IAS Prelims GS Questions and Answers - Apr 27, 2016

ANSWER: Study of paper currency

Explanation:

• Notaphily is the study and collection of paper currency, and banknotes.
• A notaphilist is a collector of banknotes, paper money,plastic notes,polymer notes,etc.
• An important aspect of collecting banknotes is the condition of items. Banknotes in perfect condition (without any damage), that usually haven't circulated are rated as uncirculated (UNC) and that is the highest classification for a value that a banknote can have.
• In addition to that, the value for a specific note in the world paper money catalog is listed for UNC condition.

ANSWER: Body temperature above 104°F

Explanation:

• Other symptoms are – Flushed skin, nausea and vomiting, racing heart rate, headache, rapid breathing, disorientation.

ANSWER: Mouth of Amazon River

Explanation:

• A huge 9,300 sq km coral reef system has been found below the muddy waters off the mouth of the river Amazon, astonishing scientists.
• The existence of the 600-mile-long (nearly 966 kilometer) reef, which ranges from about 30-120 m deep and stretches from French Guiana to Brazil’s Maranhao state, was not suspected because many of the world’s great rivers produce major gaps in reef systems where no corals grow.
• In addition, there was little previous evidence because corals mostly thrive in clear, sunlit, salt water, and the equatorial waters near the mouth of the Amazon are some of the muddiest in the world, with vast quantities of sediment washed thousands of miles down the river and swept hundreds of miles out to sea.
• But the reef appears to be thriving below the freshwater “plume,” or outflow, of the Amazon. Compared to many other reefs, the scientists say in a recent paper in Science Advances , it is relatively “impoverished.” Nevertheless, they found over 60 species of sponges, 73 species of fish, spiny lobsters, stars and much other reef life.

ANSWER: Applying heat to kill microbes

Explanation:

• Pasteurization is a hundred-year-old process that destroys pathogens through simple heat, and is best known for its role in making milk and juices safe for consumption.
• French chemist and microbiologist Louis Pasteur invented this straightforward food safety technique in 1864.
• Milk is pasteurized by heating it for 15 seconds to 72°C. Most of the bacteria present are killed including pathogens. However some bacteria such as lactobacilli survive and can cause spoilage eventually.
• Bacterial spores can survive pasteurization. To make milk further safe, it is sterilized by heating it to 105°C for about 15 seconds. This process kills all microbes but changes the taste of milk.
• To make milk safer for longer time, without losing its taste, the milk is heated to 130°C for 2 seconds – known as Ultra Heat Treatment (UHT) milk.
• UHT and sterilized milk need not be kept in refrigerator as long as their containers are kept sealed.

ANSWER: New Delhi

Explanation:

• The National Museum of Natural History or NMNH in New Delhi was one of two museums focusing on nature in India. Established in 1972 and opening in 1978, the museum functioned under the Ministry of Environment and Forests of the Government of India.
• It caught fire recently and the entire collection was lost.

ANSWER: All of the above

Explanation:
The actions taken by India on climate change after the Paris Agreement –

• 175 GigaWatt (GW) of renewable energy has been targeted by 2022, out of which 40 GW had been installed by March 2016.
• The government has decided to leapfrog from Bharat Stage IV (BS-IV) to Bharat Stage VI (BS-VI) emission norms by April 1, 2020, thereby skipping BS-V emission norms altogether.
• Other steps included a decision to promote blending of ethanol with petrol and use it as an alternative fuel and a tax on sports utility- and-diesel vehicles.
• Nearly 93 million LED bulbs have been distributed till April, 2016, which saved nearly 33.3 million kWh every day.

ANSWER: State/s

Explanation:

• The onus is entirely on the States to declare a drought.
• Also it is for the States concerned to explain the delay in declaring drought and not on the Centre to shoulder that burden in the Supreme Court.

