10 Best Questions Asked In Year 2011

Well, actually it is not the full year because “Ask Eduflix” was silently launched in mid-November and we have questions only for one and a half month. But technically, it is still a year right? So here is my pick of top ten questions asked on Ask Eduflix.

1.  If you pour a handful of salt into a full glass of water, will it overflow? People love fun facts, specially if they are non-obvious. And this was on of them. With more than 800 views and 6 votes, this was one of the most popular questions asked on Eduflix.

2. Probability: boy or girl and proportion in the population Probability was one of the hot topics of year 2011. The question goes like this – In a country where everyone wants a boy, each family continues having babies till they have a boy. After some time, what is the proportion of boys to girls in the country? Again the answer is non-obvious and solved in an elegant manner.

3. What is the probability that two people share the same birthday in a room with 100 people? The question itself is well known and have been discussed widely, but we have it here for the answer it carries. Again very non-obvious answer and brings out the beauty of probability.

4. Why do we have to study chemistry? For Chemistry haters and I was one of them. Not after reading the wonderful answers to the question. Now I love Chemistry. Well, almost.

5. Flipping cards and deductive reasoning A simple puzzle and popularity of this question shows that everyone loves puzzles. A fine demonstration of logic behind simple problems that can face us (in studies, in work or in real life)

6. Is it easier to pull or push a roller? Sometimes, we keep solving problems but never worry about the applications in real life. And sometimes there are no obvious applications (eg. why would you need a complicated pulley structure in real life – I guess you got what I mean). But this question is about real application and how Physics fundamentals you learn in classroom are really helpful outside it.

7. Fair and square at probability, Part 2 A question that uses multiple concepts in a single question – and these are the kind of questions asked in IIT JEE exams. Apart from testing the concepts in Coordinate Geometry, Probability and Calculus, this question also tests imagination power.

8. How do we find out the genotype of original parents? A question everyone has in back of one’s mind. And then it is answered by a real doctor in a very simple way.

9. Maths meets Biology: Predicting the next child’s trait Another biology question and the title says it all – real application of maths in solving challenging problems in biology. The question sounds complicated, but is not so (when you look at the answer)

10. What color is the bear ? How can you know color of the bear if you are told in which direction he is moving? There is always some data hidden in between the lines.  Can you read it? You will say yes after reading this answer.