Current Affairs – October 09, 2024

{Prelims – Awards} Nobel Prize in Physics 2024

Context (TH|IE): 2024 Nobel in Physics has been awarded to John Hopfield & Geoffrey Hinton “for foundational discoveries & inventions that enable machine learning with artificial neural networks.”

Artificial Neural Network (ANN)

It is a computational model designed to mimic the functioning of the human brain’s nerve cells (neurons), simulating how the brain analyses and processes information.

Source: TechVidhan

It can assist in complex tasks like strategising, making predictions, and recognising trends.
Incident Learning: Unlike traditional machine learning algorithms, which mainly focus on organising data or crunching numbers, ANNs improve by learning from experience through repeated user tasks.
Biological Inspiration: Modeled after biological neural networks, ANNs adjust their structure based on the information processed, learning from the input-output relationship over time.
Training with Massive Data: Neural networks are typically trained using large datasets. During training, they are fed inputs & given corresponding outputs to learn & adjust for accurate predictions or decisions.

Machine Learning (ML)

It is a branch of artificial intelligence (AI) and computer science that uses data and algorithms to enable machines to learn from experience, similar to how humans learn.
Used in various fields such as image and speech recognition, medical diagnosis, stock market analysis, and recommendation systems.

Source: DataFlair

How It Works

Decision Process: The algorithm makes predictions or classifications based on input data.
Error Function: Evaluate the accuracy of the model’s predictions.
Model Optimisation: Adjusts the model to improve accuracy through iterative processes.

{Prelims – Bio – Disease} Marburg Virus

Context (IE): Outbreak of the Marburg virus in Rwanda.

About Marburg virus

Marburg hemorrhagic fever is a rare but severe hemorrhagic fever affecting both humans and non-human primates. It is caused by the Marburg virus, a genetically unique zoonotic RNA virus.
Marburg and Ebola viruses are both members of the Filoviridae family (filovirus).
It was first identified in 1967 in the German city of Marburg in a lab where workers had been in contact with infected green monkeys imported from Uganda.
There is no specific treatment or vaccine for Marburg disease.

{Prelims – Bio – Diseases} India eliminates trachoma

Context (TH): India has also successfully eliminated trachoma after Nepal and Myanmar.

About Trachoma

It is an eye disease (neglected tropical disease) due to bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis infection.
The infection spreads from person to person through contaminated fingers, fomites and flies that have come into contact with discharge from the eyes or nose of an infected person.
WHO recommends the SAFE strategy to eliminate trachoma as a public health problem. The SAFE strategy consists of: Surgery to treat the blinding stage, Antibiotics to clear the infection, particularly mass drug administration of the azithromycin, Facial cleanliness and Environmental improvement.

{Prelims – Bio} Spatial Grammar of Gene Expression

Context (TH): Researchers identified “spatial grammar” governing activation of genes.

It refers to the rules and patterns that govern how the spatial arrangement of transcription factors (TFs) and their binding sites on DNA influence gene regulation.
Transcription Factors (TFs): These proteins bind to specific DNA sequences to regulate the transcription of genetic information from DNA to RNA. They can act as activators or repressors of gene expression depending on their position relative to the gene’s transcription start site.

Gene Expression is the process by which information from a gene is used to synthesise functional gene products like proteins.

{Prelims – In News} Catastrophic Shrinkage

Context (DTE): This year, Azerbaijan will host COP29 in their capital, Baku, on the coast of the Caspian Sea, which is in danger of drying up due to human-induced Catastrophic Shrinkage.

Azerbaijan

Location: It is at the crossroads of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, bordered by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to the south.
Ancient civilisations: Caucasian Albanians and the Persian Empire.
Economy: It relies heavily on its oil and gas industry, with significant reserves in the Caspian Sea. The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline is a major route for transporting oil to international markets. In 2023, India was the third-largest destination for Azerbaijan’s crude oil.

About Catastrophic Shrinkage

It refers to a rapid and severe reduction in the size or volume of a body of water, such as a sea or lake, often due to a combination of natural and human-induced factors.

Causes

Climate Change: Increased temperatures lead to higher evaporation rates.
Reduced River Inflow: Major rivers feeding the sea are experiencing decreased flow due to climate change and human activities.
Human Activities: Water diversion for agriculture and industrial use further reduces the water levels.

