Faction Wire #1

From the CZAR

PHOTO COURTESY: CHRISTOPHER RICHARD

FACTionWIRE JANUARY 2014

THE TEAMB.DeewangEditor in Chief, Chief Designer

EditorialAnkit ShaiWriter

Shravan KumarWriter

Bhuvandeepak ChadaContent Compiler

IllustrationsAnagh NarainCover Designer

Christopher RichardPhotographer

Sarath Narayan PillaPhotographer

I S S U E N O. 1

FACTion started off as SQS (SNU's Quizzing Society) a modest attempt at a quizzing society last year. I wanted it to be a place where I could meet quizzing enthusiasts in SNU, share questions & have fun and also to prepare a team forthe various quizzes that take place throughout our country. In 2012, we were around 30 people that used to come to these meetings. The numbers kept dropping till we had around a dozen members by the time of the final exams of that semester. During the

process, Shravan who too was keen about quizzing and full of ideas joined me in the endeavour. By the next semester, it was time for the fest, Breeze. We decided to be ambitious and organize 4 quizzes. Everybody who had managed to still remain a part of this society was involved in the organization of one or the other of these quizzes. I will forever be indebted to these extraordinary people who chipped in during FACTion's infancy. And during this time FACTion Bratva (Managing Committee) took shape, where Deewang, Ankit & Bhuvanjoined us. Well considering Breeze was our first big event. It was quite a success.

Since this is our inaugural issue, in this issue you will get a chance to follow our journey, how we got here, who we are, what we have done so far. And don't miss the columns Techworld, Sportszilla, Celestia, Ampere Affairs, Celluloid & Quills that will be our regular features.Oh and we have a few surprises up our sleeves, for which you'll have to wait. Including the unveiling of FACTion AG.


I S S U E N O. 1

I'll have to leave my thanks incomplete or else it’ll take up the entire magazine. First, I'd like to thank Ram sir for helping us out and contributing in every step right from our inception to our latest event. Hopefully, we'll get the buzzers this time. *fingers crossed*. Second, I'd like to thank every FACTion member who has been with us whether it be during the SQS meetings or participating in our latest event Quizzitch. And yes, thank you for making Quizzitch such a roaring success. A Overstuffed Seminar Hall 2 was more than we hoped for. Thank you to everyone who ever attended any of our events. The entire BRATVA for making any of it possible. And Thank you, our first readers for making it all come true.

BRATVA

ContentsPHOTO COURTESY: B.DEEWANG

F E A T U R E S

I S S U E N O. 1 J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 4

S E C T I O N SFrom the Bratva

The Future

The 6 Elements

THE COVERBY ANAGH NARAIN

O F F I C I A L M A G A Z I N E O F F A C T I O N , S H I V N A D A R U N I V E R S I T Y

TIMELINE

ELIXIR - BREEZE ’13

INDEPENDENCE DAY QUIZ

TEKNOLOGIY ’13

XINREN ’13

UN DAY QUIZ

QUIZZITCH ’13

STELLARIUM ’14ELIXIR - BREEZE ’14

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8

22

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The Past

AVANT GARDE

Russian Pyramid An overview of the membership levels in FACTion. Also details on how to be a part of Bratva. From the BratvaB Y B R A T V A

2013 A look at our past and highly popular events. A small summary and photo coverage of each event. The PastB Y B R A T V A

Re-beginnings A brief look at our future events, details on the upcoming FACTion Avant Garde. The FutureB Y B R A T V A

The Bratva A small profile on the founding/core members of FACTion A.K.A. The Bratva. Their roles, their contributions and their quirks. From the BratvaB Y A N K I T S H A I & B . D E E W A N G

by FACTion Bratva

In FACTion what we value the most is commitment. Early this academic year we implemented a structure in

FACTion so that we know from whom we expect the most. The tiers of this pyramid aren’t just accessible

if you have experience but are accessible if you have the passion to commit and be ready at a moment’s notice. Being experienced is just an

added bonus.

Loyalist



Being a Loyalist means that you are serious about quizzing but not necessarily keen on organising one. Loyalists will be given access to FACTion’s online services and a subscription to this magazine and on top of that they get a chance to represent SNU at inter-university competitions and get access to meetings where SNU’s quizzing present and future is decided.

Being an Associates means that you enjoy quizzing, you take part just for the fun of it. To acknowledge you as a member of FACTion, FACTion will be giving the associates access to its online services and a subscription to this magazine.

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AssociateEvery member will

receive a unique membership number and a virtual badge

L e g e n d

PHOTO COURTESY: SARATH NARAYAN PILLA

rush and one who stands across him, grilling him. Legends are given a chance to experience both. They can be a part of the organising team of an event as well as get priority selection as SNU’s entry to Inter-University Quizzes.

