Daily Currentaffairs: 11 Oct 2020

Tables of contents

1.Amazon risks tipping from forest to savanna

2. Dust responsible for snowmelt in the Himalayan Region

3. Hepatitis C virus

4. Black Holes

5.Indian Gazelle (Chinkara)

6.Conversion of Educational Materials into Indian Sign Language

7.Indo-Canadian Business Chamber (ICBC)

8.National Clinical Management Protocol

1.Amazon risks tipping from forest to savanna

Recently, a team of Europe-based scientists used the latest available atmospheric data to simulate how tropical forests of Amazon are at risk of changing to Savanna.

Key Highlights

• Around 40 per cent of the Amazon risks crossing a tipping point from rainforest to savanna as greenhouse gas emissions reduce the rainfall needed to sustain its ecosystem.

• The scientists simulated the effect of continued emissions from burning fossil fuels between now and the end of the century and they found that rainfall in the Amazon is so low already.

• The Amazon forests are particularly sensitive to changes that affect rainfall for extended periods, and trees may die off if areas go too long without rain.

• The lack of rain can have knock-on effects on nature with the loss of tropical habitats as well as the climate as shrinking forests lose their ability to absorb man-made emissions.

Amazon Rainforest

 

The Amazon is a vast region that spans across eight rapidly developing countries i.e. Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana.

 

The tropical forests and woodlands (e.g. savannas) exchange vast amounts of water and energy with the atmosphere and are thought to be important in controlling local and regional climates.

Source: The Hindu

2. Dust responsible for snowmelt in the Himalayan Region

Recently, a study published in the journal Nature Climate Change has found that the dust is responsible for snow-melt in the Western Himalayan Region.

Key Highlights

• The dust particles transported from Saudi Arabia that gets deposited in the Western Himalayan Region i.e. Hindu Kush, Karakoram and western Himalaya ranges has a large role to play in melting of snow.

  • It is the first time the role of long-distance transported dust in elevational heterogeneity of snow melting in the Himalayas has been made.

• The dust transported as elevated aerosol layers get deposited at 1-5 km elevation and the black carbon emission is mostly a surface phenomenon and influences melting of snow from surface to about 3 km elevation.

  • The authors of the study shows that the relative impacts of dust and black carbon vary with surface elevation of snowpack.

• The black carbon has a larger snow albedo darkening effect than dust due to larger mass absorption efficiency.

• The study found that the radiative effects of dust deposited on snow are comparable to black carbon in the Western Himalayan Region at higher elevations.

  • It is mainly because the deposition of dust by mass is 100-1,000 times more than black carbon.

• As the elevation increases, the influence of dust becomes greater than black carbon and the phenomenon coincides with maximum intensity of snowmelt reduction seen at 3-5 km elevation.

• The study found out that the black carbon mainly contributes to snowmelt at lower elevation while dust is the major contributor for snowmelt at higher elevation.

• The Westerlies transport dust particles as elevated aerosol layers at maximum intensities mostly during the pre-monsoon period  and it gets deposited at higher elevations in the western Himalayan region.

• The annual contribution of dust to snowmelt is likely increase in the future as the black carbon effect at lower elevation weakens with dwindling snowpack due to the effect of global warming.

Source: The Hindu

3.Hepatitis C virus

Recently, the American scientists Harvey Alter and Charles Rice, and Michael Houghton of the UK, have been recognised for their contributions to the discovery of Hepatitis C virus.

Background

• According to the World Health Organization, about 71 million people (6 -11 million of them in India) have chronic infection with the Hepatitis C virus, which also happens to be major cause of liver cancer.

• In 2016, this viral infection led to the death of nearly 400,000 people across the world.

Before the discovery of Hepatitis C Virus

• The Hepatitis A virus was known to spread mainly through contaminated food and water, and caused a relatively milder form of liver inflammation.

• Hepatitis B, discovered in the 1960s, was known to transmit mainly through infected blood, and caused a more serious form of the disease.

• The discovery and identification of Hepatitis B virus facilitated the development of a diagnostic test to detect its presence in blood.

Discovery of Hepatitis C

• Hepatitis C is a liver disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV).

• The virus can cause both acute and chronic hepatitis, ranging in severity from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a serious, lifelong illness.

• Hepatitis C is a major cause of liver cancer.

• The hepatitis C virus is a blood-borne virus. It is most commonly transmitted through:

  • Injecting drug use through the sharing of injection equipment;

  • The reuse or inadequate sterilization of medical equipment especially syringes and needles in healthcare settings;

  • The transfusion of unscreened blood and blood products;

  • Sexual practices that lead to exposure to blood

• HCV can also be transmitted sexually and can be passed from an infected mother to her baby; however, these modes of transmission are less common.

• Antiviral medicines can cure more than 95% of persons with hepatitis C infection, thereby reducing the risk of death from cirrhosis and liver cancer.

• There is currently no effective vaccine against hepatitis C.

Source: The Hindu

4.Black Holes

Recently, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences decided to award one half of the 2020 Nobel Prize in physics to Roger Penrose and the other half jointly to Reinhard Genzel and Andrea Ghez for furthering the understanding of black holes.

