Daily Current Affairs MCQ- March 16, 2024 - UPSC MCQ

In recent times, nature lovers, bird watchers, students and many tourists have been having an enjoyable time at Atapaka Bird Sanctuary with thousands of migratory birds arriving at Kolleru Lake.

• It is situated on the Kolleru Lake in the Indian State Andhra Pradesh.
• It is the home to a vast repertoire of birds. It is especially known for sheltering Pelicans.
• It spans over an area of 673 square kilometres with wetland marsh habitat extending across two districts namely West Godavari and Krishna.
• Atapaka Bird Sanctuary falls under Kaikalur forest range.
• The common species that can be witnessed in the sanctuary include Cormorants, Common Redshanks, Pied Avocets, Black-winged Stilts, Red-crested Pochards etc.

Key facts about Kolleru Lake

• It is the largest freshwater lake in India.
• It is located in Andhra Pradesh between the Krishna and Godavari deltas.
• The lake serves as a natural flood-balancing reservoir for these two rivers.
• The lake is fed directly by water from the seasonal Budameru and Tammileru streams, and is connected to the Krishna and Godavari systems by over 68 inflowing drains and channels.
• It serves as a habitat for migratory birds.
• The lake was notified as a wildlife sanctuary in November 1999 under India's Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, and designated a wetland of international importance in 2002 under the international Ramsar Convention.

Hence option (d) is the correct answer.

Recently, the Union Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas and Housing and Urban Affairs, launched ‘ETHANOL 100, a revolutionary automotive fuel at Indian Oil Retail Outlet. 

• It has a high-octane rating, typically between 100-105.
• It proves ideal for high-performance engines, ensuring improved efficiency and power output all while minimizing environmental impact.
• Moreover, ETHANOL 100’s versatility shines through, as it can be used in a wide array of vehicles, including Flex-Fuel Vehicles (FFVs) designed to run on gasoline, ethanol, or any blend of the two.
• Its practicality and potential to become a mainstream fuel option with the right infrastructure in place.
• It includes 93-93.5 percent ethanol blended with 5 percent petrol and 1.5 percent co-solvent, which is a binder. 
• It stands as a cleaner, greener alternative to gasoline, boasting lower emissions of greenhouse gases and pollutants, thus aiding in combating climate change and enhancing air quality in our communities.

What are flex-fuel vehicles?

• These are designed to run on a variety of fuels.
• These are equipped with an internal combustion engine (ICE) which can run on petrol or ethanol or methanol, giving consumers choice at the point of sale of the fuel.
• Apart from a few modifications, flex fuel vehicles are similar to petrol-only cars.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Google DeepMind revealed its latest AI gaming agent called SIMA which can follow natural language instructions to perform tasks across video game environments. 

• Scalable Instructable Multiworld Agent (SIMA) as an AI Agent which can process data and take action themselves.
• It can be called a generalist AI Agent that is capable of doing different kinds of tasks.
• Features
• It is like a virtual buddy who can understand and follow instructions in all sorts of virtual environments – from exploring mysterious dungeons to building lavish castles.
• It can accomplish tasks or solve challenges assigned to it.
• It “understands” your commands as it has been trained to process human language.
• So when one asks it to build a castle or find the treasure chest, it understands exactly what these commands mean.
• One distinct feature of this AI Agent is that it is capable of learning and adapting.
• SIMA does this through the interactions it has with the user. The more you interact with SIMA, the smarter it gets by learning from its experiences and improves over time. This makes it better at understanding and fulfilling user requests.
• However, SIMA goes beyond that and can follow instructions in a variety of game settings. This could potentially introduce more helpful AI agents for other environments.
• Google has partnered with game developers to train SIMA on a variety of video games.
• These research marks the first time an agent has demonstrated it can understand a broad range of gaming worlds and follow natural-language instructions to carry out tasks within them, as a human might.”

Hence option (a) is the correct answer.

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s drug Rezdiffra gained the first US approval to treat a potentially deadly liver disease called nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, or NASH that affects millions worldwide.

