UPSC EXAM QUIZ 11.07.2024

Explanation:

• According to a study published in the journal Nature, researchers have determined that the world's oldest known figurative cave painting is 51,200 years old using a new dating technique.

Figurative cave painting

• This study has been done by 23 researchers from Griffith University in Australia, Southern Cross University and the Indonesian National Research and Innovation Agency.
• This study has been published under the title 'Narrative Cave Art in Indonesia by 51,200 Years Ago'.

Painting

• Location: Located in the Layang Karampuang cave on the island of South Sulawesi, Indonesia
• Subject of the painting: A red wild boar with a partially open mouth
• Three parts human and one part stick-like animal figure or Therianthrope.
• Characteristics: The human-like figures are depicted in relation to the pig, giving it a sense of dynamic action

Explanation:

• UNESCO approves designation of 11 new sites in 11 countries as Biosphere Reserves (BR). Thus the world network of Biosphere Reserves now comprises 759 sites in 136 countries.

Biosphere Reserve

• Biosphere Reserve (BR) is an international designation given by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to sites of significant natural and cultural landscapes that encompass large areas of terrestrial or coastal/marine ecosystems or a combination of both.
• Biosphere reserves attempt to balance economic and social development with the conservation of nature and the maintenance of associated cultural values.

Explanation:

• Lancet has published a first multi-city study examining the relationship between short-term air pollution (PM2.5) exposure and mortality in 10 major cities of India between 2008 and 2019.

Key findings of the Study

• Air Pollution Causing Death: The study revealed that over 33,000 deaths (approximately 7.2% of total mortalities) could be attributed to air pollution annually across the 10 investigated cities.
• Highest Mortality Burden: Delhi, exhibited the most severe air pollution, with a staggering 11.5% (12,000 deaths) of annual deaths linked to air pollution.
• Shimla Lowest Mortality: Shimla emerged as the city with the lowest mortality burden attributable to air pollution, with only 59 deaths (constituting 3.7% of total deaths) annually.
• Chronic Exceedance of Safe Air Quality Standards: There has been a persistent violation of established air quality standards. PM2.5 concentrations consistently exceeded the World Health Organization's (WHO) safe limit (15 μg/m³) on an alarming 99.8% of the days analyzed.

Explanation:

• The 15th Agriculture Leadership Awards Committee has presented Maharashtra with the Best Agriculture State Award for 2024.
• The announcement was made by a committee headed by former Chief Justice of India Justice P. Sadasivam.
• On July 10, the award was received by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde at a function in New Delhi.
• The committee recognised Maharashtra's sustainable development policies focusing on environmental protection and food security.
• The state government has implemented revolutionary initiatives like bamboo cultivation, Shri Anna Abhiyaan for grains, and biomass utilization in thermal power generation across the state.

Explanation:

• Rachel Reeves has become UK’s first female Chancellor of the Exchequer.
• Angela Rayner has been appointed the Deputy Prime Minister of UK.
• David Lammy was named Foreign Secretary. Yvette Cooper was appointed Home Secretary.
• New UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has appointed his cabinet.
• His cabinet included a record 11 women in the team of 25.
• Rachel Reeves, Britain's first woman finance minister, is a former Bank of England economist.
• The Labour Party has promised to establish Great British Energy, a publicly owned company that will lead the way in providing financial support for the "green" shift away from fossil fuels, working in tandem with the private sector.