• Obligately hydrocarbonoclastic bacteria (OHCB) survive by consuming hydrocarbons as a sole carbon and energy source.
• These marine bacteria play an integral role in the bioremediation of spilled petroleum worldwide.
• Alcanivorax borkumensis (or Alca), an aerobic and rod-shaped OHBC that feasts on organic acids and alkanes, bloom during oil spills to exploit the hydrocarbons contained within crude oil.
• “Oil-eating” Alcanivorax borkumensis bacteria form “dendritic” biofilms that reshape oil droplets, and increase the surface area to speed up the rate of consumption.

• Oilseeds yield is used oil for cooking and frying and meal – the residual cake after extraction of oil from the seeds which is a protein-rich ingredient used in livestock, poultry and aqua feed.

MUSTARD IN INDIA

• India’s most significant domestically-grown oilseed is rapeseed-mustard.
• Its share in the country’s production of vegetable oils has been estimated at 42.6% (more than soyabean’s 19.2%) and in that of meal at 30.3% (next to soyabean’s 38.9%)
• Mustard seeds have high levels of glucosinolates, a group of sulphur and nitrogen-containing compounds contributing to the characteristic pungency of their oil and meal.

ISSUES

• Pungent smell limits the oil’s acceptability among consumers.
• Rapeseed meal is unpalatable to poultry and pigs, while having to be mixed with fodder grass and water for giving to cattle and buffaloes.
• Besides reducing their feed intake, high glucosinolates are also known to cause goiter (swelling of neck) and internal organ abnormalities in livestock.
  • Normal mustard (Brassica juncea) cultivated in India contain 120-130 parts per million (ppm or mg/kg) of glucosinolates.

RESOLUTION

• Indian scientists have developed the first ever low-pungent mustard that is pest and disease-resistant.
• It is based on CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing, while being non-GM and transgene-free.
• It is produced through gene editing of ‘Varuna’, a high-yielding Indian mustard variety, using CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technology.
  • Gene Editing incorporates modification of existing genetic material to improve the quality.

• A new variety of lotus flower called ‘Namoh 108’ has been developed by the Lucknow Institute CSIR-NBRI (National Botanical Research Institute).
  • Namoh in Sanskrit translates to ‘salutations.’
• It has 108 petals and was discovered several years ago in Manipur.
• It was only after the number of petals was discovered that the NBRI cloned and worked on improving its germplasm and modifying its characteristics in a way that it could be cultivated relatively easily outside of Manipur.
• The Namoh 108 lotus variety flowers from March to December and is rich in nutrients.
• This is the first lotus variety whose genome is completely sequenced for its characteristics
• Apparel made from the 108 fibre as well as perfume, named ‘Frotus’, were also
• CSIR-NBRI would be initiating a ‘Lotus Mission’ as part of a larger ongoing horticultural mission to have more of the 108 Namo flowers grow in other parts of India.

• Scientists have discovered a remarkable ‘demon particle’ that holds the potential to usher in a new era of superconductors.
• It was first predicted nearly 70 years ago by physicist David Pines.
  • Pines had asserted that combinations of electrons in a solid could form a composite particle that is massless, has no charge and does not interact with light.
• It is a transparent, massless, and neutral particle, with the capacity to manifest regardless of temperature, making it useful for superconductors.
• It is not a particle in the traditional sense like a proton or electron. It is a “composite” particle made up of a combination of electrons, in a solid (a metal strontium ruthenate Sr₂RuO₄).

USE IN SUPERCONDUCTORS

• A superconductor, a special type of metal or alloy, possesses the remarkable ability to transmit electrical currents without any hindrance.
  • However, current superconductors require the temperature to fall below 100 degrees Fahrenheit-mark to maintain their properties.
• The demon particle exhibits its properties regardless of temperature, potentially opening doors to room-temperature superconductors.

• A Tapas unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) crashed in agriculture fields near a village in Karnataka’s Chitradurga.

ABOUT TAPAS

• Tactical Airborne Platform for Aerial Surveillance-Beyond Horizon-201 or Tapas BH-201 is a long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle.
  • It was previously referred to as Rustom-II.
• The drone has a 20.6-meter wingspan and a maximum speed of 225 kmph.
• It can cover a range of 250+ km using the C Band frequency data link developed by Defence Electronics Application Laboratory (DEAL) at DRDO, and 1000+ km via SATCOM using the Kᵤ Band frequency and GAGAN system.
• TAPAS BH 201 is being developed in India by Aeronautical Development Establishment.
• The medium-altitude, long-endurance drone has an impressive flight endurance of several hours and successfully completed its maiden flight in November 2016.
• The TAPAS BH 201 drone has the capability to fly autonomously or via remote control, allowing for pre-programmed flight plans and operational use in daylight or darkness.
• It is easily transportable and deployable to remote locations
• With a range of over 18 hours and altitude capabilities of up to 28,000 feet, the TAPAS BH 201 has already completed more than 180 flights and will be live-streaming aerial and static displays at Aero India 2023.

