2) Daspalla Hills often seen in the news recently is located in?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Answer : b
Some sort of Second World War fortification was recently identified in the Daspalla Hills, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.
It appears to be fortifications of an anti-aircraft battery or an anti-ship battery.
The walls are made of 15-inch thick reinforced steel concrete, and from the appearance and the strategic positioning, it appears to be a gun fortification, with the central structure being the command post.
3) Corbomycin and Complestatin often seen in the news recently are?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Answer : c
A new group of antibiotics has been discovered by scientists at McMaster University in Ontario, Canada, that can be useful in the battle against antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
Corbomycin and Complestatin work by prevent the bacterial wall from being broken down, thus stopping the division of bacterial cells.
This, the scientists said, was in contrast to older antibiotics like penicillin that kill bacteria by preventing the wall from being built in the first place.
Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)
AMR is a global public health threat, according to the World Health Organization.
Misuse of antibiotics in humans, animals, and aquaculture contributes to AMR.
Also, poor management of waste from farms, factories, healthcare settings and households adds to the problem.
4) Consider the following statements with respect to International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
It is an international financial institution and a specialized United Nations agency.
It is based in Rome, Italy.
Membership is open to any State that is a member of the United Nations, any of its specialized agencies or the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Answer : c
The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has recently said that climate change would push 100 million people into the abyss of poverty by 2030.
Close to half of these would be due to climate change’s impacts on agriculture.
Global development and government representatives from across the world made an appeal to urgently spend more on rural development to avoid a catastrophic situation arising out of the climate emergency during IFAD’s 43rd Governing Council meeting in Rome.
International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
It is an international financial institution and specialized United Nations agency based in Rome, Italy, the UN’s food and agriculture hub.
IFAD has 177 Member States comprised of developing, middle and high-income countries from all regions of the world who are dedicated to eradicating poverty in rural areas.
Membership in IFAD is open to any State that is a member of the United Nations, any of its specialized agencies or the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
IFAD is the only specialized global development organisation exclusively focused on and dedicated to transforming agriculture, rural economies and food systems.
5) Consider the following statements with respect to Lassa fever
It is a viral haemorrhagic disease caused by the Lassa virus, which naturally infects the widely distributed house flies.
Lassa virus does not spread from human to human.
There is no drug exist for the treatment of the Lassa disease.
Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Answer : d
The Nigerian Academy of Science has recently called for the current outbreak of Lassa fever in Africa’s most populous nation Nigeria to be declared a national health emergency because of its severity.
Lassa fever
It is a viral haemorrhagic disease caused by the Lassa virus, which naturally infects the widely distributed house rat.
It’s transmitted through the urine and droppings of infected rats found in most tropical and subtropical countries in Africa.
They are able to contaminate anything they come in contact with.
The Lassa virus spreads through human to human contact with tissue, blood, body fluids, secretions or excretions.
This includes coughing, sneezing, kissing, sexual intercourse and breastfeeding.
In hospitals the disease is spread through contaminated equipment.
A drug does exist for the treatment of the disease.
But its efficacy is affected by the fact that Nigeria has inefficient laboratory diagnosis and patients are admitted late to hospital.
6) Consider the following statements with respect to Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM Agreement)
It is a part of the United States Trade Representatives (USTR’s) Countervailing Duty (CVD) law which lists countries as developing and least-developed countries.
Under this agreement, countries that had not yet reached the status of a developed country only were entitled to special treatment for purposes of countervailing measures.
Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Answer : b
The office of the United States Trade Representatives (USTR) has removed India from the list of countries that are designated as ‘developing’.
Countries under this list are eligible for preferential treatment when it comes to CVD investigations.
India will no longer get this benefit.
Other countries that were removed from the list include Thailand, Vietnam, Brazil, Indonesia and Malaysia.
The USTR has also updated its list of countries that are least-developed under the US Countervailing Duty (CVD) laws.
In the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA), the US Congress had amended the CVD law in order to confirm US obligations under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM).
Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM Agreement) is a part of WTO.
It addresses two separate topics, Multilateral disciplines regulating the provision of subsidies, and the use of countervailing measures to offset injury caused by subsidized imports.
Under this SCM agreement, countries that had not yet reached the status of a developed country were entitled to special treatment for purposes of countervailing measures.
7) Seymour Island which was in news recently is located in?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Answer : c
Seymour Island in the Antarctic Peninsula hits record temperature of 20.75°C.
The continent also hit a record last week, with a temperature reading of 18.3°C on the Antarctic Peninsula.
According to the UN's World Meteorological Organization (WMO),temperatures on the Antarctic Peninsula have risen by almost 3°C over the past 50 years, and that about 87% of the glaciers along its west coast have "retreated" in that time.
Over the past 12 years, the glaciers have shown an accelerated retreat. Last month was also Antarctica's warmest January on record.
8) Consider the following statements with respect to Arrokoth
It is the most distant and most primitive object ever explored by a spacecraft.
It was discovered using the Hubble Space Telescope.
Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Answer : c
According to a new research, the newly renamed object Arrokoth once called as Ultima Thule, is ultrared, smooth and covered in Organic complex molecule.
And one of the most intriguing discoveries about Arrokoth is that it's covered in methanol ice and unidentified complex organic molecules, according to the researchers.
Arrokoth was discovered June 26, 2014, by NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft teamusing the Hubble Space Telescope.
It is the most distant object explored by a spacecraft.
Arrokoth is even redder than Pluto. It is, in fact, the reddest outer solar system object visited by a spacecraft thus far.
9) Consider the following statements with respect to Chronograph Watches
It is a watch with a stopwatch function built in to keep track of seconds and is used to measure elapsed time.
It can be self-winding, manual or quartz powered.
Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Answer : c
The basic difference between Analog and Chronograph watches is the functionality Analog watches tell the time, with two hands showing the current minute and hour, whilst Chronographs is a watch with a stopwatch function built in to keep track of seconds and is used to measure elapsed time.
Chronograph watches can be self-winding, manual or quartz powered.
A chronograph has three main functions: start (when it is activated), stop (when you take a reading) and return to zero (when it’s ready for re-use).
A chronograph watch typically has three dials to register the time elapsed, a second dial (also referred to as a sub-second dial), a minute dial and an hour dial.
10) Consider the following statements with respect to Generic Medicines
A generic medicine use the same active ingredients as brand-name medicines and it is same as a brand-name medicine in dosage, safety and effectiveness.
Branded generics are the generic drugs developed either by a generic drug company or the original manufacturer before the patent expires for the original product.
Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Answer : a
Recently, in parliament, a Congress MP seeks domestic production of Generic Drugs to treat drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB).
A Generic Medicines is a medication that has exactly the same active ingredient as the brand name drug and yields the same therapeutic effect.
It is the same in dosing, safety, strength, quality, the way it works, the way it is taken, and the way it should be used.
Generic drugs do not need to contain the same inactive ingredients as the brand name product.
A Generic drugs are cheaper because the manufacturers have not had the expenses of developing and marketing a new drug.
When a company brings a new drug onto the market, the firm has already spent substantial money on research, development, marketing and promotion of the drug.
A patent is granted that gives the company that developed the drug an exclusive right to sell the drug as long as the patent is in effect.
As the patent nears expiration, manufacturers can apply to the FDA for permission to make and sell generic versions of the drug; and without the startup costs for development of the drug.
"Branded Generics" are generic drugs that have a brand name.
These drugs are developed either by a generic drug company or the original manufacturer “after” the patent expires for the original product.
The branded generic name is proprietary to (owned by) the company.
