Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2021

Notes:
An experiment named MicroAge will be launched on SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Centre to the International Space Station.
As a part of the experiment, human cells will be launched to space. This study will help in understanding what happens to the human cells. The cells are put into small 3D holders and after they reach space they will be electrically stimulated to induce contractions in the muscle tissue.

Notes:
Myanmar, earlier known as Burma, is the world’s biggest source of jade. It is a green-coloured mineral used in jewellery.
Recently, after a jade mine in Myanmar was hit by a landslide, over 100 people are feared missing and one person is confirmed dead. The landslide is believed to have been caused by the overflow of rubble discarded from trucks to open-pit mines.

Notes:
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched Mukhyamantri Vayu Swasthya Seva (air health services).
With this scheme, it became one of the first states to provide air ambulance facilities for the poor in the rural interior areas. The people of tribal-dominated districts such as Malkangiri, Nabarangpur, Nuapada and Kalahandi will be able to get better healthcare services free of cost.

Notes:
“Pillar of Shame” is a statue commemorating those killed in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. It is a eight-metre high statue located in University of Hong Kong’s (HKU) campus since 1997.
The memorial features 50 anguished faces and tortured bodies and commemorates democracy protesters killed by Chinese troops around Tiananmen Square in 1989. Hong Kong’s oldest university launched an overnight operation to dismantle the statue.

Notes:
The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) and the Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) have launched the NMCG-TERI’s Center of Excellence (CoE) on Water Reuse, which would come up at TERI campus, Gurugram – Haryana.
The Center is being established to foster research and innovation and identify knowledge gaps for research and support all forms of research in water reuse.

Notes:
The social activist and Nobel laureate Desmond Tutu who helped end apartheid in South Africa, passed away at the age of 90.
The Arch Bishop is regarded as a contemporary figure of the anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela. Deshmond Tutu was awarded the Nobel prize in 1984 for his non-violent approaches in the struggle to abolish the apartheid system.

Notes:
India is set to chair the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) during the year 2022. India had earlier chaired this committee in 2012.
In this tenure, India also chairs the Taliban Sanctions Committee. India is set to chair the 15-nation council for two years.

Notes:
Jammu and Kashmir Real Estate Summit 2021, was recently held in the Union Territory, for the first time.
During the Summit, 39 real estate MoUs worth Rs 18,900 crore were signed. Nineteen of these MoUs were related to the residential sector, eight were for commercial projects and four were for hospitality. Before abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, only state subjects could buy land or immovable property there.

Notes:
December 27 is observed as the International Day of Epidemic Preparedness. The first International Day of Epidemic Preparedness was marked in 2020 based on the proclamation of United Nations General Assembly.
According to WHO, the day marks the significance of preventing, preparing for and partnering against epidemics.

Notes:
World Sangeet Tansen festival has started from Madhya Pradesh. The festival will be organised till December 30 in Gwalior.
This is the 97th edition of the World Sangeet Tansen festival. The stage has been constructed on the theme of Siddhanath temple situated in Omkareshwar. National Kalidas Awards will be presented in the inauguration ceremony.