Daily Current Affairs Quiz: 27 May 2021

ANSWER: A

WHY IN NEWS ?

• Chief Minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan, announced a secretary level committee will formulate guidelines and recommendations on implementation of “Smart Kitchen Scheme” in state.

About the scheme

• Smart Kitchen Scheme will be launched by July 10, 2021.
• Under the scheme, women of state will be given loan to refurbish their kitchen.
• Loan will be provided with a low-interest rate in instalment schemes.
• Scheme seeks to reduce workload of women’s domestic labour

ANSWER: A

WHY IN NEWS ?

• Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh, has launched ‘Services e-Health Assistance & Tele-consultation (SeHAT) OPD Portal.

About SeHAT Portal:

• Portal has been launched to provide telemedicine services in Armed Forces, further strengthening the commitment governments towards e-governance and digital India. Through this OPD, serving defence personnel from Army, Air force, Navy and ex- service personal can get teleconsultations from specialists’ doctors in Armed forces. OPD will provide benefits to around four crore people and family members of defence personnel.

ANSWER: C

WHY IN NEWS ?

• Indian economist and Nobel Laureate, Amartya Kumar Sen, was conferred with “Princess of Asturias Award” in social sciences category which is Spain’s top prize. He was selected out of 41 candidates from 20 countries.

Why he was selected ?

• Amartya Sen was selected for his best-known work- “Poverty and Famines”.

About the Award:

• Sen has been conferred which Spain’s highest prize in social science category called “Princess of Asturias Award”. It comprises of a Joan Miro sculpture as a symbol, an insignia, a diploma, and a cash prize of 50,000 Euros. His candidature was forwarded by Director General of Casa Asia (Barcelona), Javier Parrondo.

• About Amartya Kumar Sen:

• He is an Indian economist and philosopher. He has taught and worked in United Kingdom and United States since 1972. He has made contributions to welfare economics, economic and social justice, social choice theory, economic theories of famines, development economics, decision theory, public health etc. Currently, he is a professor in Thomas W. Lamont University and Professor of Economics & Philosophy at Harvard University.

ANSWER:  A

WHY IN NEWS ?

• Beloved Children’s author and illustrator, Eric Carle, died at age 91. He was famous among children for his classic The Very Hungry Caterpillar and other such works.

• About Eric Carle

• He was an American designer, illustrator, and children’s author. He wrote a famous picture book “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” that has been translated into about 66 languages. About 50 million copies have been sold. His career as an illustrator and children’s author gained pace when he collaborated on “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?”  He had illustrated more than 70 books.

His awards

• He has been awarded with American Library Association called “biennial Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal” which is now called as Children’s Literature Legacy Award. This prize is conferred on writers or illustrators of children’s books published in U.S.A . Eric Carle was also a U.S. nominee for international Hans Christian Andersen Award in 2010.

Early Life

• He was born to German immigrant parents in Syracuse, New York. However, they had returned to Nazi Germany (then), when Eric was 6. Under the Nazis, modern, expressionistic and abstract art works were banned. They only allowed realistic and naturalistic arts.

ANSWER: C

WHY IN NEWS ?

• Chief Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma, appointed “Guardian Ministers” in state.

• Who is a Guardian Minister ?

• He/she is an ex-officio chairperson of the District Planning Committee (DPC), which is constituted in every district as per law. However, rule does not mention who should head the DPC. It can be headed by administration as well as by elected representatives.

ANSWER: B

WHY IN NEWS ?

• A sacrificial pit was recently discovered at Sanxingdui Ruins Site in China, highlighting the greatness of Chinese civilization.

About:

• According to National Cultural Heritage Administration, Chinese archaeologists found six new sacrificial pits and about 500 items dating back to 3,000 years at Sanxingdui Ruins in Sichuan Province. Archaeologists have found gold masks, gold foil, miniature ivory sculptures, bronze trees, bronze masks, carbonized rice and seeds in four of the six pits.

Where are Sanxingdui ruins located?

• Sanxingdui ruins are located in Guanghan city which is about 60 km from provincial capital of Sichuan, Chengdu. These ruins belonged to Shu Kingdom existed some 4,800 years ago and lasted at least 2000 years ago.

Sanxingdui

• It is an archaeological site and a major Bronze Age culture of China. It was discovered in 1986 after preliminary finding in 1927. Remarkable artifacts were excavated by archaeologists which radiocarbon dating placed in 12th–11th centuries BC. These artifacts are similar to artifacts of ancient kingdom of Shu and are currently displayed in Sanxingdui Museum located near Guanghan.

Significance of the excavation

• Excavation at Sanxingdui including the discoveries like Xingan tombs in Jiangxi, challenges traditional narrative of spread of Chinese civilization from central plain of Yellow River.

ANSWER: B

WHY IN NEWS ?

• Recently, Uttarakhand high court has criticized state government for neglecting and forcing families of Van Gujjars nomadic tribe to survive in conditions below animal’s existence.

• About Van Gujjars nomadic tribes:

• Van Gujjars are nomadic tribes inhabiting in foothills of Himalayas and in states of Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. They are buffalo-herders. They are among the tribes who are living or have lived in deep dependence on wild habitats.

Origin of Van Gujjars:

• It is believed, Gujjars belonged to Gurjara kingdom and they migrated to states of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh in Indian Subcontinent. On the other hand, Muslim Gujjars including Van Gujjars migrated to Pakistan, Afghanistan and Indian Himalayan states of Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. It is also believed that, ancestors of van Gujjars migrated from Kashmir to Uttarakhand some 1500 years ago.

ANSWER: D

WHY IN NEWS ?

• Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati has developed a smart window material which can automatically control climate of buildings.

How will it control climate ?

• Researchers working on the window highlighted, smart window material can effectively control the amount of heat and light passing through it when voltage is applied to it. Thus, it will help to develop efficient automatic climate control.

Why this window was developed ?

• Demand and attention have increased to get a sustainable architectural design for better light and heat management in buildings over the year. Thus, these smart window materials can be installed to get sustainable design.

Characteristics of Smart Windows

• Design of smart windows is suitable for all-weather conditions.
• Smart window glasses have been designed using noble metals which can dynamically control the solar radiations.
• They are inexpensive as they make use of materials like copper and indium tin oxide.
• It can maintain the ambient indoor temperature and lighting in buildings or vehicles

ANSWER: D

WHY IN NEWS ?

• Recently, the people of Bangalore witnessed a bright rainbow ring around the sun for a few moments – a rare optical and atmospheric phenomenon called “22 degree circular Halo”.

About:

• The phenomenon popularly known as the 22 degree circular halo of the sun or occasionally the Moon (also called a moon ring or winter halo), occurs when the sun’s or moon’s rays get deflected/refracted through the hexagonal ice crystals present in cirrus clouds.
  • This is also called the Kaleidoscopic Effect.
• These halos are called 22-degree halos, as the halo or ring has an apparent radius of 22 degrees around the sun/moon.
• Circular halos specifically are produced by cirrus clouds, which are thin, detached, hair-like clouds. These clouds are formed very high up in the atmosphere, at a height of over 20,000 feet.
• Just like a rainbow, a halo is visible when viewed from the right angle — sometimes appearing just white but often with colours of the spectrum also clearly present.
  • The halo is the brightest at the inner edge of the circular disk, with no light inside the disk as no light is refracted at smaller angles.
  • Red light is refracted less than other colours of light, so the halo’s inner edge is reddish.
  • Other shades typically tend to overlap and wash out.