Science Tech Current Affairs- Quick Revision Module for PRELIMS 2020

Starlink network

American company SpaceX recently sent 60 small satellites (under 500 kg each) into Low Earth Orbit (LEO) for building low-cost Internet everywhere on Earth.

Space-based internet is the ability to use satellites in orbit around Earth to send and receive data. It provides better accessibility, more affordability, 24*7 availability and propels Internet of Things (IoT) technology.

GRAVITATIONAL LENSING

• NASA has announced that plan to use the phenomena of gravitational lensing in its research to know how new stars are born.
• Use of  James Webb Space Telescope
• It is a natural phenomenon, which occurs when a huge amount of matter, such as a massive galaxy or cluster of galaxies, creates a gravitational field that distorts and magnifies the light from objects behind it, but in the same line of sight.

Quantum Computing

• Government in its Budget 2020 has announced the largest ever science mission- National Mission on Quantum Technologies & Applications (NMQTA).
• Quantum computing is the area of study focused on developing computer technology based on the principles of quantum theory, which explains the nature and behaviour of energy and matter on the quantum (atomic and subatomic) level.

This is an important topic this year,we have covered it in detail in the Article on Emerging Technologies.

Quantum Supremacy- Sycamore

• Quantum supremacy means that researchers have been able to use a quantum computer to perform a single calculation that no conventional computer, even the biggest supercomputer, can perform in a reasonable amount of time.
• Google’s quantum computer, named Sycamore, claimed ‘supremacy’ because it reportedly did the task in 200 seconds that would have apparently taken a supercomputer 10,000 years to complete.

Edge Computing

Edge computing enables data to be analysed, processed, and transferred at the edge of a network. Meaning, the data is analysed locally, closer to where it is stored, in real-time without latency.

• The basic difference between edge computing and cloud computing lies in where the data processing takes place.
• In simple terms, cloud computing means storing and accessing data and programs over the Internet instead of your computer’s hard drive.
• Currently, the existing Internet of Things (IoT) systems perform all of their computations in the cloud using data centres.
• Edge computing, on the other hand, manages the massive amounts of data generated by IoT devices by storing and processing data locally.
• Advantages- High speed, reduced latency & better reliability,better security,cost effective scalability.

Deep Web vs Surface Web

• Dark Web, Dark Net – that part of the Internet which cannot be accessed through traditional search engines like Google nor is it accessible by normal browsers like Chrome or Safari.
• It generally uses non-standard communication protocols which makes it inaccessible to internet service providers (ISPs) or government authorities.
• Encrypted content and use of specific browsers like TOR-The Onion Ring.
• Part of Dark Web.

Dark Web

• Contains sites protected by passwords,doesnt throw results in search engines.
• Dark web is generally accessible ,while Dark Net ,a part of Dark web is hidden.
• Has positive uses also like -use by journalists in dictatorships to transfer information,students for research,medical records etc.

Surface Web

That part of internet which can be easily accessed and throws results on search engines.

Data Localization

• Data localization is a concept that the personal data of a country’s residents should be processed and stored in that country.
• RBI announced that the payment system providers need to store entire payments data in a system only in India.
• RBI issued a directive in April 2018 advising all Payment System Operators (PSOs) to ensure that the entire data relating to payment systems is stored within databases located in India within 6 months.
• Directives are applicable to Payment System providers authorized by RBI under Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007.
• There is no bar on overseas processing of strictly domestic transactions; but, the data should be deleted from the systems abroad and brought back to India  not later than the one business day or 24 hours from payment processing, whichever is earlier.
• RBI has rejected proposals by overseas service providers to allow data mirroring, which allows them to retain a copy of the data on their overseas servers as well.

3D Printing

• Israel created an world’s first 3D-printed heart made from human cells.
• Read in detail in Article on Emerging Technologies- important topic.

Biometrics

• India has become the first country in the world to issue Biometric Seafarer Identity Document (BSID), capturing the facial bio-metric data of seafarers.
• It has been developed with collaboration with Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC), Mumbai.
• Read about Biometrics in Article on Emerging Technologies and Science and Tech.

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)

Indian Railways (IR) is taking up Radio Frequency  Identification (RFID) project which aims to automatically and accurately track and trace rolling stock as they move  across the country with a special focus on improving their safety and reliability.

• RFID Tags by 2021
• under Make in India initiative.

RFID Technology

• Sends data through radio waves.
• Faster connection
• Operational Range – 100 m
• One way information only.

FASTag

• Under  “One Nation One FASTag” scheme,  the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) is  trying to get states on board so that one tag can be  used seamlessly across highways.
• Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology for payments.
• Valid for 5 years and can be reacharged .
• It is affixed on the windscreen that can enable  electronic payment when it crosses a booth without stopping.

