Current Affairs Quiz - November, 2023

Notes:
Archaeologists have revealed that a massive underground pyramid in Indonesia, known as Gunung Padang, predates Egypt’s Giza Pyramids and England’s Stonehenge, making it one of the oldest megalithic structures ever constructed by humans.
Gunung Padang stands as the world’s oldest pyramidal structure, constructed on the site of an extinct volcano long before the emergence of civilizations and the advent of agriculture.

Notes:
The Finance Ministry released ₹10,000 crore in urgent assistance for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).
The funds were released to meet unexpected increased expenditure under the rural job guarantee scheme. The funds will be available until the first batch of supplementary demands for grants is approved by parliament at its next session. The unusual move came after 95% of the FY24 budgetary outlay of ₹60,000 crore for the MGNREGS was exhausted well before the commencement of the winter session of parliament.

Notes:
IndiaFirst Life Insurance Company Ltd (IndiaFirst Life), one of the private life insurers of the country, became the first Indian life insurance company to get the Gujarat International Finance Tec (GIFT) City’s International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) Registration.
It obtained registration from the International Financial Services Centre Authority (IFSCA) in September 2023 following approval from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) in August of the same year.

Notes:
Indian women’s team defeated title holders Japan 4-0 to lift its second Asian Champions Trophy title.
India overcame the two-time champions through goals from Sangita Kumari (17th minute), Neha (46th), Laremsiami (57th) and Vandana Katariya (60th). India won their maiden Asian Champions Trophy title in 2016 in Singapore, while Japan bagged the crown twice, in 2013 and 2021.

Notes:
IBM has expanded its partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to launch an innovation lab in Bengaluru to help mutual clients derive value from the latest technologies such as generative artificial intelligence (GenAI).
The first of its kind innovation lab, is open to clients from around the world to explore joint IBM-AWS solutions and test prototypes and proof-of-concepts relevant across industries such as banking and financial services, automotive, manufacturing and healthcare, among others.

Notes:
Nearly 1 in 3 deaths from non-melanoma skin cancer is caused by working under the sun, according to joint estimates by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Labour Organization (ILO).
The research calls for action to prevent this serious workplace hazard and the loss of workers’ lives it causes. According to the estimates, in 2019 alone, almost 19 000 people in 183 countries died from non-melanoma skin cancer due to having worked outdoors in the sun. The majority (65%) were male.

Notes:
A recent study has revealed the existence of the long-lost continent of Argoland, which had seemingly disappeared after breaking away from Australia approximately 155 million years ago.
This continent once formed the northeastern border of Australia during the Jurassic period.

Notes:
International Week of Science and Peace is celebrated annually from November 9 to 15. It was first observed in 1986 as part of the observance of the International Year of Peace. The week was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1988.
World Science Day for Peace and Development 2023 is celebrated on November 10. The theme for this year’s celebration is “Building trust in science”.

Notes:
Dictador, a spirit brand based in Colombia’s Cartagena, has appointed Mika, who is manifested as a robot.
Mika is a research project between Hanson Robotics and Dictador. It has been customised to represent company value. Hanson Robotics also created Sophia, the popular humanoid robot. With advanced AI and machine learning algorithms, Mika claims to swiftly and accurately make data-driven decisions.

Notes:
The UK government has proposed a plan to add India to the extended list of ‘safe states’, a move that would fast-track the return of illegal Indian migrants and effectively eliminate their opportunity to seek asylum in the UK.
This proposal to include India, along with Georgia, was presented in a draft legislation introduced in the House of Commons.