• The central government has published a fact sheet listing 36 species that can be grown in different agro-climatic zones.
• It was prepared by the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education.
• It recommends cultivating 36 specific species, including bamboo, that are suitable for agroforestry systems and home gardens.
• The 36 species include Leucaena leucocephala, or subabul, and various varieties of eucalyptus.
  • Subabul is considered an invasive species.
  • Eucalyptus is considered highly water-intensive.
• The list also includes important timber species such as poplar, teak, shisham (Indian rosewood) and mahogany.

ABOUT AGROFORESTRY

• It is a combination of practising agriculture and forestry together on the same unit of land.
• It is a traditional practice recognizing and promoting trees and/or livestock on farms in a special arrangement pattern.
• Major agroforestry systems based on type of components include:
  • Agrisilviculture (crops + trees)
  • Silvopastoral (pasture/ livestock + trees)
  • Agrosilvopastoral (crops + livestock + trees)

• Advantages of agroforestry
  • farm profitability– the combined output of trees, crops, and livestock per unit area is greater
  • mulch and leaf litter as manure and bio-pesticides from tree components;
  • crops and livestock protected from wind damage;
  • new products from agroforestry increasing financial flexibility and diversification of farming enterprises and diversification;
  • carbon sequestration.

ABOUT INDIAN COUNCIL OF FORESTRY RESEARCH AND EDUCATION

• It is an autonomous council under Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change and is registered as a society.
• It is an apex body in national forestry research system.
• Headquarters- Dehradun

General Studies Paper 3

Context

• Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be used to decode passwords by analysing the sound produced by keystrokes. The study highlighted the accuracy of Acoustic Side Channel Attacks (ASCA) when state-of-the-art deep learning models were used to classify laptop keystrokes and their mitigation.

Defining ASCA

• To understand Acoustic Side Channel Attacks, one should know Side Channel Attacks (SCAs).
• SCAs are a method of hacking a cryptographic algorithm based on the analysis of auxiliary systems used in the encryption method.
• These can be performed using a collection of signals emitted by devices, including electromagnetic waves, power consumption, mobile sensors as well as sound from keyboards and printers to target devices.
• Once collected, these signals are used to interpret signals that can be then used to compromise the security of a device.
• In an ASCA, the sound of clicks generated by a keyboard is used to analyse keystrokes and interpret what is being typed to leak sensitive information.
• These attacks are particularly dangerous as the acoustic sounds from a keyboard are not only readily available but also because their misuse is underestimated by users.
• While most users hide their screens when typing sensitive information, no precautionary steps are taken to hide the sound of the keystrokes.
• And though over time, the sound of keyboard clicks has become less profound with devices making use of non-mechanical keyboards, the technology with which the acoustics can be accessed and processed has also improved drastically.
• Additionally, the use of laptops has increased the scope of ASCAs as laptop models have the same keyboard making it easier for AI-enabled deep learning models to pick up and interpret the acoustics.

The accuracy

• The study found that when trained on keystrokes by a nearby phone, the classifier achieved an accuracy of 95%, the highest accuracy seen without the use of a language model.
• When a deep learning model was trained on the data with default values, the model was able to acquire a meaningful interpretation of the data.
• Additionally, when the AI model was made to recognise keystrokes using audio captured through a smartphone microphone, it was able to achieve 95% accuracy.

ASCA attacks

• ASCA attacks are not new and have been around since 1950 when acoustic emanations of encryption devices were used to crack their security.
• Over the past decades, researchers have published papers talking about the threats from ASCA attacks with the advent of modern technology that brought more microphones in close proximity to keyboards, making it easier to collect and interpret acoustic data.
• However, with the increasing use of AI and the accuracy with which deep learning models can recognise and analyse keystrokes, the threat from ASCA has resurfaced.

Protection against ASCA

• While there is no explicit means of defence against ASCAs, simple changes to typing could reduce the chances of attacks.
• Using touch-based typing can also reduce the chances of successful keystroke recognition from 64% to 40%, making it more difficult for threat actors to leak sensitive information.
• Additionally, changes in typing style and creating stronger passwords that use a combination of upper- and lower-case alphabets can make it more difficult for criminals to launch successful ASCA attacks.

Way forward

• Users should also avoid the use of easily recognisable phrases which can make it easier for AI models to predict the text.

• An NDRF team conducted a brave operation at the Kol Dam Hydel Project in Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi district and saved 10 people trapped at the dam following a failure of their boat.
• The Koldam Hydropower Station commonly known as Koldam, is an embankment dam on the Sutlej River.

• World Mosquito Day is observed annually on August 20^th.
• It is done to commemorate the contributions of British doctor Sir Ronald Ross, who was the first person to discover the connection between malaria and female anopheles mosquitoes.

• Spain secured their maiden FIFA Women’s World Cup title with a 1-0 win over England.
• FIFA Women’s World Cup final was held in Sydney.
• The tournament was hosted jointly by Australia and New Zealand.