• It is liver inflammation and damage caused by a buildup of fat in the liver.
• It is part of a group of conditions called nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
• NASH can get worse and cause scarring of the liver, which leads to cirrhosis. But the disease doesn't always get worse.
• It is similar to the kind of liver disease that is caused by long-term, heavy drinking. But NASH occurs in people who don't abuse alcohol.
• Symptoms: As NASH progresses and liver damage gets worse, one may start to have symptoms such as:
• Fatigue (feeling tired all the time).
• Weight loss for no clear reason.
• General weakness.
• An ache in the upper right part of your belly.
• Causes: Things that put people at risk for NASH and for liver damage include: obesity, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol and high triglycerides, metabolic syndrome etc.
• Treatment for NASH includes managing conditions that increase your risk for NASH or make it worse. You can:
• Reduce your total cholesterol level.
• Reach a healthy weight. Losing 3% to 10% of your total body weight can make a difference.
• Control diabetes.

Hence both statements are correct.

The Eri (tank) network in the Kazhuveli watershed region in Villupuram district that comprises of an incredible network of tanks created thousands of years ago is to be proposed for nomination to the World Monuments Fund Watch 2025 programme. 

• It is the leading independent organization devoted to safeguarding the world’s most treasured places to enrich people’s lives and build mutual understanding across cultures and communities.
• Since 1965, its global team of experts has preserved the world's diverse cultural heritage using the highest international standards at more than 700 sites in 112 countries.
• Partnering with local communities, funders, and governments, WMF draws on heritage to address some of today’s most pressing challenges: climate change, underrepresentation, imbalanced tourism, and post-crisis recovery. 
• Headquarter: New York City
• In 2015, WMF India became the most recent entry to the World Monuments Fund family of affiliates, established under India's Companies Act, following the country's policy to include heritage conservation in corporate social responsibility programs.

What is the World Monuments Watch?

• It is a nomination-based program that connects local heritage preservation to global awareness and action.
• Every two years, the Watch rallies support to places in need and the people who care for them, spotlighting new challenges.
• At its core, the Watch’s call to action seeks to empower timely preservation efforts that improve the lives of communities.
• The 2025 Watch will include 25 places, each telling an urgent local story with global relevance.

Hence both statements are correct.

Pakistan recently urged India to comply with the timeline stipulated in the Agreement on pre-notification of flight testing of ballistic missiles as it took note of the first flight test of India's indigenously developed Agni-5 missile.

About Agreement on Pre-notification of the ‘Flight Testing of Ballistic Missiles’:

• It was signed between India and Pakistan on October 3, 2005.
• According to the pact, both countries are supposed to send each other an ‘advance notification’ of the flight test that they intend to undertake of any land or sea- launched, surface-to-surface ballistic missiles.
• The notification should be "no less than three days in advance of the commencement of a five-day launch window within which it intends to undertake flight tests of any land or sea-launched, surface-to-surface ballistic missile".
• Each country also has to ensure that the test launch sites don’t fall within 40 km and the impact area isn’t within 75 km of the International Boundary or the Line of Control along the side of the country undertaking the test.
• Each party shall also further ensure that the planned trajectory of the ballistic missile being flight tested shall not cross the International Boundary or the Line of Control between India and Pakistan, and further, it shall maintain a horizontal distance of at least 40 km from the International Boundary and the Line of Control.
• The parties shall treat the bilateral pre-Notification exchanged under this agreement as confidential, unless otherwise agreed upon.
• The notification shall be conveyed through the respective Foreign Offices and the High Commissions, as per the format annexed to the agreement.
• The agreement states that pre-notification applies only to tests conducted with surface-to-surface ballistic missiles launched from land or sea. The agreement does not apply to cruise missiles. 
• The agreement also does not apply to surface-to-air missiles.
• A party may withdraw from this agreement by giving six months written notice to the other, indicating its intention to abrogate the agreement.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

Scientists recently discovered a massive volcano on Mars, temporarily designated ‘Noctis volcano’, that has been active until recent times, with the possible remains of a relict glacier at its base.

