UPSC Prelims 2004 Q93: Science & Technology – Science & Technology History
Which of the following pairs is NOT correctly matched?
- (a) Reinhold Messner - Computer Technology
- (b) Harlow Shapley - Astronomy
- (c) Gregor Mendel - Hereditary Theory
- (d) Godfrey Housfield - CT Scan
Answer: (a) Reinhold Messner - Computer Technology
Explanation
Personalities and fields
| Pair | Verdict |
|---|---|
| Reinhold Messner - Computer technology | Wrong — Messner is a mountaineer |
| Harlow Shapley - Astronomy | Correct |
| Gregor Mendel - Hereditary theory | Correct |
| Godfrey Hounsfield - CT scan | Correct |
Reinhold Messner is a famous mountaineer who first climbed Everest without oxygen, so the pair with computer technology is wrong.
Answer: (a) Reinhold Messner - Computer Technology.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) CORRECT. Messner was a mountaineer, so this pair is wrong.
- (b) Incorrect. Harlow Shapley was an astronomer.
- (c) Incorrect. Mendel proposed the laws of heredity.
- (d) Incorrect. Hounsfield invented the CT scanner.
Key point
Messner: Everest without oxygen (1978); Hounsfield: CT scan (Nobel 1979).
Remember
Reinhold Messner is a mountaineer.
Common mistakes
- Linking Messner with technology.
- Mixing up Mendel with Darwin on evolution.
- Reading the question as asking for a correct pair.
Exam tip
Messner: first to climb all 14 eight-thousanders.
Sources
- Encyclopaedia Britannica — Reinhold Messner
- Encyclopaedia Britannica — Godfrey Hounsfield
- Encyclopaedia Britannica — Harlow Shapley