What are Black Holes?

• A black hole is formed when stars collapse and can be defined as a space in the universe with an escape velocity so strong that even light cannot escape it.

  • The escape velocity is the speed at which an object must travel to override a planet or an object’s gravitational force.

• Since light cannot get out, black holes are invisible and can only be tracked with the help of a space telescope or other special tools.

• The reason light cannot escape is mainly that the gravity inside a black hole is very strong as a result of a lot of matter being squeezed into a small space.

Observations on Black Holes

• Penrose has been awarded the prize for the discovery that black hole formation is a robust prediction of the general theory of relativity.

• Penrose’s work has shown that black holes are a direct consequence of Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity.

• Penrose used Einstein’s general theory of relativity in order to prove that the process of formation of black holes is a stable one.

• Genzel and Ghez have been awarded the prize for the discovery of a supermassive compact object at the centre of our galaxy.

• Genzel and Ghez, on the other hand, have discovered that an invisible and an extremely heavy object govern the stars’ orbit at the centre of the Milky Way.

• The work of Genzel and Ghez tells us that at the centre of our galaxy the Milky Way lies an invisible supermassive object, of which a black hole provides a reasonable explanation.

Source: The Indian Express

5.Indian Gazelle (Chinkara)

Recently, the ornithologists and researchers from Pune have reported three successful incidents in which Chinkara fawns were rescued, examined, treated, and re-wilded during foaling season.

About Indian Gazelle (Chinkara)

• The Indian Gazelle (Chinkara) is an antelope endemic to the Indian subcontinent.

  • Chinkara are native to Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India.

• It is protected under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

• They live in arid plains and hills, deserts, dry scrub, and light forests.

• Chinkara are herbivores (folivores, frugivores) as they feed on grasses, different leaves and fruits (melon, pumpkin).

• Chinkara are classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Source: The Indian Express

6.Conversion of Educational Materials into Indian Sign Language

Recently, a historic MoU was signed between ISLRTC and NCERT for Converting Educational Materials into Indian Sign Language.

Key Highlights

• The conversion of educational materials aims to make education materials accessible for Deaf children in their preferred format of communication viz Indian Sign Language.

• The MoU aims to ensure educational standardization of Indian Sign Language as mandated in the New Education Policy (NEP), 2020.

• After this MoU, NCERT educational books and materials will be available in Indian Sign Language which is same all over India and all hearing impaired students of India will read NCERT books in a single language.

• Indian Sign Language denotes Unity in Diversity which is explained through Hands and understood through Eyes and it connects all hearing impaired people of our country all together.

• The educational print materials such as NCERT Textbooks, Teachers Handbook and other Supplementary materials and resources of Class I-XII of all subjects of both Hindi and English Medium will be converted into Indian Sign Language in Digital format.

Indian Sign Language Research and Training Centre (ISLRTC)

 

It is an autonomous national institute of DEPwD, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

 

It is dedicated to the task of developing man-power for popularizing the use of Indian Sign Language, teaching and conducting research in Indian Sign Language.

 

Source: PIB

7.Indo-Canadian Business Chamber (ICBC)

Recently, the India-Canada Agri-Tech Virtual Seminar is organized by the Indo-Canadian Business Chamber (ICBC) in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Ministry of External Affairs of India.

About Indo-Canadian Business Chamber (ICBC)

• It is the only organization based in India which is dedicated to promoting Indo-Canadian economic and bilateral relations.

• It works closely with the High Commission of Canada in India on core issues and initiatives related to bilateral trade in the India-Canada business corridor.

• It was established in 1994.

• Its main focus is on sectors such as Education and Advanced Skills Development, Energy, Infrastructure, Aerospace, ICT and Legal service.

• The objectives of ICBC are:

  • To promote trade and business relations between India & Canada.

  • To provide resources to companies of both countries with regard to trade and business contacts.

  • To serve as a voice for industry and facilitate exchange of knowledge between government and businesses in both the countries.

  • To provide valuable information to the membership at all times.

Source: PIB

8.National Clinical Management Protocol

Recently, the National Clinical Management Protocol based on Ayurveda and Yoga for the management of Covid-19 was released.

Key Highlights

• It was jointly released by Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and Ministry of AYUSH.

• It is prepared as per the Report & Recommendations of the Interdisciplinary Committee.

• The three aspects are considered while preparing this protocol:

• • Knowledge from Ayurveda classics and experience from clinical practices

  • Empirical evidences and Biological plausibility

  • Emerging trends of ongoing clinical studies

• The significance of the protocol is that it ends the ambiguity around deploying Ayurveda and Yoga-based solutions for the clinical management of Covid- 19.

• The present protocol provides clear guidance to Ayush practitioners of the said two disciplines regarding treatment of Covid 19 patients in different conditions of infection.

• The protocol brings in uniformity and consistency in the Ayush-based responses to the pandemic across the country.

• It also helps State/UT governments to plan and incorporate these solutions into the Covid-19 management activities being deployed on the ground.

Source: LiveMint