Being a part of Legend is no joke. A Legend has to have no less commitment than a member of the Bratva. You can call the Legends the actual members of FACTion. The Legends will form the Spine of FACTion. Being a part of Legend will give you access to the behind the scenes efforts the Bratva has done for their previous and will do for their past or upcoming events and get a chance to be a part of it. And of course the most committed ones will obviously be considered for Bratva. Legends will also get a chance to be a part of the team that has helped put up this wicked magazine that you all are reading right now and of course a subscription. They’ll also be given access to FACTion’s online services. There are two kinds of people who love quizzing, one who wants to take part and feel the


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BRATVA


PHO

TO C

OU

RTES

Y: SA

RATH

NAR

AYAN

PIL

LA

THE AVTORITYET IS ABSENT

The Bratva stands at the pinnacle of the pyramid. Bratva is the deciding authority on all matters regarding the society. The positions in the Bratva are firstly the Czar (President). Then follows the Sovietnik (Vice President), Avtorityet and Boyeviks. There are 4 Boyeviks (currently 2), each one being a representative of their respective years. The three positions are next in power to Czar and ride the same boat.

The Bractva is the managing/organising/core-committee of FACTion. Each member is the soul of the society. It is their contribution, endeavour, drudgery & diligence that has made FACTion what it is today.

To be a part of the Bratva you must bring something different to the table. To get a spot you must be a diehard quizzer, dedicated to FACTion, a connoisseur of questions, a marketing expert, a whiz at designing and most of all FACTion wants that lightbulb of yours to never be switched off. Be the Q to our James Bond.

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T H E 6 E L E M E N T S

Sportszilla

AMPERE AFFAIRS

Identify the former New York Knicks forward and a one-time All-star team person, who was senator for three terms and once ran for the president.

Famous tweet by whom – “If Cristiano Ronaldo doesn't win the FIFA BallonD’Or tonight.....I will run down the street butt naked! Won't be a great sight I tell ya!! Come on CR7!”

Name the Australian cricketer who has scored a half century or more in each one of the 5 Test Matches of the ongoing Ashes Test Series against England.

Name the Indian and former English Billiard World Champion against whom the Mumbai Police has issued a look out notice this week for possible involvement in a 425 crore scam.

Who managed the first English side to win the European Cup?

Which among the following has become the first in the country to implement foreign tracking system? [A]Tamil Nadu [B] Karnataka [C] Maharashtra [D] Goa

Name the Indian who has become the first male junior badminton player from India to be ranked top in the world? [A]Naveen Singh [B] Aditya Joshi [C] Jaswanth Singh [D] Mahendra Singh

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What is the name of the new 5 Lac car with Automatic Transmission & Exceptional fuel efficiency?

What were the 2 big events that took place in Delhi this weekend?

This January we, the SNU Quizzing Society renamed

ourselves. We were rechristened as FACTion.

2013 has been a very important and eventful year for FACTion.

Foremost of them NOT being named “Castle of Cognition”.

FACTion’s official debut in Breeze’13 wasn’t only a success but also established FACTion as one of the most active society of SNU. Following Breeze we’ve

conducted quite a few events. Let’s have a look at ‘em.

Elixir

Elixir was the collection of all the quizzing events held during Breeze ’13. We had four quizzes spanning across various genres. All the four quizzes saw an overwhelming participation from the University and a few external colleges which turned up to the fest.

The Techbyte Quiz, A Science & Technology Quiz saw the participants grueling themselves to realize who amongst them had an apt knowledge about various sci-tech revolutions in the world.

The Literature & Media Quiz, perhaps the most enlightening and the most entertaining quiz of all the entire lot, had the students on the seat edges, as they battled it out to figure out who knew the most on TV Shows, Comics, Movies, Literature, Media etc. This quiz was widely acknowledged by the general crowd due to the queer nature of the questions and the surprisingly unexpected answers.

Elixir

The Sports Quiz, held primarily to pacify the needs of the eager and never-satisfied sports fans, who like wild beast had to show out to the world that they were aware of the A-Z of sports across all games. The event saw a huge sports critique turn out answering some really hard questions.

And finally, the Flagship event of Elixir, The Breeze Main Quiz, it was the baap of all the quizzes to be held that year. It had a really attractive cash prize being offered to the winners and free goodies to the audience prize winners. It was a mixed bag quiz of sorts and had questions from all genres from Business to Sports, from Megan Fox to Michael Clarke etc. On the whole, Elixir was one of the most successful event to have been held as part of Breeze ’13. Suryakant Shrivastav, Sacchit Sreenivasan and Achal Awasti were the most consistent and top performers during Elixir.

