UPSC PRE TOPIC WISE PAPER : Science and Technology
1. With reference to the use of nano-technology in health sector, which of the following statements is/are correct? (UPSC 2015)
1. Targeted drug delivery is made possible by nanotechnology.
2. Nanotechnology can largely contribute to gene therapy.
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a) Only 1 (b) Only 2
(c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 nor 2
Ans: C
Exp: Nanotechnology has provided the possibility of delivering drugs to specific cells using nanoparticles. The overall drug consumption and side-effects may be lowered significantly by depositing the active
agent in the morbid region only and in no higher dose than needed. Targeted drug delivery is intended to reduce the side effects of drugs with concomitant decreases in consumption and treatment expenses.
Drug delivery focuses on maximizing bioavailability both at specific places in the body and over a period of time. This can potentially be achieved by molecular targeting by nanoengineered devices. Bionanotechnology is a specific application of nanotechnology. For example, DNA nanotechnology or cellular engineering would be classified as bionanotechnology because they involve working
with biomolecules on the nanoscale. Conversely,many new medical technologies involving nanoparticles as delivery systems or as sensors would be examples of nanobiotechnology since they involve using nanotechnology to advance the goals of biology. However whether it can largely contribute to gene therapy or not is not clear.)
2. In the context of modem scientific research, consider the following statements about ‘IceCube’, a particle detector located at South Pole, which was recently in the news:(UPSC 2015)
1. It is the world’s largest neutrino detector,encompassing a cubic kilometre of ice.
2. It is a powerful telescope to search for dark matter.
3. It is buried deep in the ice.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) Only 1 (b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3
Ans: D
Exp: The IceCube Neutrino Observatory (or simply IceCube) is a neutrino telescope constructed at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station in Antarctica. Its thousands of sensors are distributed over a cubic
kilometre of volume under the Antarctic ice. Similar to its predecessor, the Antarctic Muon And Neutrino Detector Array (AMANDA), IceCube consists of spherical optical sensors called Digital Optical Modules (DOMs)each with a photomultiplier tube (PMT) and a single board data acquisition computer which sends digital data to the counting house on the surface above the array. IceCube was completed on 18 December 2010.
However, a neutrino is an electrically neutral elementary particle with half-integer spin. The neutrino (meaning “little neutral one” in Italian) is denoted by the Greek letter í (nu). All evidence
suggests that neutrinos have mass but that their masses are tiny, even compared to other subatomic particles. They are the only identified form of dark matter, specifically hot dark matter.
3. With reference to ‘Near Field Communication (NFC) Technology’, which of the following statements is/ are correct?(UPSC 2015)
1. It is a contactless communication technology that uses electromagnetic radio fields.
2. NFC is designed for use by devices which can be at a distance of even a metre from each other.
3. NFC can use encryption when sending sensitive information.
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a) 1 and 2 only (b) Only 3
(c) 1 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3
Ans: C
Exp: Near field communication (NFC) is the set of protocols that enables smartphones and other devices to establish radio communication with each other by touching the devices together or bringing them into proximity to a distance of typically 10 cm (3.9 in) or less.
4. The Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee is constituted under the (UPSC 2015)
(a) Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006
(b) Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999
(c) Environment (Protection) Act, 1986
(d) Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972
Ans: C
Exp: The Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) is the apex body constituted in the Ministry of Environment and Forests under ‘Rules for Manufacture, Use, Import, Export and Storage of Hazardous Microorganisms/Genetically Engineered Organisms or Cells 19892 , under the Environment Protection Act, 1986. (Source: website of Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change)
5. In which of the following activities are Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) satellites used?(UPSC 2015)
1. Assessment of crop productivity
2. Locating groundwater resources
3. Mineral exploration
4. Telecommunications
5. Traffic studies
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a) 1, 2 and 3 only (b) 4 and 5 only
(c) 1 and 2 only (d) 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5
Ans: A
Exp: Data from Indian Remote Sensing satellites are used for various applications of resources survey and management under the National Natural Resources Management System (NNRMS). Following is the list
of those applications:
· Space Based Inputs for Decentralized Planning (SIS-DP)
· National Urban Information System (NUIS)
· ISRO Disaster Management Support Programme (ISRO-DMSP)
· Biodiversity Characterizations at landscape level
· Preharvest crop area and production estimation of major crops.
· Drought monitoring and assessment based on vegetation condition.
· Flood risk zone mapping and flood damage assessment.
· Hydro-geomorphological maps for locating underground water resources for drilling well.
· Irrigation command area status monitoring
· Snow-melt run-off estimates for planning water use in down stream projects
· Land use and land cover mapping
· Urban planning
· Forest survey
· Wetland mapping
· Environmental impact analysis
· Mineral Prospecting
· Coastal studies
· Integrated Mission for Sustainable Development (initiated in 1992) for generating locale-specific prescriptions for integrated land and water resources development in 174 districts.
6. The term ‘IndARC’, sometimes seen in the news,is the name of (UPSC 2015)
(a) an indigenously developed radar system inducted into Indian Defence
(b) India’s satellite to provide services to the countries of Indian Ocean Rim
(c) a scientific establishment set up by India in Antarctic region
(d) India’s underwater observatory to scientifically study the Arctic region
Ans: D
Exp: A major milestone in India’s scientific endeavors in the Arctic region has been achieved on the 23rd July, 2014 when a team of scientists from the ESSO-National Centre for Antarctic and
Ocean Research (NCAOR) and the ESSONational Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) successfully deployed IndARC, the country’s first multi-sensor moored observatory in the
Kongsfjorden fjord of the Arctic, roughly half way between Norway and the North Pole. This moored observatory, designed and developed by ESSO-NIOT and ESSO-NCAOR with ESSOIndian
National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) was deployed from the Norwegian Polar Institute’s research vessel R.V. Lance during its annual MOSJ-ICE cruise to
the Kongsfjorden area. The observatory is presently anchored (78°57´ N 12°01´E), about 1100 km away from the North Pole at a depth of 192 m and has an array of ten state-of-the-art
oceanographic sensors strategically positioned at discrete depths in the water column. These sensors are programmed to collect real-time data on seawater temperature, salinity, current and
other vital parameters of the ford.
7. HINI virus is sometimes mentioned in the news with reference to which one of the following diseases?(UPSC 2015)
(a) AIDS (b) Bird flu
(c) Dengue (d) Swine flu
Ans: D
Exp: Influenza A (H1N1) virus is the most common cause of human influenza (flu). In June 2009, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the new strain of swine-origin H1N1 as a pandemic. This strain
is often called swine flu by the public media.
