UPSC Quiz – 2024 : IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs Quiz 6th July 2024

·       It is a bilateral program that supports collaborative research projects between Australia and India.

·       It aims to strengthen the scientific relationship between the two countries and address common challenges through joint research efforts.

·       It is a platform for bilateral collaboration in science, jointly managed and funded by the governments of India and Australia.

Objectives

·       To increase the uptake of leading-edge science and technology (S&T) by supporting collaboration between Australian and Indian researchers in strategically focused, leading-edge scientific research and technology projects, and strengthening strategic alliances between Australian and Indian researchers;

·       Facilitate India’s and Australia’s access to the global S&T system.

·       The priority areas for collaborative research projects in Round Fifteen of the Indo-Australian S&T Fund are Artificial Intelligence and machine learning, New and Renewable energy technologies (particularly ultra-low-cost solar and clean hydrogen), and Urban mining and electronic waste recycling.

·       It is a limestone cave located on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi.

Key findings

·       A scene of humans interacting with a pig painted on a cave wall is found in the cave.

·       The scene, dominated by a representation of a pig that is standing upright along with three smaller human-like figures, is painted in a single shade of dark red pigment.

·       One figure seems to be holding an object near the pig’s throat. Another is directly above the pig’s head in an upside-down position with legs splayed out.

·       The third figure is larger and grander in appearance than the others; it is holding an unidentified object and is possibly wearing an elaborate headdress.

·       This painting predates the cave paintings of Europe, which is at El Castillo in Spain, dating to about 40,800 years ago.

·       The researchers interpreted the painting as a narrative scene, which they said would make it the oldest-known evidence of storytelling in art.

·       The earliest Sulawesi rock art is not ‘simple, it is quite advanced and shows the mental capacity of people at the time.

·       It was established in 1965 in Warsaw (Poland) as a result of the Venice Charter of 1964 and offers advice to UNESCO on World Heritage Sites.

·       It is an international non-governmental organisation that is composed of professionals, experts, representatives from local authorities, companies and heritage organisations, and is dedicated to the conservation and enhancement of the architectural and landscape heritage throughout the world.

·       Ahom era ‘Moidams’, resting place of royal families, in Assam’s Charaideo district have been recommended for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List by its international advisory body International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS).

Key facts about Moidams

·       The Moidams (also Maidams) are the mound-burial system of the Ahom dynasty (13th century-19th century).

·       The mound-burial system of the royals of the Ahom dynasty in Assam’s Charaideo district can be likened to the royal tombs of ancient China and the Pyramids of the Egyptians Pharaohs (kings of ancient Egypt).

·       The Ahom rule lasted for about 600 years until the British annexed Assam in 1826.

·       Charaideo, more than 400 km east of Guwahati, was the first capital of the Ahom dynasty founded by Chao Lung Siu-Ka-Pha in 1253.

·       However, after the 18th century, the Ahom rulers adopted the Hindu method of cremation, entombing the cremated bones and ashes in a Moidam at Charaideo.

·       The Moidams enshrine the mortal remains of Ahom royalty and are highly venerated.

·       With the shift of Ahom capital south and eastwards, Moidams have been seen in different parts of Northern Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Northern Burma, Southern China and Northeast India – together defining the region where Tai-Ahom culture prevailed.

·       It is a two-day summit held at the New Delhi, with over 1000 GPAI delegates, AI experts, and practitioners are participants of it.

·       The Summit will focus on key pillars of the AI ecosystem, including Compute Capacity, Foundational Models, Datasets, Application Development, Future Skills, Startup Financing and Safe and trusted AI.

·       The experts, delegates, industry and start-up veterans, AI practitioners, academicians, students, and officials from Central and State Governments can participate at this event.

·       India is currently the lead chair of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) for 2024.

·       IndiaAI Mission – It aims to build a comprehensive ecosystem that fosters AI innovation.

·       The Global INDIAai Summit is focusing on the 7 key pillars of the IndiaAI Mission, which was approved in March 2024 with a budget of USD 1.25 billion.

The 7 key pillars of the IndiaAI Mission are:

·       IndiaAI Compute Capacity

·       IndiaAI Innovation Centre

·       IndiaAI Datasets Platform

·       IndiaAI Application Development Initiative

·       IndiaAI FutureSkills

·       IndiaAI Startup Financing

·       Safe & Trusted AI

Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) – It is a multi-stakeholder initiative with 29 member countries.

·       It aims to bridge the gap between theory and practice on AI by supporting cutting-edge research and applied activities on AI-related priorities.

·       As GPAI’s Lead Chair, India is convening global AI experts to discuss key issues and promote trustworthy AI.

·       The study used fossil pollen and carbon isotope data from the Eocene Thermal Maximum 2 (ETM-2) period, which occurred about 54 million years ago.

·       It is also known as H-1 or Elmo.

Key findings of the study:

·       High atmospheric CO2 concentrations (over 1000 ppmv) near the palaeo-equator led to significant decreases in rainfall.

·       This decrease in rainfall caused an expansion of deciduous forests.

·       Implications for the present and future:

·       Unprecedented increases in greenhouse gases could lead to decreased rainfall in equatorial regions.

·       This could cause a shift in vegetation patterns.

·       India’s biodiversity hotspots (Western Ghats, northeast India, and the Andamans) could see evergreen forests replaced by deciduous forests.

·       The study highlights the importance of understanding the relationship between CO2 levels and the hydrological cycle for future conservation efforts in biodiversity hotspots.

·       This research is particularly relevant because the Indian plate was near the equator during the ETM-2 period, making it a valuable “natural laboratory” for studying equatorial climate-vegetation relationships.

·       Birbal Sahni Institution of Palaeosciences (BSIP) – Is an autonomous institute of Department of Science and Technology.