- Shravan Kumar, Avtorityet


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Independence Day Quiz

On August 15th of 2013, the University’s first India Quiz was held to commemorate and celebrate Independence Day. It basically tested your knowledge about our homeland, its history and places and personalities, and the many special achievements of the country.

The quiz was won by freshers Akash Idnani and Gautham Kanthasamy who played a very tactical game and answered questions beautifully to emerge out in the top.

- Shravan Kumar, Avtorityet

SNUBS Cultural

Committee 2012-13

In association with

Tekhnologiy

Themed on the Russian Mafia, Tekhnologiy was an event organised by FACTion in collaboration with the STIC as a screening test for the Freshmen to become a part of SNU’s Technology & Innovation Club. As the name suggests, this event was solely based on science & technology and aimed at all the techies among the

STICAs of September’13 STIC has been

disbanded and a few new societies have replace it to cater to the technical needs

and interests of all the engineering streams.

newcomers. This was also the first time we were approached by a club to help them organize a quiz event, that too a club that had been established before FACTion. It was a proud moment.

– Bhuvandeepak Chada, Boyevik

Xīnrén新人

Xinren themed on the Chinese Triads was a mixed bag quiz, one of our major events just for the Xinrens of Shiv Nadar University i.e our newcomers (freshmen). This was the newcomers’ battle for glory in the quizzing world of SNU, their chance to prove their grit to us and to each other. This quiz was also a way of introducing ourselves to the freshmen. To turn this quiz into a grand success all our signature rounds were showcased.

– Bhuvandeepak Chada, Boyevik

No quiz of ours is without a “moment”. This quiz’s moment can be said to be the most hilarious one of them all. Turn to have a glimpse of this very moment.

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The Finalists

and…..

A candid moment at Xīnrén, what we lovably like to call ‘The Xerox Moment’.Featured in the Picture: Sai Gireesh & Adishesh Premkumar

PHOTO COURTESY: SARATH NARAYAN PILLA

UN Day Quiz

The Shiv Nadar University Model United Nations Society focusses on enhancing skills like critical thinking, public speaking, group

communication, research, policy analysis, active listening, negotiation, conflict resolution, note

taking and technical writing. The society encourages the UN core values of Integrity,

Professionalism and Respect for Diversity and aims to create better leaders for the global

community.

- Sundar Ramanujam

were broached upon.

The quiz’s format and questions had not only the finalists but also the audience on their toes. Owing to the topic of the quiz the participants also had a certain level of maturity and seriousness.

- B.Deewang, Sovietnik

October 24th is celebrated as UN Day. Therefore on this day the SNUMUN Society and FACTion held the very first UN Day Quiz. Though the quiz had a limited audience but it was a successnonetheless. Topics like Current Affairs, History of UN etc.

Quizzitch

CineU is the cinema club of SNU. We try to create a social and fun platform

for students to meet during the weekends after college hours and

essentially relax and have fun through cinema. We simply want to make the campus a livelier place on Saturday

nights

- Ishan Banerjee

So far the events we had organized fared well, but they did not have a universal appeal.

Not everyone is interested in Technology or the United Nations. And most people did not feel confident enough to participate in the general mixed bag quizzes.

We wanted to do something that was right inside everybody's comfort zone. And everybody loves Movies, TV Shows & Music.

PHOTO COVERAGE: CHRISTOPHER RICHARD

Quizzitch


Package that with everybody's favourite multi-million dollar franchise Harry Potter and you get a recipe for success.

Quizzitch was our biggest event & also the biggest event organized by a Student Society in SNU.

This was also the first time we used social media to form a connect with the event. The FACTion Facebook November Event Sweepstakes made it viral in SNU. The trailer for it was also very well received. We also gave prizes worth ₹7,000 to the winners. While there were audience question prizes too.

- Anagh Narain, Czar



Techworld

Quills

What technology from Facebook allows you to search for "Photos of my female friends liked by me" ?

What is the name of a new desktop computer showcased by Razor that can be modified, upgraded even by a toddler?

What was the successor to the critically acclaimed Kickstarter project Pebble Smartwatch?

Nest Labs, a company famous for their beautiful thermostats were recently taken over by which Tech giant?

True or False. XOLO X900 and the Google Nexus 4 have the same architecture.

What are The Practical Potioneer, Exsquisitor & Gotham Globe?

With every avatar Vishnu takes, there is his loyal follower taking an avatar too, for example with Ram, Laxmana and with Krishna, Balrama. Who is this follower?

