Indian Scientists Practice Questions
20 free Indian Scientists practice questions for the General Science. Tap an option to answer — you get instant feedback, the correct answer, and a detailed explanation for every question.
Which Indian physicist was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1930 for his discovery regarding the scattering of light?
- A Homi J. Bhabha
- B Meghnad Saha
- C S.N. Bose
- D C.V. Raman
Correct answer: C.V. Raman
Sir C.V. Raman discovered the 'Raman Effect,' which shows that when light traverses a transparent material, some of the deflected light changes wavelength. This discovery remains fundamental to modern spectroscopy.
Known as the 'Missile Man of India,' which scientist played a leading role in the development of India's missile and nuclear weapons programs?
- A Vikram Sarabhai
- B Homi Jehangir Bhabha
- C Raja Ramanna
- D A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Correct answer: A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam was pivotal in the development of the Agni and Prithvi missiles. He also served as the 11th President of India and was a tireless advocate for science education.
Who is considered the 'Father of the Indian Space Program' and was instrumental in establishing the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)?
- A Homi J. Bhabha
- B Satish Dhawan
- C K. Kasturirangan
- D Vikram Sarabhai
Correct answer: Vikram Sarabhai
Vikram Sarabhai recognized the importance of space technology for a developing nation. He initiated space research in India and helped set up the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station.
Which Indian mathematician is famous for his contributions to number theory, infinite series, and continued fractions, despite having almost no formal training?
- A Srinivasa Ramanujan
- B S.R. Ranganathan
- C P.C. Mahalanobis
- D Calyampudi Radhakrishna Rao
Correct answer: Srinivasa Ramanujan
Srinivasa Ramanujan independently compiled nearly 3,900 results during his short life. His work, including the Ramanujan prime and the Ramanujan theta function, continues to inspire vast amounts of further research.
Homi J. Bhabha is widely regarded as the 'Father of the Indian Nuclear Program.' He was the founding director of which prestigious institution?
- A Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR)
- B Indian Institute of Science (IISc)
- C Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)
- D Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay
Correct answer: Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR)
Dr. Bhabha established TIFR in 1945 with the help of the Dorabji Tata Trust. He also formulated India's three-stage nuclear power program focused on using the country's vast thorium reserves.
Which class of particles obeys the quantum statistics that Albert Einstein developed after receiving a 1924 paper on photon counting from an Indian physicist?
- A Bosons
- B Fermions
- C Quarks
- D Leptons
Correct answer: Bosons
Satyendra Nath Bose sent his work on quantum statistics to Einstein, leading to the development of Bose-Einstein statistics. The class of elementary particles that obey these statistics was named 'bosons' in his honor.
Which scientist is credited with inventing the 'Crescograph,' a device used to measure the growth and response of plants to stimuli?
- A Birbal Sahni
- B Jagadish Chandra Bose
- C M.S. Swaminathan
- D Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar
Correct answer: Jagadish Chandra Bose
J.C. Bose was a pioneer of plant physiology and used the crescograph to show that plants respond to light, touch and other stimuli much like animals. He was also a key figure in the early development of wireless radio signalling.
The 1983 Nobel Prize in Physics honoured theoretical work on stellar structure and evolution that established the maximum mass a stable white dwarf star can have. This maximum mass is known as the:
- A Event Horizon
- B Chandrasekhar Limit
- C Redshift Effect
- D Eddington Luminosity
Correct answer: Chandrasekhar Limit
The Chandrasekhar Limit, roughly 1.44 solar masses, is the greatest mass a stable white dwarf can hold up against gravity by electron degeneracy pressure. Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar derived it and shared the 1983 Nobel Prize in Physics; cores heavier than this collapse into neutron stars or black holes.
Who is known as the 'Father of the Green Revolution in India' for his role in introducing high-yielding varieties of wheat and rice?
- A Verghese Kurien
- B M.S. Swaminathan
- C Har Gobind Khorana
- D Venkatraman Ramakrishnan
Correct answer: M.S. Swaminathan
M.S. Swaminathan's leadership in the 1960s helped India move from a 'begging bowl' status to self-sufficiency in food grains. His work involved crossing Japanese semi-dwarf wheat with Indian varieties.
Har Gobind Khorana shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1968 for his work on which of the following?