About Noctis Volcano:

• It is a newly-discovered volcano located just south of Mars’ equator, in Eastern Noctis Labyrinthus, west of Valles Marineris, the planet’s vast canyon system.
• The volcano sits on the eastern edge of a broad regional topographic rise called Tharsis, home to three other well-known giant volcanoes: Ascraeus Mons, Pavonis Mons, and Arsia Mons.
• The massive structure spans over 9,022 meters in elevation, higher than the highest peak, Mount Everest, on Earth.
• The volcano is spread in a huge area with a width of over 450 kilometres.
• The central summit area is marked by several elevated mesas forming an arc, reaching a regional high and sloping downhill away from the summit area.
• The gentle outer slopes extend out to 225 kilometres (140 miles) away in different directions.
• The caldera remnant–the remains of a collapsed volcanic crater once host to a lava lake–can be seen near the centre of the structure. 
• Lava flows, pyroclastic deposits (made of volcanic particulate materials such as ash, cinders, pumice, and tephra), and hydrated mineral deposits occur in several areas within the structure’s perimeter.
• It was active for a very long time on the Red Planet, and in its southeastern part lies a thin, recent volcanic deposit beneath which glacier ice is likely still present.

Points to Remember:

• Mars' Olympus Mons is a shield volcano towering at a height of 21.9 km, making it two and a half times taller than Mount Everest.
• It is the largest volcano in the entire Solar System.

Hence option (a) is the correct answer.

A new tropical cyclone warning has been recently issued for the Gulf of Carpentaria. 

About Gulf of Carpentaria:

• It is a shallow rectangular sea on the northern coast of Australia and an inlet of the eastern Arafura Sea (a Pacific Ocean sea separating New Guinea and Australia).
• The gulf has an area of 120,000 square miles (310,000 square km) and a maximum depth of 230 feet (70 metres). 
• It is 590 kilometers wide at the mouth and 675 kilometers wide near the southern coast. It is over 700 kilometers long, from north to south.
• The gulf covers a continental shelf common to both New Guinea and Australia.
• A ridge extends across Torres Strait, separating the floor of the gulf from the Coral Sea to the east. 
• It is a rare modern example of an epicontinental sea (a shallow sea on top of a continent), a feature much more common at earlier times in the Earth’s geologic history.
• At least 20 rivers empty into the gulf, including the Roper, Wilton, Walker, Calvert, Flinders, McArthur, and Norman Rivers.
• There are several islands in the gulf, with Groote Eylandt, being the largest.
• The gulf also contains fringing reefs and coral colonies. 
• It gained international recognition in the 20th and 21st centuries following the discovery and exploitation of several mineral resources, including manganese and bauxite.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

The sacred MakhaBucha (Magh Puja) ceremony, one of the five most revered events for Buddhists in Thailand, was gracefully conducted by the esteemed Somdet and other senior monks of Thailand. 

• MakhaBucha Day (Magha Puja) is a religious celebration marking Lord Buddha’s teachings to his disciples.
• It is celebrated according to the traditional lunar calendar, on the day of full moon of the third lunar month.
• The term makha comes from the word “Magha” in Pali and it refers to the third lunar month, while bucha can translate as “to worship,” both of which are derived from the Pali language used in Buddhist scripture.
• The term MakhaBucha refers to a day intended for worshiping on the third lunar month.
• The aim of this day is to purify one's mind and do only good. Some celebrate by offering food to monks and also attend candle light processions in the evening.
• It is the first important religious festival in the Buddhist calendar, takes place in nations including Thailand, Laos and Cambodia, where the majority of Buddhists practice Theravada Buddhism, also known as “Buddhism of the south”.

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Hence option a is the correct answer.

In collaboration with the BharatGPT ecosystem led by IIT Bombay, Seetha Mahalaxmi Healthcare (SML) has introduced 'Hanooman,' a suite of Indic large language models trained across 22 Indian languages.

• It is a series of large language models (LLMs) that can respond in 11 Indian languages like Hindi, Tamil, and Marathi, with plans to expand to more than 20 languages.
• Capabilities: It is a multimodal AI tool, which can generate text, speech, videos and more in multiple Indian languages.
• The size of these AI models ranges from 1.5 billion to a whopping 40 billion parameters.
• Applications: It has been designed to work in four fields, including health care, governance, financial services, and education.

Hence option d is the correct answer.