Daily Quiz: UPSC Prelims Marathon (Science & Technology) – May 24, 2020

Established in 1986-87, the Honey Bee Network (HBN) is a volunteer based network that seeks innovative ideas and Traditional Knowledge (TK) produced at the grassroots level by individuals and communities and disseminates them to the wider ecosystem. HBN is an amalgamation of like-minded people, be it innovators, farmers, scholars, academicians, policy makers and entrepreneurs, institutions and civil society. The Network signifies a philosophy of discourse that stands on the three pillars: the discourse that is authentic, accountable and fair.

Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) and TRIPs Plus.

Statement 1 is correct: TRIPs Agreement stipulates minimum standards in the international rules governing patents, including that on pharmaceuticals or medicines. Member countries have to enact the necessary legal framework by including these minimum regulations. These standards include, amongst others, a minimum patent period of 20 years; provision for product patents; and the protection to pharmaceutical test data from ‘unfair commercial use’.

Statement 2 is correct: TRIPs Plus are higher levels of protection norms demanded by the developed countries that are not prescribed by the WTO’s TRIPs regime.

Statement 3 is incorrect: Although they are named as ‘TRIPS-Plus,’ they are not formally related to TRIPs. Rather, the term is used to indicate that these requirements go beyond the minimum standards imposed by TRIPs. Many developing countries who are members of FTAs are under pressure to enact these tougher conditions in their patent laws.

Biodiversity prospecting or bioprospecting is the systematic search for biochemical and genetic information in nature in order to develop commercially-valuable products for pharmaceutical, agricultural, cosmetic and other applications. The Nagoya Protocol potentially helps enforcing rights over genetic resources and associated Traditional Knowledge (TK) in user countries and improves transparency and clarity in the access legislation of provider countries. In turn, these measures could indirectly help to generate additional funds and incentives for biodiversity conservation at the national and local levels.

Nuclear Power Programme.

Statement 1 is incorrect: India’s three-stage nuclear power programme was formulated by Homi Bhabha in the 1950s to secure the country’s long term energy independence, through the use of uranium and thorium reserves found in the monazite sands of coastal regions of South India.

Statement 2 is incorrect: In the second stage, fast breeder reactors (FBRs)[moderators not required] would use plutonium-239, recovered by reprocessing spent fuel from the first stage, and natural uranium. In FBRs, plutonium-239 undergoes fission to produce energy, while the uranium-238 present in the fuel transmutes to additional plutonium-239.

Historical Background of Legislative Initiatives regarding electricity and energy supply in India are:

• The Indian Electricity Act, 1910,
• The Electricity (Supply) Act, 1948,
• The Electricity Regulatory Commission Act, 1998 and
• The Energy Conservation Act, 2001.

National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency (NMEEE).

Statement 1 is incorrect: PAT scheme is a market based mechanism to enhance cost-effectiveness in improving the energy efficiency in energy-intensive industries through the certification of energy savings, which can be traded.

Statement 2 is incorrect: MTEE aims to accelerate the shift to energy-efficient appliances in designated sectors through innovative measures to make the products more affordable.

The Coradia iLint is the world’s first passenger train powered by a hydrogen fuel cell, which produces electrical power for traction. This zero-emission train emits low levels of noise, with exhaust being only steam and condensed water. The iLint is special for its combination of different innovative elements: clean energy conversion, flexible energy storage in batteries, and smart management of traction power and available energy. Specifically designed for operation on non-electrified lines, it enables clean, sustainable train operation while ensuring high levels of performance. The iLint was designed by Alstom teams in Salzgitter (Germany), our centre of excellence for regional trains, and in Tarbes (France), centre of excellence for traction systems.

In partnership with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, UNDP aims to support the Universal Immunization Programme through designing and implementing the Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network (eVIN), a unique innovation that brings together technology, people and processes to strengthen the vaccine supply chain by digitising information on vaccine stocks and storage temperatures. Supported by GAVI-the Vaccine Alliance, the health systems strengthening project aims to streamline and regularize the vaccine flow network by ensuring data-driven and efficient management of the immunization supply chain. The goal is to ensure equity in easy and timely availability of vaccines to all children.

The plan for the Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) until the late 1980s was to build an SSN – a fast-moving deep-diving nuclear-powered attack submarine, which would hunt surface ships. Around the time India leased a Charlie-I class nuclear-powered attack submarine from the Soviet Union, which happened in 1988, planning veered towards building a submarine carrying ballistic missiles. The hull design was lengthened and the SSN quietly transformed into an SSBN. The Project code named Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) Project took 25 years for completion. It spawned a new era in the field of cooperation between DRDO, BARC, Navy, PSUs and private industry in which these organizations synergized their efforts to achieve a significant technological and strategic milestone. The Arihant class( nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines)- INS Arihant (S73), INS Aridhaman (S74) are built for the Indian Navy by Navy Shipbuilding Centre, Visakhapatnam. The miniaturised naval version of the reactor was designed and built by the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) at the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR) in Kalpakkam.

Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS).

Statement 1 is correct: AWACS is distinctive radar domes mounted on the fuselage of the aircraft, which provide the Alliance with air surveillance, command and control, battle space management and communications.

Statement 2 is incorrect: PHALCON AWACS is developed by Israel and it is used by Indian Air Force.