Current Affairs Quiz - April, 2019

Notes:
Google has introduced a new open platform called Anthos to run and manage apps from anywhere. It is based on the Cloud Services Platform and would let users run applications on existing on-premise hardware investments or in the Public Cloud. Anthos not only allows customers to deploy Google Cloud in their own data centres but also gives them the flexibility to build, run and manage their workloads within their data centre, on Google Cloud, or other cloud providers (Multi-Cloud), without making any changes. Anthos will also let users manage workloads running on third-party clouds like Amazon AWS and Microsoft Azure.

Notes:
On April 12, the Russia government announced its decision to confer the Order of St Andrew the Apostle – the highest state decoration of the country on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The decoration is being given to Mr Modi for his exceptional services in promoting special and privileged strategic partnership between the Russian Federation and India and friendly relations between the Russian and Indian people. The Order was established in 1698 by Tsar Peter the Great, in honour of Saint Andrew, the first apostle of Jesus and patron saint of Russia. This is the 7th international award conferred on Mr Modi since he became the premier in 2014. The others are the Zayed Medal of the UAE (2019), the Seoul Peace Prize, UN Champions of the Earth Award, Grand Collar of the State of Palestine (all in 2018), Amir Abdullah Khan Award of Afghanistan and King Abdullaziz Sash of Saudi Arabia (both in 2016). Four of the awards are from Islamic states.

Notes:
The world’s foremost Artificial Intelligence (AI) Summit will be held at the Dubai World Trade Centre in UAE from April 30 to 1st May, 2019. The aim of the inaugural ‘AI Everything (AIE)’ is to empower global dialogue on the future of government, business and society. The two-day event will bring together world leaders to define the underlying pillars of governance, business and society – augmenting the world’s happiness. It will be hosted by the UAE National Programme for Artificial Intelligence, with the support of International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and in strategic partnership with Smart Dubai. The AIE will unravel real-world use cases across industries, and forge collaborations and partnerships, hosting over 130 influential speakers.

Notes:
Ethiopian athletes Gelete Burka (women’s race) and Abrha Milaw (men’s race) won the 43rd edition of the Paris Marathon on 14th April 2019. They led a record 60,000 participants to the finish line through the French capital. Milaw won the men’s race with a time of 2 hours :07 minutes and :50 seconds. Burka was the fastest woman with 2 hours :22 minutes and :48 seconds. In the wheelchair race, Julien Casoli won for a third time. The fastest disabled racer put up a time of 1 hour:36 minutes and :57 seconds. The Paris marathon is one of the world’s most popular running events.

Notes:
Journalists Kyaw Soe Oo and Wa Lone (Myanmar) has been chosen for 2019 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize. Both laureates are serving 7-year prison sentences. At the time of their arrest in Yangon on 12 December 2017, they were working for the Reuters news agency, reporting on alleged human rights violations in Myanmar’s state of Rakhine. The prize will be awarded on 2 May as part of the celebration of 2019 World Press Freedom Day (3 May) which is taking place in Ethiopia. The Prize recognizes outstanding contributions to the defence or promotion of press freedom especially in the face of danger. It is named after Guillermo Cano Isaza, the Colombian journalist who was assassinated in front of the offices of his newspaper El Espectador in Bogotá, Colombia, on 17 December 1986. The $25,000 Prize is funded by the Guillermo Cano Isaza Foundation (Colombia), the Helsingin Sanomat Foundation (Finland), and The Namibia Media Trust.

Notes:
India’s first-of-its-kind ‘Voter Park’ has recently inaugurated in Gurugram, Haryana to increase voter awareness and educating people about the electoral process. At the park, voters will get information about the polling process and the history of elections in the country. The purpose of establishing Voter Park was also to motivate eligible people to vote in the Lok Sabha election so that they can contribute to the progress of the country. A ‘Selfie Point’ has also been set up in the park, where people can click selfies displaying the indelible ink mark on their finger after casting their vote.

Notes:
China has successfully tested the world’s first armed amphibious drone boat ‘Marine Lizard’ in Wuhan, capital of Central China’s Hubei Province. Built by Wuchang Shipbuilding Industry Group under China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC), the drone ship could be used in land assault operations and is capable of forming a combat triad with aerial drones and other drone ships. The Marine Lizard can be remotely controlled via satellites and have a maximum operation range of 1,200 kms. It possesses the capability of forming a combat triad with aerial drones and other drone ships. The Marine Lizard’s payloads include an electro-optical system and a radar system. In the weapon department, it is equipped with two machine guns and a vertical launching system for anti-ship and anti-aircraft missiles. This amphibious drone boat can autonomously sail, avoid obstacles and plan routes.

Notes:
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has recently successfully test fired the underdevelopment long range subsonic cruise missile ‘Nirbhay’ from launch complex-3 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, Odisha. It has a operational range of 1000 km and can fly very low to the ground to avoid detection by enemy radar called terrain hugging capability. The state-of-the-art missile is the India’s first indigenously designed and developed long-range sub-sonic cruise missile. It is capable of loitering and cruising at 0.7 Mach at altitude as low as 100 metre and covered the designated target range in 42 minutes and 23 seconds.

Notes:
Researchers at the IIT Roorkee have identified a new method to detect two of the worst forms of cancer in women – breast and ovarian cancer. The research published in the journal, ‘FASEB Bioadvances’ details the use of whole saliva as a body fluid for early detection of breast and ovarian cancers, as opposed to the traditional method of using blood samples. The research team, led by Professor Kiran Ambatipudi from the institute’s biotechnology department, identified certain proteins present in the saliva which act as potential biomarkers indicative of breast and ovarian cancer metastasis.

Notes:
The 8th edition of Home Expo India 2019 began at India Expo Centre and Mart in Greater Noida on April 16. It covers sectors with maximum thrust and growth potential in home decor, furnishing, furniture, flooring and textiles. About 500 companies in permanent marts will be exhibiting their collection under these categories. The 3-day exhibition has been organized by the Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts.