Daily Current Affairs MCQ- March 21, 2024 - UPSC MCQ

As the world grapples with rising temperatures, a groundbreaking study led by the University of the Sunshine Coast, Australia exposes an unlikely menace of Lianas.

• Lianas (also known as vines, climbing plants or climbers) are plants with long, flexible, climbing stems that are rooted in the ground and usually have long dangling branches.
• They particularly thrive in disturbed forest areas — such as those affected by logging, natural treefalls, landslides because they can quickly grow towards the forest canopy using trees as support.
• In terms of climate, lianas are more resilient to variations in moisture and temperature, which gives them a competitive advantage over trees.
• Lianas use their climbing ability, resilience to climatic stress and efficient water and nutrient usage to outcompete trees for sunlight and resources.
• They compete for sunlight in the canopy and suppress trees.
• Their lower carbon sequestering capacity compared to trees further exacerbates the threat to carbon storage.

Impacts on forest ecosystem

• An increase in lianas’s competitive success over trees can significantly affect the forest ecosystem.
• Lianas, being a disturbance-favouring plant form, can impact trees from the understory to the canopy.
• Their prolific growth following heavy disturbance can lead to decreased tree regeneration, growth and survival, altering forest structure and ecosystem function, which, in turn, can affect the subsequent recovery of forest. 
• Its proliferation can alter nutrient cycling within forests and decrease the overall resilience of forests to environmental changes, making ecosystems more susceptible to further disturbances.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Recently, AI chip leader Nvidia announced Project GR00T which promises to revolutionise the evolution of humanoid robots.

• The project GR00T stands for Generalist Robot 00 Technology.
• It is a multimodal AI system that acts as the mind for humanoid robots, allowing them to learn new skills and interact with the real world.
• Robots built on this platform are designed to understand natural language and emulate movements by observing human actions, such as instantly learning coordination, dexterity, and other skills.
• This can help the robots navigate and engage with the real world around them.
• The project aims to empower humanoid robots with human-like understanding and movement using Artificial Intelligence (AI).
• It is essentially a general-purpose foundation model for humanoid robots.
• It is at the vanguard of Nvidia’s efforts to drive breakthroughs in robotics and embodied AI (robots, virtual assistants, or other intelligent systems that can interact with and learn from a physical environment).
• The model has been trained on NVIDIA GPU-accelerated simulation, and enables the humanoids to learn from human demonstrations with imitation learning, and from the robotics platform NVIDIA Isaac Lab for reinforcement learning.
• While imitation learning involves observing an expert performing a task and learning to imitate those actions, reinforcement learning is a machine learning method that trains software to make decisions to achieve the most optimal results.

Hence option (d) is the correct answer.

Recently, the United States’ Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a comprehensive ban on all forms of the deadly carcinogen asbestos.

• Asbestos is a generic term for a group of six silicate minerals with similar but distinct properties.
• These are generally divided into two sub-groups; serpentine and amphiboles. Serpentine asbestos (chrysotile or white asbestos) was the most commonly used type of asbestos.
• Properties:
• These are resistant to heat and corrosion.
• It is non-flammable even at very high temperatures and is extremely flexible and durable.
• It has good tensile strength.
• It has low heat conductivity and high resistance to electricity.
• It was once widely used in construction materials, insulation and consumer goods.
• India's asbestos requirement is met through imports from Russia, Kazakhstan, Brazil and China.
• The newly banned chrysotile asbestos in USA was primarily used by the chlor-alkali industry, which produces chlorine bleach, caustic soda and other chemicals used in water treatment.
• Health impacts:
• According to the World Health Organization, all varieties of asbestos are associated with conditions such as lung cancer, mesothelioma, laryngeal cancer, ovarian cancer and asbestosis, a lung fibrosis.
• If products containing asbestos are disturbed, tiny asbestos fibers are released into the air.
• When asbestos fibers are breathed in, they may get trapped in the lungs and remain there for a long time.

Hence only statement 2 is correct.

The power discoms in the national capital are gearing up to make the 'Earth Hour' a success by encouraging their consumers to switch off non-essential lights and electric appliances for one hour on March 23 night.

About Earth Hour:

• It is a global grassroots movement uniting people to take action on environmental issues and protect the planet.
• It is organized by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
• It started in Sydney, Australia, in 2007 as a symbolic lights-out event and has since grown into a global movement involving millions of people in over 190 countries and territories.
• It takes place towards the end of March every year.
• “Earth Hour” encourages people to switch off all lights for an hour, from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. local time, to promote awareness of climate change challenges and energy conservation.
• Governments and companies also participate by turning off non-essential lights in their buildings, monuments, and landmarks to raise awareness about the impact of energy consumption on our planet.

This symbolic act, known as the ‘lights off’ moment, unites people worldwide in a show of support for the planet and serves as a reminder of the environmental issues facing us.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

The National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) is set to unveil the BhashaNet portal at the upcoming Universal Acceptance (UA) Day in a move towards advancing digital inclusion and promoting linguistic diversity in India.

About National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI):

• It was established in 2003 as a not-for-profit organization under the Companies Act 2013.
• NIXI was set up to extend the use of Internet Service Protocols (ISPs) for the purpose of routing domestic traffic within the country instead of taking it all the way abroad, thereby resulting in a better quality of service (reduced latency) and reduced bandwidth charges for ISPs by saving on international bandwidth.
• It is tasked to increase internet penetration and adoption in India by facilitating the various infrastructure aspects to enable the Internet ecosystem to be managed and used by the masses.
• .IN is India’s Country Code Top Level Domain (ccTLD). The Government of India delegated the operations of INRegistry to NIXI in 2004. The INRegistry operates and manages India’s .IN ccTLD.
• Another activity being carried out by NIXI is that of the National Internet Registry (NIR). The NIR is known as the Indian Registry for Internet Names and Numbers (IRINN).
• It offers IXPs towards building Internet Exchange Points.

