Current Affairs Questions & Answers - Dec 02, 2015

ANSWER: Emotional fever

Explanation:
Fish have been found to display emotional fever or slight rise in body temperature in stressful situations linked by emotions and consciousness. Researchers from University of Barcelona and Stirling as well as Bristol have observed an increase in body temperature of 2-4 degrees in zebra fish when subject to stress. Phenomenon is known as emotional fever and is related to what animals feel in face of external stimulus.

ANSWER: Peaches

Explanation:
A Chinese professor made the first discovery of fossilized peaches. The discovery was made in Kunming, capital of Yunnan in southwest China. The fossils were found to be dating back to more than 2.5 million years. This sheds new light on the evolutionary history of peaches which were thought to have originated in China.

ANSWER: Retinal nerve

Explanation:
Death and dysfunction of the retinal never cells cause loss of sight in conditions like glaucoma and multiple sclerosis (MS). Stem cells can now be converted into retinal never cells and this could lead to the development of cell transplant therapies that restore vision in patients with glaucoma and MS. Through a genome editing laboratory tool, investigators inserted a fluorescent protein gene into the stem cells’ DNA using a method called called fluorescence-activated cell sorting to separate newly differentiated retinal ganglion (nerve) cells from a mixture of different cells into a highly purified cell population for the study.

ANSWER: Ceratopsis

Explanation:
Scientists have discovered a rare fossil of a dog sized horned dinosaur in eastern Northern America which roamed the earth 100 million years ago. Fossil identified by University of Bath researchers have found a east west divide in North American dinosaur evolution. During the Late Cretaceous period, 66-100 million years ago, the land mass that is now North America was divided in two continents by a shallow sea, the Western Interior Seaway, which ran from the Gulf of Mexico to the Arctic Ocean. Dinosaurs lived in the western continent called Laramidia were similar to those found in Asia. Fossils from the lost continent of Appalachia have been lower with the exception of this are fossil found to belong to the horned dinosaurs Ceratopsis. The study highlights it as the first fossil from a ceratopsian dinosaur identified from this period of eastern North America.

ANSWER: Both a and b are the same

Explanation:
The preliminary results of the Burkina Faso election provided Roch March Christian Kabore with an outright win. He is the winner of the freest election since this West African country won independence from France in 1960, dedicated his victory to those who died overthrowing strongman Blaise Compaore last year and during a failed military coup in September. Kabore avoided a runoff by winning 53 percent of the vote. Second closest contender Diabre had nearly 30 percent of the vote, according to preliminary results. Fourteen candidates took part in presidential elections.

ANSWER: NASSCOM

Explanation:
Product engineering services firm, Aricent, has partnered with Nasscom Foundation to launch “Aricent Employability Programme.” This is a CSR initiative to create employability opportunities for 2,500 engineering graduates. The programme will be offered to under graduate students across Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Delhi NCR and Rajasthan, company officials said.

ANSWER: 1st December

Explanation:
The day was observed across the globe with the theme “Getting to zero: End AIDS by 2030”. Federal theme for the day was “The Time to Act is Now.” Both themes comply with fast-track strategy of UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, to end the AIDs epidemic by 2030 and ensure the averting of 21 million AIDSs-related deaths, 28 million new HIV infections and 5.9 million new infections among children by 2030. Idea to observe World AIDS day was first proposed by Bunn and Netter in 1987.

ANSWER: Embrace of the Serpent

Explanation:
The Best Film Award comprises the Golden Peacock and a citation with prize money of 40 lakhs rupees to be shared between the producer and the director of the movie namely Christina Gallego and Ciro Guerra. The film depicts the first contact, encounter, approach, betrayal and eventually life transcending friendship between Amazonian shaman Karamakate and two scientists.

ANSWER: Anticipate Absorb Reshape

Explanation:
UN Chief Ban Ki-moon along with the agencies of the UN system on 30th November 2015 launched initiative titled Anticipate, Absorb, Reshape to build climate resilience in the world’s most vulnerable countries. This initiative will strengthen the ability of countries to anticipate hazards, absorb shocks, and reshape development to reduce climate risks and address the needs of the nearly 634 million people, or a tenth of the global population who live in at-risk coastal areas just a few meters above existing sea levels. It will also monitor and prevent extreme weather events.

ANSWER: Thawar Chand Gehlot

Explanation:
Shri Thaawar Chand Gehlot inaugurated 1st International Film Festival for Persons with Disabilities at Siri Fort Auditorium, New Delhi on 1st December. The film festival started with the screening of the film Yellow by M. Limaye. The Accessible Indian campaign was also discussed at this event.

ANSWER: Laos People’s Democratic Republic, UAE

Explanation:
The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee extended his greetings and felicitations to the Government and people of the Laos People’s Democratic Republic and UAE on the eve of their National Day (December 2, 2015). Mr. Choummaly Sayasone, the President of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, and His Highness Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the United Arab Emirates were also greeted by the President.