Which Indian Writer is also a member of the U.S President’s Committee on Arts & Humanities appointed by President Barack Obama?

Mark Twain predicted that his life will end with the passing of an astronomical object. Name the object.

The only consulting detective of all time was modelled after whom ?

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Re-Beginnings

Even we can’t believe how far we’ve come this past year , but now the real fun begins.

Now that we know what we’re capable of, it’s time to

experiment, it’s the time to take risks. And one of our new

daredevil act has been featured beyond this page. Dig in and get

to know few of the events that we’ll be having this year.


This past year it has become common for a club to align themselves with us or vice versa to conduct quizzes on topics pertaining to that club. We’ve successfully conducted the UN Day Quiz in association with SNUMUN, Tekhnologiy in association with the now disbanded STIC and of course Quizzitch in association with CineU.

In this long line of associations we have aligned ourselves with Celestia.Explora, SNU’s Astronomical Society to give you this January SNU’s very first Astronomy Quiz, Stellarium

Elixir ‘14

Stellarium

Elixir, a sweetened aromatic solution of alcohol and water. THAT, and quizzing is what keeps blood still running in our veins. This time as part of Elixir, we have two awesome quizzes to take part in, a Gen Quiz and a Conspiracy Theories quiz, both nerve wrecking and enough to make you high. Get to know what these 2 events offer you.

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CONSPIRACY THEORIES AND URBAN MYTHS

Remember that one day when you sat in your room, binge-watching back-to-back episodes of Downtown Abbey and Game Of Thrones? Remember all the time you wasted on fantasy football leagues and watching cricket matches which, for all you know, could be fixed? Are you aware of everything which happens under Kim Kardashian’s Skirts? Put on your thinking turbans, and get ready to take part in this exhilarating journey across the warp and weft of this amazing, dynamic, definition defying, quiz of ours.

Breeze Main Quiz

Do you think the Apollo 11 landing video was shot in a studio?Was there a 2nd gunman in JFK's assassination?Have you played Stairway to Heaven backwards and heard the satanic chanting?

If you answered yes to any of the questions above then we have the perfect treat for you. Conspiracy Theorists and Urban Myth believers, Get ready for The Conspiracy Theory & Urban Myths quiz. The prizes are not a myth. And the only conspiracy is having fun.

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We have spent the last semester trying to get SNU interested in quizzing. This meant having easy quizzes on topics that interest everyone. But that also meant disappointing the few hard-core quizzers we had.

To answer this problem, we are proud to present to you Faction Avant Garde. Faction AG will be a brand of high difficulty & complexity quizzing to cater specifically to the seasoned quizzer. It will include a series of quizzes, dedicated rounds in other quizzes & specially labelled questions. We hope this endeavour which follows our "something for everyone" belief is received as warmly as everything we have brought forth till now.

FACTion AVANT GARDE

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Celluloid

CELESTIA

Which two movies have swept this year’s Oscars Nominations?

Powered by

Name this ambitious endeavour that aims to establish a permanent human colony on Mars by 2025.

Which comet was touted as the “Comet of the Century” but met its end when it went all Icarus?

Last year an online poll to name the most-recently discovered moons of Pluto was started. A name was selected with the maximum number of votes but due to some reasons it was rejected by IAU. What was this name?

The Space Mission Apollo 8 took an iconic picture during its mission. Name the title of this picture.

What is the name of the collection of roughly 50 galaxies to which the Milky Way belongs?

Last year out of no where Beyoncé released a ‘visual album’ on iTunes, what was the album called?

Halle Berry is set to star in a TV Show by CBS. Name this TV Show which has Steven Spielberg as one of its executive producers.

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Which was the first Bollywood movie to be released in the IMAX Format with Dolby Atmos Sound?

Connect Glee, Arrow & Justice League.


From the Bratva

TheBRATVA

Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality -Warren Bennis

He envisioned creating a functional quizzing society, and ended up laying the foundation stone for the university's most functional and popular society run at its core by just 5 like-minded individuals who as a group knew what clicked and how to achieve it.

FACTion was founded in a time when every other individual was starting a society just for the sake of it. It was during this time that Anagh held up his bit as the head of the society protecting it from falling a victim to staleness, inactivity or even worse - extinction. He forced the very interested of the lot to make quizzes for the sake of keeping the society afloat. And once the fab 5 got a taste of it (quiz making and subsequent success), there was no looking back.

Even without any competition or yard sticks to measure ourselves against, Anagh led FACTion to excel at every event. Dishing out highly successful quizzes one after the other to the quiz fanatics and all else, FACTion did finally achieve mind numbing numbers in terms of participant-attendance - we overran the capacity of the largest seminar hall in SNU during our last venture!

