Winners' Dashboard
Demo Classes
+91 99714 44054
info@manulawclasses.com
Today in History (December 14th,1903)
1903 – The Wright brothers attempt to fly the Wright Flyer for the first time at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
Let’s Revise
Q.1) Who became the youngest World Chess Champion in 2024?
a) Magnus Carlsen
b) Ding Liren
c) Garry Kasparov
d) D. Gukesh
Answer: d)
Explanation: D. Gukesh, an 18-year-old from Chennai, became the youngest World Chess Champion by defeating China’s Ding Liren.
Q.2) What record did D. Gukesh break by winning the World Chess Championship?
a) Youngest player to participate in the championship
b) Oldest champion in history
c) Nearly four-decade-old record held by Garry Kasparov
d) Highest number of games won in a championship
Answer: c)
Explanation: Gukesh broke the nearly four-decade-old record held by Russian Garry Kasparov.
Q.3) Where was the 2024 World Chess Championship held?
a) Moscow, Russia
b) New York, USA
c) Budapest, Hungary
d) Singapore
Answer: d)
Explanation: The 2024 World Chess Championship was held in Singapore.
Q.4) How many World Chess Champions have there been before D. Gukesh?
a) 15
b) 17
c) 19
d) 21
Answer: b)
Explanation: Gukesh is the 18th World Chess Champion in history, meaning there have been 17 champions before him.
Summary of Today’s News
Dark Eagle Anti-Missile System
The United States has developed a new anti-missile system called Dark Eagle and is nearing operational readiness after a successful test flight recently.
Overview
Development: The United States has developed a new anti-missile system called Dark Eagle, nearing operational readiness after a successful test flight.
Type: Long-range hypersonic anti-missile system.
Capabilities:
• Intercepts enemy missiles in mid-air.
• Stops ballistic, cruise, and hypersonic missiles and warheads.
• Operational Range: Over 2,775 kilometers (1,724 miles), enabling strikes deep within adversary territory.
Ballistic Missile Features:
• Two stages.
• Hypersonic glide warhead (C-HGB) capable of reaching speeds of Mach 17.
• C-HGB warhead speeds between 3000 and 3700 meters per second at altitudes below 50 km.
• Designed to challenge and potentially surpass capabilities of Russia’s S-300V4, S-400, and S-500 air defense systems.
Athlete Biological Passport
Overview
• WADA Approval: The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has granted approval for the National Dope Testing Laboratory (NDTL) as an Athlete Passport Management Unit (APMU) to manage the Athlete Biological Passport (ABP).
About Athlete Biological Passport
• Purpose: An advanced anti-doping tool that monitors an athlete’s biological markers over time.
• Function: Analyzes variations in parameters such as blood and steroid profiles to ensure fair play in sports and protect clean athletes.
• Mechanism: Works against doping through enhanced target testing, analysis, investigations, deterrence, and as indirect evidence for the use of prohibited methods or substances.
Principal Objectives of the ABP Program
• Targeted Testing: Used to conduct targeted, conventional anti-doping tests on athletes with abnormal profiles.
• Corroborating Evidence: Can be used as corroborating evidence of doping during an anti-doping rule violation case.
Modules Implemented in ABP Program
• Haematological Module:
• Purpose: Collects information on markers of blood doping.
• Aim: Identifies the use of prohibited substances and/or methods for enhancing oxygen transport or delivery.
• Steroidal Module:
• Purpose: Collects information on markers of steroid doping measured in urine and/or serum samples.
• Aim: Identifies endogenous anabolic androgenic steroids (EAAS) when administered exogenously.
• Endocrine Module:
• Purpose: Collects information on markers of human growth hormone (hGH) doping.
• Aim: Identifies the use of hGH and hGH analogs.
Bottom Trawling in the Indian Ocean
Context
• Resolution Suggestion: According to Sri Lanka’s Minister of Fisheries, the enduring fisheries conflict in the Palk Bay can be decisively resolved only if the Indian side stops using the destructive bottom-trawling method.
Bottom Trawling Method
• Definition: Bottom trawling is a fishing method that involves dragging heavy weighted nets across the sea floor to herd and capture target species, such as ground fish or crabs.
• Commercial Use: Favoured by commercial fishing companies due to its ability to catch large quantities of product in one go.
Ecological Impacts of Bottom Trawling
• Slow Recovery: Deep-sea ecosystems have limited resilience, and the slow growth rates of many deep-sea species mean recovery from trawling impacts can take decades or even centuries. Some species may struggle to rebuild their populations, if at all.
• Carbon Sequestration: Deep-sea ecosystems play a crucial role in carbon sequestration. Trawling disturbs sediments and releases stored carbon, contributing to climate change. The destruction of deep-sea habitats also reduces their ability to sequester carbon effectively.
• Habitat Destruction: Trawling causes physical damage to the seabed and the structures supporting marine life. The heavy gear used can crush or remove vulnerable habitats, including deep-sea corals, sponges, and other benthic organisms.
• Biodiversity Loss: The indiscriminate nature of trawling nets leads to the capture of non-target species, resulting in biodiversity loss. Bycatch often includes species that are not commercially valuable, depleting non-targeted populations.
• Altered Ecosystem Dynamics: The removal of large quantities of marine organisms disrupts the balance within ecosystems, leading to declines in targeted species and their predators, and causing cascading effects throughout the food web.