ANSWER: Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation:

• U.S. President Barack Obama signed the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015, which introduces important measures relating to intellectual property rights (IPR) issues.
• The focus of the law is to enhance enforcement of IPR over the U.S.’s trading partners. The U.S. already scrutinises developments of IP law in its trading partners; this Act will only heighten it.
• Consequently, the Trade Facilitation Act is bound to impact India’s ability to develop an IP policy suited to its own developmental needs.
• Traditionally, the United States Trade Representative (USTR), which is an agency that is part of the executive office of the President, has the twin task of negotiating trade agreements and overseeing enforcement of U.S. trade policy, including IP policy.
• As part of its duties, the USTR creates an annual list of countries, known as the Special 301 list. Countries featured on this list are those that the USTR believes have either national laws or regulations that detrimentally affect U.S. trade or the rights of IP holders.
• The USTR also groups these countries in three categories. The most egregious violators are designated as Priority Foreign Countries (PFC), serious offenders are listed on the Priority Watch List (PWL), and less serious offenders in the Watch List (WL).
• Any country falling within the PFC or PWL is subject to USTR scrutiny in the form of investigations and possible sanctions under the procedures set out under the Trade Act, 1974.
• Over the years, the USTR has increased the number of countries that are put on the PWL, but reduced countries designated as PFCs.
• The Special 301 list has consistently featured India, most often as a PWL country, since its institution in 1989. This has caused some consternation within India, which has been disappointed that its proactive steps to improve domestic IP protection and engage with the U.S. have been unsuccessful in placating the U.S.

ANSWER: Black-necked crane

Explanation:

• The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has suspended the Union Environment Ministry’s clearance for the Tawang hydro power project granted in 2012.
• The clearance, the court noted, didn’t consider the impact of the hydro project on the habitat of the black-necked crane, a species that breeds on the Tibetan plateau and migrates to Tawang for the winter. The bird, most commonly found in China, is legally protected in Bhutan and India and is considered sacred to certain Buddhist traditions.
• The black-necked crane is rated as ‘vulnerable’ in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) list of endangered species and is listed in India’s Wildlife Act as a Schedule 1 species, which gives animals and birds the highest legal protection.
• Other species that are found in the region include the red panda, the snow leopard and the Arunachal macaque Macaca munzala, a recently-described primate species in the area.
• The project is planned on the Nyamjang Chhu river and is the largest of 13 hydro power projects to be built in the Tawang basin. With the NGT’s order, project developers will need to revisit their environmental clearance process.

ANSWER: Both 1 and 2

Explanation:
The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has notified the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Rules, 2016 on 14 April 2016, the birthday of Babasaheb Ambedkar.

Rules have now been framed to give effect to the amended provisions. These rules will speed up the process of dispensation of justice to victims of atrocities, are strongly sensitive in cases of offences against women, and liberalize and expedite access to relief for the members of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes who have been victims of atrocities.

• Completion of investigation and filing of charge sheet in the court within sixty days.
• Provision of relief for offences of rape and gang rape (This provision has been introduced for the first time.)
• Delinking requirement of medical examination for getting relief amount for non-invasive kind of offences against women like sexual harassment, gestures or acts intended to insult the modesty of women, assault or use of criminal force with intent todisrobe, voyeurism, stalking.
• Provision of admissible relief amount to SC/ST women for offences of grievous nature, on conclusion of trial, even though not ending in conviction.
• Increase in the existing quantum of relief amount from between Rs. 75,000/- to Rs. 7, 50,000/-to between Rs. 85,000/- to Rs. 8, 25,000/-, depending upon the nature of the offence, while linking it with the Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers for the month of January, 2016.
• Provision of admissible relief in cash or in kind or both within seven days to the victims of atrocity, their family members and dependents.
• Rationalization of the phasing of payment of relief amount to victims for various offences of atrocities.
• Regular Reviews of the scheme for the rights and entitlements of victims and witnesses in accessing justice at the State, District and Sub-Division Level Committees in their respective meetings.