Daily Quiz

Solution (b)
Explanation:
• The name orangutan means “man of the forest” in the Malay language. In the lowland forests in which they reside, orangutans live solitary existences. They feast on wild fruits like lychees, mangosteens, and figs, and slurp water from holes in trees.
• They make nests in trees of vegetation to sleep at night and rest during the day. Adult male orangutans can weigh up to 200 pounds.
• Flanged males have prominent cheek pads called flanges and a throat sac used to make loud verbalizations called long calls.
• An unflanged male looks like an adult female. In a biological phenomenon unique among primates, an unflanged male can change to a flanged male for reasons that are not yet fully understood.
• Orangutans are “gardeners” of the forest, playing a vital role in seed dispersal in their habitats. Orangutans play a critical role in their ecosystems by dispersing seeds through their faeces, which helps maintain the health and biodiversity of the forest. (Statement 1 is correct)
• Orangutans’ extremely low reproductive rate makes their populations highly vulnerable. Orangutans have one of the longest interbirth intervals of any land mammal (around 7 to 8 years), which makes their populations extremely susceptible to decline. (Statement 2 is correct)
• There are only two species in wild of orangutans namely Bornean and Sumatran. There are actually three species of orangutans: the Bornean Orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus), the Sumatran Orangutan (Pongo abelii), and the Tapanuli Orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis), which was identified as a distinct species in 2017. (Statement 3 is incorrect)

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/a-wild-orangutan-used-a-medicinal-plant-to-treat-a-wound-scientists-say/article68134786.ece

Solution (b)

Explanation:

• Carbon farming combines regenerative agricultural practices that restore ecosystem health, improve agricultural productivity and soil health, and mitigate climate change by enhancing carbon storage and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. (Hence option b is correct)
• Practices include rotational grazing, agroforestry, conservation agriculture, integrated nutrient management, agro-ecology, livestock management, and land restoration.
• The effectiveness varies based on geographical location, soil type, crop selection, water availability, biodiversity, farm size and scale, land management practices, policy support, and community engagement.
• Regions with long growing seasons, sufficient rainfall, and irrigation are best suited, while it can be challenging in hot and dry areas with limited water availability.
• Adoption may require financial assistance for farmers, especially in developing countries where small-scale farmers lack resources.
• Carbon trading initiatives like the Chicago Climate Exchange, Carbon Farming Initiative in Australia, and Kenya’s Agricultural Carbon Project incentivize carbon mitigation in agriculture.
• The ‘4 per 1000’ initiative highlights the role of carbon sinks in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions.
• In India, agro-ecological practices could yield $63 billion in value from 170 million hectares of arable land, including payments for climate services.
• Regions like the Indo-Gangetic plains and Deccan Plateau are well-suited, while coastal areas and the Himalayas are less suitable.
• Studies show agricultural soils can absorb 3-8 billion tonnes of CO2-equivalent annually, bridging the gap between emissions reductions and climate stabilization.
• Scaling up in India requires addressing limited awareness, inadequate policy support, technological barriers, and an enabling adoption environment

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/energy-and-environment/what-is-carbon-farming-explained/article68147027.ece

Solution (a)

Explanation:

• MRI is a non-invasive diagnostic technique used to image soft tissues in the body, particularly useful for brain, cardiovascular system, spinal cord, joints, muscles, liver, and arteries. (Statement 1 is correct)
• It is important for observing and treating certain cancers like prostate and rectal cancer, and tracking neurological conditions like Alzheimer’s, dementia, epilepsy, and stroke.
• MRI works by aligning hydrogen atoms in the body using a powerful magnetic field, then detecting the radio signals emitted when they return to their original state. (Statement 2 is correct)
• Key components include a strong superconducting magnet, radiofrequency pulse emitter, and detector to convert signals into images.
• Advantages include the ability to image the body from multiple angles and in small increments, differentiate tissues based on hydrogen atom relaxation times, and use contrast agents for better visibility.
• MRI is considered safe with no long-term harm, but effects on pregnant women are not well-studied.
• Disadvantages include high cost of the machines (from a few lakh to crores), high cost of scans (often ₹10,000 or more in India), discomfort of lying still for long periods,as if they move the image will not be clear, claustrophobia issues, and loud operating noises. (Statement 3 is incorrect)
• Maintaining the superconducting setup and operating the gradient coils requires substantial energy, contributing to the high costs.
• Individuals with metallic implants or objects may not be able to undergo MRI scans due to the strong magnetic fields involved.

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/what-is-magnetic-resonance-imaging-explained/article68145357.ece

Solution (d)

Explanation:

• As CBDCs are electronic form of sovereign currency, it should imbibe all the possible features of physical currency.
• CBDC can be classified into two broad types viz. general purpose or retail (CBDC-R) and wholesale (CBDC-W). Retail CBDC would be potentially available for use by all viz. private sector, non-financial consumers and businesses while wholesale CBDC is designed for restricted access to select financial institutions. While Wholesale CBDC is intended for the settlement of interbank transfers and related wholesale transactions, Retail CBDC is an electronic version of cash primarily meant for retail transactions.
• It is believed that Retail CBDC can provide access to safe money for payment and settlement as it is a direct liability of the Central Bank. Wholesale CBDC has the potential to transform the settlement systems for financial transactions and make them more efficient and secure.
• CBDC can be structured as ‘token-based’ or ‘account-based’.
• A token-based CBDC is a bearer-instrument like banknotes, meaning whosoever holds the tokens at a given point in time would be presumed to own them. In
• contrast, an account-based system would require maintenance of record of balances and transactions of all holders of the CBDC and indicate the ownership of the monetary balances.
• Also, in a token-based CBDC, the person receiving a token will verify that his ownership of the token is genuine, whereas in an account-based CBDC, an intermediary verifies the identity of an account holder. (Statements 1 and 2 are incorrect)
• Considering the features offered by both the forms of CBDCs, a token-based CBDC is viewed as a preferred mode for CBDC-R as it would be closer to physical cash, while account-based CBDC may be considered for CBDC-W.

Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/business/permanent-deletion-transactions-e-rupee-anonymous-shaktikanta-das-9312058/

Solution (b)

Explanation:

• Thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS), also known as Vaccine-induced prothrombotic immune thrombocytopenia (VIPIT) or vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT), was a rare syndrome reported in people who received adenoviral vector COVID-19 vaccines such as AstraZeneca (Covisheild) and the Johnson & Johnson/Janssen COVID-19 vaccine.
• The syndrome is characterised by thrombosis formation (blood clots) combined with thrombocytopenia (low platelet count) with symptoms typically presenting in the 4-42 days after vaccination. (Statement 1 is incorrect)
• The exact mechanism of how TTS is triggered is still under investigation, however the majority of cases were associated with the finding of anti-PF4 antibodies. There are no clear diagnostic markers to indicate who is at risk of this syndrome. This is currently under investigation.
• TTS appears to be similar to an autoimmune condition known as heparin induced thrombocytopenia (HIT), which is where an immune reaction to the medication heparin impacts platelet function, leading to thrombosis (clots). (Statement 2 is correct)

Source: https://epaper.indianexpress.com/c/75029149