{Prelims – In News} Humsafar Policy

Context (PIB): Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Unveils ‘Humsafar Policy’ for Onboarding Service Providers for Wayside Amenities Along the National Highways and Expressways.

The policy outlines a framework for service providers along the routes like eateries, fuel stations, and trauma centres to create world-class facilities for travellers on highways and expressways.
The NHAI’s ‘Rajmarg Yatra’ app will enable commuters to find nearby service providers.

{Prelims – In News} Phata Byung Hydropower Project (HEP)

Context (IE): The Phata Byung HEP in Uttarakhand has received fresh approval, pending necessary environmental, forest, and wildlife clearances.
It is a run-of-the-river project on the Mandakini River in Rudraprayag.
Concerns: There is heightened concern over Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) risk in the region. 24 glacial lakes are located near the project site, six of which have been identified as critical.

Mandakini River

It originates from the Chorabari Glacier near Kedarnath. It flows for approximately 81 kilometres between the Rudraprayag and Sonprayag regions. At Rudraprayag, it joins the Alaknanda River.
Further, Alaknanda converges with the Bhagirathi River at Devaprayag, forming the Ganga.
The river flows past the Madhyamaheshwar temple at Ukhimath, a prominent pilgrimage site. It passes through a Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary.

{Prelims – In News} Thermal & Cold Fogging

Context (TH): An experiment found that thermal fogging kills no mosquitoes, while cold fogging kills all.

Differences Between Thermal Fogging and Cold Fogging

Aspect	Thermal Fogging	Cold Fogging
Method	Uses heat to vaporise fogging liquid.	Uses air pressure to create fine particles.
Fog Density	Dense and easily visible	Less dense, finer particles
Temperature	High temperature required	No heat required
Energy Source	Typically uses fuel (e.g., propane)	Operates on electricity or battery power
Droplet Size	Very small particles (0.5-10 microns)	Adjustable droplet size
Operation	Requires constant supervision by trained operators	It can be automatic; minimal supervision is needed
Applications	Effective for indoor spaces, pest control, disinfection	Suitable for large areas, mosquito control, mold control
Safety	Burn risks due to high temperature	Generally safer, no risk of burns

{Prelims – Space} MACE Observatory

Context (PIB): Major Atmospheric Cherenkov Experiment (MACE) Observatory has been inaugurated at Hanle, Ladakh.

MACE is the largest imaging Cherenkov telescope in Asia. With an altitude of 4,300 m, it is also the highest of its kind in the world.
The telescope is indigenously built by BARC and Electronic Corporation of India (ECIL).
It will observe high-energy gamma rays, contributing to global efforts to understand the most energetic phenomena in the universe, such as supernovae, black holes, and gamma-ray bursts.

Pench Tiger Reserve (PTR) in Maharashtra was approved as the country’s first Dark Sky Park.

{Prelims – Space} PSLV-37 Mission

Context (TH): Upper stage of PSLV-37 mission re-entered Earth’s atmosphere eight years after launch.

About PSLV-37 Mission

Conducted by the ISRO, it set a world record by launching 104 satellites in a single mission. This surpassed the previous record of 37 satellites launched by a Russian Dnepr rocket in 2014.
The primary payload was the Cartosat-2D Earth observation satellite, used for high-resolution imaging.

Cartosat-2 Satellite

It is an earth observation satellite that delivers images of the Earth from a sun-synchronous orbit.
Its panchromatic camera takes black-and-white pictures of the Earth. The satellite is useful for cartographic applications, infrastructure purposes, Land Information System and GIS applications.

Read More> India’s Meteorological Satellites.

{Prelims – S&T – Defence} YARD 3026 (NIRDESHAK)

Context (PIB): Recently, Nirdeshak, the second of four Survey Vessel ships (SVL), was delivered to the Indian Navy. It is being built at Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers in Kolkata. Nirdeshak, with over 80% Indigenous content, signifies the commitment to ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’.

These are the largest survey vessels built in the country for full-scale coastal and deep-water hydrographic survey of port/ harbour approaches and determination of navigational channels/ routes.
The ship will also collect oceanographic and geophysical data for defence and civil applications.

Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers

Founded in 1884 as a small privately owned company on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, it was renamed Garden Reach Workshop in 1916. GRSE was nationalised by the Government of India in 1960.
The company was awarded the Miniratna public sector undertaking status.
It is the first Indian shipyard to build 100 warships.