Current Affairs Quiz - May, 2019

Notes:
The workhorse of the Indian Air Force (IAF), the Russian made AN-32 transport aircraft was formally fleet certified to fly on a blended bio-jet fuel partly derived from trees. The fuel will be 10% tree-derived and 90% conventional aviation fuel. The IAF has plans to widen the experiment over the next two years. The approval for use of bio-fuel to fly the Russian made fleet was given by the Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification (CEMILAC). The indigenous bio-jet fuel was first produced by the CSIR-IIP lab at Dehradun in 2013, but could not be tested or certified for commercial use on aircraft due to lack of test facilities in the civil aviation sector. This is a huge step in promoting the ‘Make in India’ mission as this bio-fuel would be produced from Tree Borne Oils (TBOs) sourced from tribal areas.

Notes:
The World Thyroid Day (WTD) is observed every year on May 25 to promote awareness and understanding of thyroid health and the advances made in treating thyroid diseases. The thyroid gland is an important part of the body and is extremely important as it regulates metabolism, affects energy levels, crucial body functions, and heart rate. Abnormalities in the thyroid gland can lead to excess production of the thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism), less production of the thyroid gland (hypothyroidism), thyroid nodules (lumps in the thyroid gland), goitre (enlargement of the thyroid gland), thyroiditis (inflammation of the thyroid gland) and thyroid cancer.

Notes:
The first-of-its-kind naval drill exercise ‘Pacific Vanguard’has been kick started by the United States, Japan, South Korea and Australia near Guam, United States. The “Pacific Vanguard” drill brings together more than 3,000 sailors from the four countries to sharpen skills and strengthen practical cooperation at sea. The drills will focus on live fire exercises, defensive counter-air operations, anti-submarine warfare, and replenishment at sea. The Royal Australian Navy contributed two frigates to the exercise – HMAS Melbourne and HMAS Parramatta. The Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force sent destroyers – JS Ariake and JS Asahi, and South Korea the Republic of Korea Navy destroyer ROKS Wang Geon. The USS Blue Ridge, the Seventh Fleet’s flagship, will lead the operation from the U.S. side. Guam is home to more than 160,000 people, and was at the centre of nuclear tensions between Washington and Pyongyang in 2017, with North Korea threatening to hit the US territory with “enveloping fire”.

Notes:
Prem Singh Tamang, the president of Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) and popularly known as P S Golay, has been sworn-in as the new chief minister of Sikkim. Governor Ganga Prasad administered the oath of office to Mr. Golay in a grand ceremony at the Palzor stadium in Gangtok. Mr. Golay is not a member of the state assembly at present as he did not contest the polls. The SKM won 17 of the 32 legislative Assembly seats in the State in the recently held Assembly polls. The Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF), which had ruled the State for 25 years, won 15. Mr. Golay succeeded Pawan Chamling of the SDF who has the record of longest-serving Chief Minister of the country, ruling the State for five consecutive terms for a little over 24 years.

Notes:
Rahi Sarnobat booked an Olympic quota place for India at World Cup rifle pistol stage in Munich, Germany by winning gold in women’s 25m pistol event. Asian Games champion Rahi clinched her career’s second World Cup Gold, which helped India win its sixth quota place in shooting for 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Now, India tops the Munich World Cup medals tally with three gold. China is at 2nd position with one gold, one silver and three bronze.

Notes:
Gian Chand (93), the veteran freedom fighter, has passed away at his native village in Mohalla Ramgarh of Chamba district, Himachal Pradesh on May 27, 2019. Born on 26th October 1926, Chand was a member of Azad Hind Fauj led by Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

Notes:
The scientists at the Stanford University in the US have developed a more stable prosthetic foot which they say could make challenging terrain more manageable for people who have lost a lower leg. The new design has a kind of tripod foot that responds to rough terrain by actively shifting pressure between three different contact points. Prosthetic emulators allow them to try lots of different designs without the overhead of new hardware. According to the study published in the journal IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, prosthetic limbs can better handle the rough ground. Outfitted with position sensors and motors, the foot could adjust its orientation to respond to varying terrain, much as someone with an intact foot could move their toes and flex their ankles to compensate while walking over rough ground.

Notes:
The IIT- Guwahati has signed a MoU with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to set up a Space Technology Cell (STC) within the premise of IIT Guwahati. The new IITG-ISRO STC would be first-of-its-kind in the North-east region to augment research and capacity building processes in the field of space-technology. Through the STC, IIT Guwahati aspire to partner with ISRO for performing cutting edge research not only catering to the socio-economic needs of the Northeast but also to contribute towards the basic research activities of various ISRO projects across India. With STC, the Institute of IIT Guwahati and ISRO can work together to solve space science related problems in the modern world.

Notes:
Indians Scientists has recently identified a new species of primate wasp from the genus Kudakrumia in Goa. The new species was collected in the forests of Western Ghats. The wasp, which is dubbed as Kudakrumia rangnekari, was named after Goa-based researcher Parag Rangnekar. Rangnekar is the author of a book “Butterflies of Goa”, which is perhaps a first field guide with photographs of the species found in this region. His quest to document the butterflies of this unique region resulted in a record of 220 species, of which 13 species had not been described before. He is the founder-president of the Goa Bird Conservation Network. The holotype is from Kotigao Wildlife Sanctuary of Goa of northern Western Ghats and the paratype is from Ranipuram hill of Kerala of southern Western Ghats. A wasp is any insect of the order Hymenoptera and suborder Apocrita that is neither a bee nor an ant.

Notes:
The Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have recently signed a MoU for getting Indian astronauts trained for ISRO’s Gaganyaan mission. The development formally involves IAF’s Bengaluru-based medical arm, the Institute of Aerospace Medicine (IAM), in the programme as the nodal centre to train the first set of Indian astronauts. The Rs 10,000-crore Gaganyaan is planned for 2022, the 75th year of Indian independence. Gaganyaan (“Sky Craft”) is an Indian crewed orbital spacecraft intended to be the basis of the Indian Human Spaceflight Programme.