General Science Questions (MCQs) for Competitive Examinations

Notes:
Vitamin A deficiency results in night blindness, the inability or reduced ability to see in dim light or darkness. Also known as nyctalopia, night blindness is due to a disorder of the cells in the retina that are responsible for vision in dim light which is caused by Vitamin A deficiency.

Notes:
Sea hares are molluscs. They belong to Phylum Mollusca and Class Gastropoda like snails. Like many other sea slugs (Subclass Opistobranchia), sea hares lack external shells as adults. Sea hares belong to Order Anaspidea.

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Pituitary gland only acts pure endocrine gland secreting only hormones. The three others i.e. pancreas and gonads secrete extra cellular enzymes and factors too like gametes by gonads.

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Turmeric, (Curcuma longa) is a perennial herbaceous plant of the ginger family (Zingiberaceae) that is tuberous rhizomeor underground stem. The turmeric plant is identifiable by both its characteristic tuberous root and the leaves that extend upward from erect, thick stems arising from the root. Turmeric root is actually a fleshy oblong tuber that is tapered at each end.

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Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. It is a water borne disease. Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB). Tuberculosis, Cough-cold and Pneumonia are air borne diseases.

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Pyrolysis is a thermo-chemical decomposition of organic material at elevated temperatures in the absence of oxygen (or any halogen). Pyrolysis generally takes place well above atmospheric pressure at temperatures exceeding above 430 °C.

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Decomposers recycle nutrients in the atmosphere. The nutrient cycle is a system where energy and matter are transferred between living organisms and non-living parts of the environment. This occurs as animals and plants consume nutrients found in the soil, and these nutrients are then released back into the environment via death and decomposition.

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Blue whales are the largest animals ever known to have lived on Earth. These magnificent marine mammals rule the oceans at up to 100 feet (30 meters) long and upwards of 200 tons (181 metric tons). Their tongues alone can weigh as much as an elephant. Their hearts, as much as an automobile. Blue whales reach these mind-boggling dimensions on a diet composed nearly exclusively of tiny shrimplike animals called krill. During certain times of the year, a single adult blue whale consumes about 4 tons (3.6 metric tons) of krill a day.

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Contraceptive pills in the market contain steroid hormones like levonorgestrel, progestrogen, estrogen etc. Every brand of combined pill on the market contains the same type of synthetic oestrogen, ethinyl estradiol, and one of eight synthetic progesterones, called progestins. These hormones are made naturally in a woman’s ovaries.

Notes:
The word ‘comose’ means ‘hairy’ in Latin. It refers to certain seeds (such as cotton) having a tuft or tufts of hair. The seeds of plants like Calotropis, Gossypium, etc, possess a large number of hair which enable them to float in air. Such seeds with hair are described as comose.