Hence both statements are correct.

Researchers recently named a new species of deep-sea isopod discovered off the Kerala coast after the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

About Brucethoa isro:

• It is a new species of deep-sea isopod discovered off the Kollam coast, Kerala.
• The tiny fish-parasitic crustacean, belonging to the genus Brucethoa, was recovered from the base of the gill cavity of the Spinyjaw greeneye, a marine fish.
• It is the second species within this genus to be documented in India.
• It has been named Brucethoa isro in honour of the Indian space agency’s successful space missions.
• Females of the species tend to be larger than males. Females grow to about 19 mm in length and 6 mm in width, while males are smaller at around half the size. 

What are Isopods?

• Isopods are an order of invertebrates (animals without backbones) that belong to the greater crustacean group of animals, which includes crabs and shrimp.
• Scientists estimate that there are around 10,000 species of isopods (all belonging to the order “Isopoda”). 
• They also live in many different types of habitats, from mountains and deserts to the deep sea, and they are distributed worldwide.
• Features:
• They are one of the most morphologically diverse of all the crustacean groups, coming in many different shapes and sizes and ranging from micrometers to a half-meter in length.
• Isopods often do not look alike, but they do have common features. For example, all isopods have two pairs of antennae, compound eyes, and four sets of jaws.
• The body of all isopods consists of seven segments, each with its own pair of walking legs.
• Isopods have a short abdominal section composed of six segments, called “pleons,” and one or more of these segments is fused into a tail section.
• About half of the known species of isopods live in the ocean. Others live in coastal and shelf waters, moving around on the seafloor or living in plants.
• Most are free-living, but a number of marine species are parasitic on other animals.

Hence option c is the correct answer.

Recently, the World Health Organisation (WHO) emphasized the urgent need for global preparedness against a potential new pandemic, referred to as 'Disease X'. 

• It is referred to as a hypothetical pathogen or threat that can cause a major pandemic in future.
• It could be a new agent, a virus, a bacterium, or a fungus without any known treatment.
• The term coined by scientists and the World Health Organization could be any of the 25 families of viruses that have the capability to cause illness in people.
• Disease X was included in the WHO’s updated Blueprint list of diseases back in 2018.
• Scientists are of the opinion that Disease X could be 20 times more deadly than SARS-Covid virus that caused pandemic recently.
• It represents an illness which is currently unknown but could pose a serious microbial threat to humans in the future.

Hence option d is the correct answer.

Wandering albatrosses are threatened with extinction and climate change could put their nesting sites at risk.

• It is the world’s largest flying bird, with a wingspan reaching an incredible 3.5 metres.
• These birds are oceanic nomads: they spend most of their 60 years of life at sea and only come to land to breed.
• These are found almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere.
• Their playground is the vast Southern Ocean — the region between the latitude of 60 degrees south and the continent of Antarctica.
• Marion Island and Prince Edward Island together support about half of the entire world’s wandering albatross breeding population.
• Habitat: They breed on several subantarctic islands, which are characterized by peat soils, tussock grass, sedges, mosses, and shrubs.
• They are monogamous and pairs mate for life.
• Conservation status
• IUCN: Vulnerable
• Threats: The most likely cause is longline fishing, as they become hooked and will drown, as well as the ingestion of plastics, which kills both chicks and adults.

Hence only statement 1 is correct.

Election Commission of India is celebrating 14th National Voters’ Day (NVD) on 25th January 2024.

• It has been celebrated on January 25 every year since 2011, across the country to mark the foundation day of the Election Commission of India, i.e. 25th January 1950.
• Purpose: The main purpose of the NVD celebration is to create electoral awareness amongst citizens and encourage them to participate in the electoral process.
• Dedicated to the voters of the country, the National Voters' Day is also used to facilitate enrolment of voters, especially the newly eligible young voters.
• New voters are felicitated and handed over their Elector Photo Identity Card (EPIC) in the NVD functions held across the country.
• NVD is celebrated at the national, state, district, constituency and polling booth levels, which makes it one of the largest celebrations in the country.
• NVD 2024 theme - ‘Nothing Like Voting, I Vote For sure’ 
• On January 25, 2024, the Election Commission of India celebrates its 75th year of service to the Nation. 

Hence both statements are correct.

Smart rings are the tiny but mighty wearables which are useful in health tracking and more in a barely noticeable device.

• These are tiny yet mighty, smart rings pack impressive technology into a small ring-sized device.
• They can monitor health stats, control other devices, and much more, much like their bulkier smartwatch counterparts.
• Equipped with advanced sensors, smart rings track metrics including heart rate, blood oxygen levels, sleep quality, steps, and even stress levels.
• The data is then viewable on a connected smartphone app, allowing users to analyse trends and progress towards health goals.
• Beyond wellness tracking, some smart rings add convenience through features like gesture controls and haptic feedback for notifications.
• For example, a simple flick of the finger lets you do things like dim smart lights or cue up a playlist. When a call or message comes in, a subtle buzz on the finger lets you know without having to grab your phone.

What can Smart rings do?

• The biggest perk offered by smart rings is their constant health monitoring, which is designed such that it requires barely any user intervention.
• It offers personalised breathing exercises and guided meditations to help users improve their mood.
• It has a convenient feature of contactless payment.
• Smart rings typically include gesture recognition, so you can perform gestures like twisting or tapping the ring to do things like turn off lights, adjust your thermostat, unlock doors, and more.
• For security, smart rings can also function as access badges, letting you unlock doors and gates with a simple touch of your finger.

Hence both statements are correct.