Space Weaponisation

US President has directed the establishment of the U.S. Space Force (USSF) as the sixth branch of the armed forces after the Army, Air Force, Navy, Marines, and Coast Guard which raises the debate on Weaponization of Space.

• Placing of weapons and weapons systems in outer space.
• Weapons which can transit to outer spce from earth and attack targets in space.
• Space- 4th frontier of war.

Different from Militarization of Space – which means placing space assets which assist in war on Earth -such as satellites which help in reconnaissance, surveillance, intelligence etc.

Outer Space Treaty

• adopted by UN GA in 1963,entered into force in 1967.
• Treaty that forms the basis of international space law.
• Provision wrt Space weaponisation– States shall not place nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction in orbit or on celestial bodies or station them in outer space in any other manner.
• No mention of other weapons in the treaty.
• India is a signatory.

Avian Botulism

• Avian botulism became reason for bird deaths at Sambhar lake in Rajasthan.
• Avian botulism is caused by a bacterium called Clostridium botulinum.
• It affects the nervous system of birds, leading to flaccid paralysis in their legs and wings and neck touching the ground.
• The bacteria is commonly found in the sail, river, and sea water.
• Factors that favour the growth of bacetria include low levels of salinity, suitable  temperature and high demand for chemical oxygen.

Anti-Microbial Resistance

• Interagency Coordination Group on Antimicrobial Resistance (IACG) has released a report titled, “No Time to Wait: Securing The Future From Drug Resistant Infections”, which highlights the financial fall-out of uncontrolled antimicrobial resistance.
• Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is the ability of a microorganism (like bacteria, viruses, and some parasites) to stop an antimicrobial (such as antibiotics, antivirals and anti-malarials) from working against it. As a result, standard treatments become ineffective, infections  persist and may spread to others.

India

• The Drugs and Cosmetic Rule, 1945 were amended in 2013 to incorporate a new Schedule H1. These will be sold on prescription only. They are also marked with Red Line (Red  Line Campaign).
• Government has formulated a National Action Plan to combat Antimicrobial Resistance in 2017 and  National Policy for containment of antimicrobial  resistance in 2011.

AWaRe tool aims to guide antibiotic use globally

Using the “access,” “watch,” and “reserve” designations established previously, the World Health Organization (WHO) has created a new tool to limit the use of drugs associated with the highest risk of resistance and to increase the use of antibiotics in countries where supply and availability is low.

The tool, called AWaRe (for Access, Watch, and Reserve), was developed by the WHO Essential Medicines List to reduce the spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), antibiotic-related adverse events, and drug costs.

Colistin

Health ministry has banned the manufacture, sale and distribution of the antibiotic colistin and its formulations for food producing animals and animal feed supplements.

• The drug has been used for treating infections caused by Gram-negative bacilli, which are responsible for various diseases such as plague, cholera and typhoid.
• It has side effects of nephrotoxicity and neurotoxicity.
• Misuse of colistin in the poultry industry is said to be a major reason for the increase in antibiotic  resistance in India.
• According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Colistin is a “reserve” antibiotic, which means it is supposed to be considered a “last resort” option.

Nano-Pharmaceuticals

Department of Biotechnology under Ministry of Science and Technology has prepared draft guidelines for evaluation of nano-pharmaceuticals in India.

Nanopharmaceuticals offer the ability to detect diseases at much earlier stages and the diagnostic applications could build upon conventional procedures using nanoparticles. Nanopharmaceuticals represent an emerging field where the sizes of the drug particle or a therapeutic delivery system work at the nanoscale.Such precision targeting via nanopharmaceuticals reduces toxic systemic side effects, resulting in better patient compliance.

A nanocarrier is a nanomaterial being used as a transport module for another substance like a drug.

Nanomaterials – size scale range of 1 to 100nm.

Food Fortification

Department of Food and Public Distribution under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs recently approved a centrally-sponsored pilot scheme on fortification of rice and its dispersal through Public Distribution System (PDS).

As per FSSAI, fortified foods are foods that help with the following:

• Foods that help prevent the risks of deficiency that are caused by the lack essential nutrients.
• Foods that help reduce the inadequate nutritional level in the foods.
• Foods that help in compensation with the required or recommended nutrients.
• Foods that helps the body maintain and gain health.
• Food that helps improve the nutritional quality of foods.

Trans-fat

The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched a comprehensive plan to eliminate industrially-produced artificial trans fats from the global food supply by 2023.

In tune with this commitment, the Draft Notifications of FSSAI, the Indian food safety regulator, state that the limit of trans fats in the fats/oils will be not more than 3% by weight on and from January 01, 2021 and not more than 2% by weight on and from January 01, 2022.

The current permitted level of trans fat is 5 percent (by weight) in India.

WHO calls on governments to use the REPLACE action package to eliminate industrially-produced trans-fatty acids from the food supply.