- A The discovery of the double-helix structure of DNA
- B Interpretation of the genetic code and protein synthesis
- C Discovery of the malaria parasite in the Anopheles mosquito
- D The invention of the first artificial heart
Correct answer: Interpretation of the genetic code and protein synthesis
The 1968 prize recognised Khorana's demonstration of how the order of nucleotides in nucleic acids determines which amino acids are assembled into a protein, which completed the interpretation of the genetic code. He built synthetic polynucleotides of known sequence to establish each codon's meaning, and went on to assemble the first artificial gene a few years later.
Which Indian statistician founded the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) and is known for a distance measure used in cluster analysis?
- A Calyampudi Radhakrishna Rao
- B P.C. Mahalanobis
- C Shakuntala Devi
- D Harish-Chandra
Correct answer: P.C. Mahalanobis
Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis introduced the 'Mahalanobis distance,' a statistical measure. He also played a key role in the planning of India's industrialization during the Second Five-Year Plan.
Which Indian botanist, a pioneer of plant cytogenetics, developed sweeter sugarcane varieties suited to Indian conditions?
- A Asima Chatterjee
- B Janaki Ammal
- C Kamala Sohonie
- D Anna Mani
Correct answer: Janaki Ammal
E.K. Janaki Ammal's work in cytogenetics led to the development of sweeter sugarcane varieties suited to India's climate. She also served as the Director-General of the Botanical Survey of India.
Which Indian scientist won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2009 for his studies on the structure and function of the ribosome?
- A Venkatraman Ramakrishnan
- B Chintamani Nagesa Ramachandra Rao
- C R.A. Mashelkar
- D G.N. Ramachandran
Correct answer: Venkatraman Ramakrishnan
Venkatraman 'Venki' Ramakrishnan used X-ray crystallography to map the thousands of atoms that make up the ribosome. This work is crucial for the development of new antibiotics.
Salim Ali is internationally famous for his work in which field of science?
- A Paleontology
- B Seismology
- C Oceanography
- D Ornithology
Correct answer: Ornithology
Known as the 'Birdman of India,' Salim Ali was among the first Indians to conduct systematic bird surveys across India. His books, including 'The Book of Indian Birds,' remain authoritative guides.
Birbal Sahni was a pioneering Indian scientist in which specific branch of botany?
- A Bryology
- B Horticulture
- C Ethnobotany
- D Paleobotany
Correct answer: Paleobotany
Birbal Sahni studied the fossils of the Indian subcontinent, helping to understand the geologic history of the region. He founded the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany in Lucknow.
Which Indian physicist derived the equation relating the ionization state of a gas to its temperature and pressure, making it possible to interpret the spectra of stars?
- A Meghnad Saha
- B S.N. Bose
- C Jayant Narlikar
- D Homi J. Bhabha
Correct answer: Meghnad Saha
Meghnad Saha published this ionization equation in 1920, and it remains fundamental to astrophysics. It lets astronomers deduce the temperatures and chemical compositions of stellar atmospheres from their spectral lines.
Dr. Verghese Kurien is known as the 'Father of the White Revolution' in India for his work in which industry?
- A Cotton and Textiles
- B Rice Milling
- C Pharmaceuticals
- D Milk and Dairy
Correct answer: Milk and Dairy
Dr. Kurien led 'Operation Flood,' the world's largest agricultural dairy development program. He was the force behind the 'Amul' brand and helped India become the world's largest milk producer.
A plot of the backbone dihedral angles of amino acid residues, widely used to check the geometry of peptide and protein structures, is named after which Indian biophysicist?
- A G.N. Ramachandran
- B Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar
- C K.S. Krishnan
- D E.C. George Sudarshan
Correct answer: G.N. Ramachandran
G.N. Ramachandran's plot is a way to visualize dihedral angles of the peptide backbone. It is a fundamental tool in structural biology for validating protein structures.
Who was the first Director-General of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and has a prestigious science award named after him?
- A Homi J. Bhabha
- B Vikram Sarabhai
- C Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman
- D Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar
Correct answer: Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar
Dr. Bhatnagar played a key role in building India's post-independence science infrastructure. The Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology is India's highest award for young scientists.
Which Indian theoretical physicist is famous for his work on the 'Quantum Zeno effect' and 'Tachyons' (hypothetical particles faster than light)?
- A Ashoke Sen
- B Jayant Vishnu Narlikar
- C Abhay Ashtekar
- D E.C. George Sudarshan
Correct answer: E.C. George Sudarshan
Ennackal Chandy George Sudarshan made significant contributions to quantum optics and the V-A theory of weak interactions. Despite being nominated multiple times, he never received the Nobel Prize.