29 30

By Ankit Shai

Every cool idea the rest of the BRATVA gave, he knew how to make it cooler and viable. Awesome shells, cooler fonts – he even put thoughts into the nooks and crannies. Well before every event he put in place all the nuts and bolts, foresaw problems and installed a check even before the problem surfaced and distributed responsibilities appropriately. Whatever he missed, the rest of the BRATVA nudged in. He conducted regular meetings, with pre-conceived agendas and new ideas for us to work on or better and took in ideas positively.

A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.

And you sure did!

Way to go, CZAR

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His tall sturdy built is hard to miss but his jovial & fun filled personality is hard to forget. He has been a progressively integral part of FACTion. It is hard to please him without facts. He respects facts greatly and tends to accumulate a lot of “information” in his own memory. He spends an enormous amount of time and energy performing every task he sees as important, especially if it contributes to the achievement of a specific goal.

On the flipside, it is hard to make him budge one he’s hooked onto something. Despite the fact that he prefers to do things alone, he can also work as part of a team if necessary. His creativity, sense of humour is very different from anything we have ever seen. His sometimes radically different point of views, give us all a new perspective and makes each decision that we make on behalf of FACTion, more thought out and smart.

He truly is a lively person to have around. And the FACTion will always cherish his company.

By Anagh Narain & Shravan Kumar


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He can be called the heart of Bratva, if the other four handle the bodily functions, he handles or is the core. He is the one who has never led us astray from the true purpose of our society as well as Bratva, quizzing. Being a seasoned and hard core quizzer his inputs and insights have always been highly valued. His experience is the reason that our highly praised quizzes aren't just "pretty faces" but have substance. He is a visionary in his own right. His vision for the society as well as quizzing at SNU is extraordinary and we, the Bratva stand by it.

His insistence on talking to the 'peeps' makes him a highly favoured quiz-master. And of course his legen – wait for it – daryquestions, they send you mind on a trip to Tahiti.

His place in Bratva is irreplaceable, he bring everything to the table and more. In a nutshell he is a great quizzer, a good quiz-master, a good partner and a hard worker. He has been instrumental in helping FACTion reach its current status, that of one of the most popular and active society of SNU.

by B.Deewang


“The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.” ― Phil Jackson

So is true about FACTion too, the BRATVA rather.

Bhuvan, with us right from the inception of FACTion has been a team player all along. He had been indispensable during our first big outing as a society and hasn’t stopped yet. Full of useful suggestions, this diehard Harry Potter fan has always been "a help-giver to anyone who deserved it". (See what I did there?). Prompt with all the responsibilities given to him, never late to the meetings he attended, Bhuvan has been an integral part of the supersquad we like to call the BRATVA.

When during our meetings, we drifted on to "really awesome" things we could do to improve our quiz, Bhuvan played an important role in grounding us and keep things viable. However, he never stepped back when we were bent on implementing those "really awesome" things.

Cuz' we know "One man alone can be pretty dumb sometimes, but for real bona-fide stupidity, there ain't nothing that can beat teamwork."

His quizmaster style - clear and composed.

From one Elixir to another, it’s been a loooo...short journey yet.

You have really been a strong backbone to the BRATVA.

by Ankit Shai

33 FACTionWIRE JANUARY 2014

The showman of our lot. His skills have come to our rescue more than once. His ability to adapt during any of our event and the ability to converse with the audience without letting their interest slip away is a rare gift that this person possesses. He has been instrumental in the development of FACTion. His take on a few areas are unique and different.

A humble person, he is always ready to listen to what others have to say. His contribution to the society have been appreciated a lot of times. One of the few people of the inaugural batch who approached us in the time we needed help.

His effort, dedication and commitment to FACTion have never gone unnoticed. He is an important nut, screw and bolt.

by B.Deewang

34FACTionWIRE JANUARY 2014

What is Quizzing?We at FACTion like to reply with these signature sentences

–

“IT IS NOT TRIVIA.”

“It is not much about the hard disk as much it is about the RAM.”

A quiz is designed to churn your brain. It is designed to make you think. It is NOT designed to test your memory.

We've got our school and college exams for that.

We say, QUIZZING IS FUN. Well of course we'll say that, we run the quizzing society. But I'm sure many of you share

the same feeling and enthusiasm towards quizzing.

The joy in knowing that you know more than your friends/enemies is unparalleled, and of course the fun in

watching them get burnt is inexplicable.

Quizzing IS hard fun.

FACTionWIRE

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