REPLACE- Review,Promote,Legislate,Assess,Create

Trans fats, or trans-fatty acids, are a form of unsaturated fat.

There are two main sources for trans fats:

• natural sources – in the dairy products and meat of ruminants such as cows and sheep.
• artificial sources – They are created when
  the oil goes through hydrogenation, which
  involves adding hydrogen to the liquid oil to
  make it more solid.

They help to increase the shelf life of oils and foods and stabilise their flavours.

INTERNATIONAL INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY (IP) INDEX

International Intellectual Property Index 2020 was released by US Chamber of Commerce’s Global Innovation Policy Centre (GIPC).

India’s rank – 40/53

India’s Rank in 2019- 36/50

Top 5- US, the UK, Sweden, France and Germany.

Intellectual Property is an important topic for Prelims ,many questions have come in the previous years,should be done properly,one can check the article in our Pro Section.

Global Innovation Index

• India – 52/129 rank in 2019 ,57 in 2018
• Developed by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) together with top business universities like Cornell University, INSEAD etc.

Bilateral Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) Programme

On November 21, 2019, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, or DPIIT) issued a notification notifying the approved Bilateral Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) Programme between the Indian Patent Office (IPO)and the Patent Offices of other interested countries/regions.

A Bilateral Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) pilot program has commenced between the Indian Patent Office (IPO) and the Japan Patent Office (JPO) on December 5, 2019.Patent offices of India and Japan have inked an agreement for expeditious grant of patents to Indian entities and individuals by entering into the pilot programme on PPH for a period of three years.

Benefits of Patent Prosecution Highway:

• PPH will allow applicants to leverage allowance of claims from one office to another leading to an increase in domestic patent filings.
• PPH will result in expeditious granting of patents in India
• Expeditious examination through PPH shall result in high allowance rates and
• significant cost savings would enable applicants to successfully and efficiently take advantage of their inventions in India.
• PPH would encourage foreign applicants to enter the Indian market.

First Indigenous Fuel Cell system

• India’s first Indigenous Fuel Cell system
   is developed by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in partnership with Thermax Ltd, a Pune-based engineering firm.
• Developed under the flagship program named ‘New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI).
• Its a 5 kW fuel cell system and will use methanol/bio-methane to generate power with 70% more efficiency than other sources.

Fuel Cell Technology

• A fuel cell is a device that converts chemical potential energy (energy stored in molecular bonds) into electrical energy.
• A PEM (Proton Exchange Membrane) cell uses hydrogen gas (H₂) and oxygen gas (O₂) as fuel.
• The products of the reaction in the cell are water, electricity, and heat.

Hydrogen + Oxygen = Electricity + Water Vapor

Fuel cell,Batteries are important topics for Prelims and there are questions almost every year.We have covered these technologies in article on Emerging Technologies,Science and Tech-Part 4.One must also go through Electric Vehicles battery technology- important this year.

Microbial Fuel Cells

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are a new bioelectrochemical process that aims to produce electricity by using the electrons derived from biochemical reactions catalyzed by bacteria.

Microbial Fuel Cells (MFCs) have been described as “bioreactors that convert the energy in the chemical bonds of organic compounds into electrical energy through catalytic activity of micro-organisms under anaerobic conditions” . MFC technology represents a novel approach of using bacteria for generation of bioelectricity by oxidation of organic waste and renewable biomass .

The traditional MFC consisted of anode and cathode compartments but there are single chamber MFCs. Microorganisms actively catabolize substrate, and bioelectricities are generated. MFCs could be utilized as power generator in small devices such as biosensor.

• MFCs can use organic waste matter as fuels and readily available microbes as catalysts.
• MFCs do not require highly regulated distribution systems like the ones needed for Hydrogen Fuel Cells.
• MFCs have high conversion efficiency as compared to Enzymatic Fuel Cells, in harvesting up to 90% of the electrons from the bacterial electron transport system.
•  it could provide help with wastewater treatment and bioremediation.

HYDROTHERMAL CARBONISATION

• A research team at IIT Kharagpur has developed a technology which can generate energy from solid waste with high moisture content.
• The new technology – Hydro Thermal Carbonization (HTC) – can convert wet  municipal solid waste to biofuel, soil amendment and absorbents.
• The moisture in the waste is used to the advantage of the process which uses water for the reaction. The biofuel generated as the recovered output can help curb air pollution.
• The technology can be used by the civic bodies to effectively manage solid waste.
• Once the organic waste is entered into the process, the outputs generated are all usable.
• All outputs can be used for one purpose or the other, including the water which can be converted to biogas or methane.

Hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) is a thermochemical conversion technique which is attractive due to its ability to transform wet biomass into energy and chemicals without predrying. The solid product, known as hydrochar, has received attention because of its ability to prepare precursors of activated carbon in wastewater pollution remediation, soil remediation applications, solid fuels, and other carbonaceous materials. Besides the generally lignocellulose biomass used as sustainable feedstock, HTC has been applied to a wide range of derived waste, including sewage sludge, algae, and municipal solid waste to solve practical problems and generate desirable carbonaceous products.

