UPSC Daily Quiz | 08 October 2024

Relevance: Researchers recently said Ceres is a very icy object that possibly was once a muddy ocean world.

Explanation:

Ceres

• It is a dwarf planet and the largest object in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
• It's the only dwarf planet located in the inner solar system. (Hence, statement 1 is correct)
• When NASA's Dawn arrived in 2015, Ceres became the first dwarf planet to be explored by a spacecraft. (Hence, statement 2 is correct)
• Ceres is more similar to the terrestrial planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars) than its asteroid neighbors, but it is much less dense.
• Ceres probably has a solid core and a mantle made of water ice. Ceres' crust is rocky and dusty with large salt deposits.

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

Subject: Current Affairs | S&T

Level of Difficulty: Easy | Factual

Relevance: The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has begun the process of formulating a National Agriculture Code (NAC).

Explanation:

National Agriculture Code

• The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has begun the process of formulating a National Agriculture Code (NAC), on the lines of the existing National Building Code and National Electrical Code.
• It will cover the entire agriculture cycle, and will also contain a guidance note for future standardisation.
• The code will have two parts. The first will contain general principles for all crops, and the second will deal with crop-specific standards for the likes of paddy, wheat, oilseeds, and pulses.
• The NAC will serve as a guide for farmers, agriculture universities, and officials involved in the field.

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

Subject: Current Affairs | Schemes

Level of Difficulty: Easy | Factual

Relevance: The Chenchus of Penukumadugu are facing diminishing work opportunities under the MGNREGA due to their traditional lifestyle and limited adaptability to modernization.

Explanation:

• The Chenchus are a Telugu-speaking food-gathering tribe living in the Nallamalai forests of Andhra Pradesh.
• They are a conservative tribal group and have not made many changes in their lifestyle or tried to adapt to modernity.
• The bow and arrow and a small knife are all the Chenchus possess to hunt and live.
• For ages, the Chenchus have been associated with the famous Srisailam temple (dedicated to Lord Shiva and Devi Brahmaramba) in Andhra Pradesh, situated at the heart of Chenchu land. 
• The Chenchus enjoy special privileges at Srisailam temple.

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

Subject: Current Affairs | Miscellaneous

Level of Difficulty: Easy | Factual

Relevance: One of the Amazon River’s main tributaries, the Negro River, has dropped to its lowest level in 122 years, Brazil’s geological service recently.

Explanation:

• The Rio Negro is one of the largest tributaries of the Amazon River. (Hence, statement 1 is correct)
• It is also one of the world’s largest rivers in terms of discharge.
• It flows along the Colombian and Venezuelan border before crossing into Brazil, where it becomes the Rio Negro. 
• The river was named the Negro, which means black in Portuguese because of the water’s dark coloration. 
• It is caused by the decomposition of organic matter and the presence of tannins leached from surrounding vegetation, giving the river its distinctively rich coloration. 
• The Rio Negro is the largest blackwater river in the world, and despite the coloration, the water contains little sediment and ranks as one of the cleanest rivers on Earth. (Hence, statement 2 is correct but statement 3 is not correct)
• The reserves and national parks along the Rio Negro form a giant protected area called the Central Amazon Ecological Corridor, which is the largest section of protected Amazon Rainforest. (Hence, statement 4 is correct)

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

Subject: Current Affairs | Environment

Level of Difficulty: Medium | Factual

Relevance: Researchers recently said the Dwarf Planet Ceres is a very icy object that possibly was once a muddy ocean world.

Explanation:

What is a Dwarf Planet?

• A dwarf planet is a body, other than a natural satellite (moon), that orbits the Sun and that is, for practical purposes, smaller than the planet Mercury yet large enough for its own gravity to have rounded its shape substantially. 
• The International Astronomical Union (IAU)adopted this category of solar system bodies in August 2006, designating Pluto, the even more-remote object Eris, and the asteroid Ceres as the first members of the category. 
• Unlike major planets, these bodies are not massive enough to have swept up most smaller nearby bodies by gravitational attraction; they thus failed to grow larger. 
• In June 2008, the IAU created a new category, plutoids, within the dwarf planet category.
• o Plutoids are dwarf planets that are farther from the Sun than Neptune. (Hence, statement 1 is not correct)
• o All the dwarf planets except Ceres are plutoids. (Hence, statement 2 is correct)

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

Subject: Current Affairs | S&T

Level of Difficulty: Easy | Factual