbye, Steve Jobs!
Wiz Quiz 40, published on 25 Oct 2011: Commonwealth for a Common Future
Wiz Quiz 41, published on 1 Nov 2011: Pugwash for a Safer World
Wiz Quiz 42, published on 8 Nov 2011: The Indian Ocean
Wiz Quiz 43, published on 15 Nov 2011: Children’s Authors: Reaching the Child in Us All
Wiz Quiz 44, published on 22 Nov 2011: Mobile Phone: Tech Marvel in Everyone’s Pocket
Wiz Quiz 45, published on 29 Nov 2011: Films shot on location in Ceylon and Sri Lanka
Wiz Quiz 46, published on 6 Dec 2011: Public figures taking on HIV
Wiz Quiz 47, published on 13 Dec 2011: Dam safety is everybody’s business!
Wiz Quiz 48, published on 20 Dec 2011: The Global Adventures of Tintin
Wiz Quiz 49, published on 27 Dec 2011: South Pole, a century later
Wiz Quiz 50, published on 3 Jan 2012: Celebrating Ananda Coomaraswamy
Wiz Quiz 51, published on 10 Jan 2012: Looking back at 2011…
Wiz Quiz 52, published on 17 Jan 2012: Celebrating International Year of Cooperatives
Wiz Quiz 53, published on 24 Jan 2012: Do you really know where you are? (satellite navigation)
Wiz Quiz 54, published on 31 Jan 2012: Saluting versatile artist Mahagamasekera
Wiz Quiz 55, published on 7 Feb 2012: Ancient languages and alphabets
Wiz Quiz 56, published on 14 Feb 2012: A generation of TV broadcasting in Sri Lanka
Wiz Quiz 57, published on 21 Feb 2012: It’s Oscar Awards time once again!
Wiz Quiz 58, published on 28 Feb 2012: Charles Dickens at 200
Wiz Quiz 59, published on 6 March 2012: The power of social networks
Wiz Quiz 60, published on 13 March 2012: The world of billionaires
Wiz Quiz 61, published on 20 March 2012: Counting people: census time again!
Wiz Quiz 62, published on 27 March 2012: Saving electricity today for a better tomorrow!
Wiz Quiz 63, published on 3 April 2012: Remembering the ‘Battle of Ceylon’…
Wiz Quiz 64, published on 10 April 2012: Remembering the Titanic, a century later…
Wiz Quiz 65, published on 17 April 2012: Inspired by the Titanic disaster
Wiz Quiz 66, published on 24 April 2012: Remembering dramatist and writer Sugathapala de Silva
Wiz Quiz 67, published on 1 May 2012: Buddhist temple paintings in Sri Lanka
Wiz Quiz 68, published on 8 May 2012: Diamonds are forever
Wiz Quiz 69, published on 15 May 2012: It’s cartoon time!
Wiz Quiz 70, published on 22 May 2012: A glimpse of Dharmasena Pathiraja’s films
Wiz Quiz 71, published on 29 May 2012: Celebrating the Monsoon!
Wiz Quiz 72, published on 5 June 2012: Protecting Life on Earth (World Environment Day special)
Wiz Quiz 73, published on 12 June 2012: Can Films Save the Planet?
Wiz Quiz 74, published on 19 June 2012: A World addicted to oil
Wiz Quiz 75, published on 26 June 2012: Michael Jackson Remembered 3 Years after his death
Wiz Quiz 76, published on 3 July 2012: What Happened to Amelia Earhart?
Wiz Quiz 77, published on 10 July 2012: Wildly Talented Will Smith
Wiz Quiz 78, published on 17 July 2012: Countdown to London Olympics…
Wiz Quiz 79, published on 24 July 2012: Olympics: The Greatest Show on Earth
Wiz Quiz 80, published on 31 July 2012: Sri Lanka at the Olympics
Wiz Quiz 81, published on 7 Aug 2012: Fifty Years After Ran Muthu Duwa
Wiz Quiz 82, published on 14 Aug 2012: Ageless James Bond turns 50
Wiz Quiz 83, published on 21 Aug 2012: Looking back at London Olympics 2012
Wiz Quiz 84, published on 28 Aug 2012: Magsaysay Awards and Sri Lanka: saluting excellence
Wiz Quiz 85, published on 4 Sep 2012: Planet Mars: From Imagination to Exploration
Wiz Quiz 86, published on 11 Sep 2012: The Colourful World of Lankan Chitra Katha
Wiz Quiz 87, published on 18 Sep 2012: Rich History of Currency in Sri Lanka
Wiz Quiz 88, published on 25 Sep 2012: From the World of Twenty20 Cricket
Wiz Quiz 89, published on 2 Oct 2012: Fantastic imagination of Roald Dahl
Wiz Quiz 90, published on 9 Oct 2012: Che Guevara: From Revolutionary to Global Icon
Wiz Quiz 91, published on 16 Oct 2012: All about food – on World Food Day
Wiz Quiz 92, published on 23 Oct 2012: The Beatles Still Echo, 50 Years Later
Wiz Quiz was not published on 30 Oct 2012 due to lack of space in the newspaper.
Wiz Quiz 93, published on 6 Nov 2012: From the Newspaper History of Sri Lanka
Wiz Quiz 94, published on 13 Nov 2012: Antarctica: The Frozen Continent
Wiz Quiz 95, published on 20 Nov 2012: Japan and Sri Lanka: Bridges of Friendship Across Asia
Wiz Quiz 96, published on 27 Nov 2012: Quizzing Glimpse into Fascinating Japan
Wiz Quiz 97, published on 4 Dec 2012: Creators of Modern Education in Sri Lanka
Wiz Quiz 98, published on 11 Dec 2012: Pioneers of Civil Aviation in Sri Lanka
Wiz Quiz was not published on 18 Dec 2012 due to lack of space in the newspaper.
Wiz Quiz 99, published on 25 Dec 2012: Arthur C Clarke of Serendib
Wiz Quiz 100, published on 1 Jan 2013: Celebrating the World of Quizzing!
Wiz Quiz has ended in its current incarnation. Thank you for being part of our weekly mind journeys!
23 January 2013 at 3:18 am
To regular readers of Wiz Quiz:
We’re currently taking a break from compiling Wiz Quiz. We hope to return soon with an improved series, and would really like to hear from you on:
- What you found most useful or interesting in Wiz Quiz?
- What MORE would you like to see?
- Anything you want us to change?
Thanks for leaving your comments.
26 January 2013 at 8:02 am
Thank you very much for the Whiz Quiz article. really appreciate the effort, since it’s been the only one of its kind in a local newspaper.
I really liked the fact that the questions explored deep in to the ‘weekly theme’ giving a wide knowledge on it to the readers.
Thanks again & well wishes for the next ‘season’ of Whiz Quiz! :)
best regards.
SISIRA