Bio-Fuel

International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) scientists developed a method to improve the growth rate and sugar content of a marine microorganism – cyanobacterium called Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 has been angineered for the purpose.

2 famous applications of Superconductors :

1. SQUIDs (Superconducting Quantum Interference Devices) are used to detect even the weakest magnetic field. They are used in mine detection equipment to help in the removal of land mines.
2. Large hadron collider or particle accelerator – Superconductors are used to make extremely powerful electromagnets to accelerate charged particles very fast (to near the speed of light).

Proton Therapy

Vice President of India inaugurated India’s first proton therapy centre in Chennai for the treatment of Cancer- Apollo Proton Cancer Centre- South Asia’s first such centre.

Proton therapy is a type of radiation therapy — a treatment that uses high-energy beams to treat tumors. Radiation therapy using X-rays has long been used to treat cancers and noncancerous (benign) tumors.

Proton therapy is a newer type of radiation therapy that uses energy from positively charged particles called protons.

Proton therapy is used as a treatment for cancer and some noncancerous tumors.

Advantages

• Precision in treatment
• Less side effects

Disadvantages

• Specialised and expensive
• Not applicable to all types of cancers
• More research and  clinical trials needed.

Optoelectronics

Researchers from IIT Madras have found a way of enhancing the optoelectronic properties of tungsten diselenide.

• Optoelectronics is the communication between optics and electronics which includes the study, design and manufacture of a hardware device that converts electrical energy into light and light into energy through semiconductors. This device is made from solid crystalline materials which are lighter than metals and heavier than insulators. Optoelectronics device is basically an electronic device involving light. This device can be found in many optoelectronics applications like military services, telecommunications, automatic access control systems and medical equipments.
• In short- its  study and application of electronic devices and systems that source, detect and control light.
• In this context, light often includes invisible forms of radiation such as gamma rays, X-rays, ultraviolet and infrared, in addition to visible light.

• Examples of optoelectronic devices include telecommunication laser, blue laser, optical fiber, LED traffic lights, photo diodes and solar cells. 

• Majority of the optoelectronic devices (direct conversion between electrons and photons) are LEDs, laser diodes, photo diodes and solar cells.

Short Wave Radio Transmission

Prasar Bharati has asked All India Radio (AIR) to come up with a proposal to phase out Short Wave (SW) transmitters.

• Shortwave radio is radio transmission using shortwave radio frequencies, the range always includes all of the high frequency band (HF), and generally extends from 3-30 MHz (10 to 100 meters), above the medium frequency band (MF), to the end of the HF band.
• Radio waves in the shortwave band can be reflected or refracted from a layer of electrically charged atoms in the atmosphere called the ionosphere.
• Therefore, short waves directed at an angle into the sky can be reflected back to Earth at great distances, beyond the horizon.
• This is called skywave or “skip” propagation, thus shortwave radio can be used for very long distance communication, in contrast to radio waves of higher frequency which travel in straight lines (line-of-sight propagation) and are limited by the visual horizon, about 64 km (40 miles).
• Shortwave radio is used for broadcasting of voice and music to shortwave listeners over very large areas, sometimes entire continents or beyond.
• It is also used for military over-the-horizon radar, diplomatic communication, and two-way international communication by amateur radio enthusiasts.

Ceramic Membranes

Central Glass and Ceramic Research Institute, Kolkata has developed Ceramic Membranes for treatment of water contaminated with heavy metals.

• Ceramic membranes are a type of artificial membranes made from inorganic materials (such as alumina, titania, zirconia oxides, silicon carbide or some glassy materials). They are used in membrane operations for liquid filtration.

• By contrast with polymeric membranes, they can be used in separations where aggressive media (acids, strong solvents) are present. They also have excellent thermal stability which makes them usable in high-temperature membrane operations.

Advantages :

• Absorption capacity is upto 8 times higher than other membranes
• Minimises water wastage and can operate under harsh operating environments.
• These membranes last for around 10-15 years without replacement.
• They can also be used in other sectors like food and beverage, drug and chemicals, waste recovery and recycling industries and are especially useful in petrochemical processing, where it is not possible to use organic membranes.

Elastocaloric Effect

According to a research published in the Journal Science, the elastocaloric effect, if harnessed, may be able to do away with the need of fluid refrigerants used in fridges and air-conditioners.

• The elastocaloric effect occurs when a material undergoes a transition in its crystal structure when it is squeezed.
• Advantages-greener, higher-efficiency and low-cost cooling technology.

SCIENTIFIC SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (SSR)

Department of Science and Technology (DST) released a draft of its proposed Scientific Social Responsibility (SSR) policy.