Science Reporter October 2017 Magazine analysis for UPSC 2018

Index
• CSIR Ranked Ninth in the World
• Poisonous cup of Gold
• Book your flying car!
• Abel Prize 2017
• Insect promises speedy biodegradation of plastic
• HOW I DIVED THROUGH SATURN’S RINGS
• Saturn Rings
• Recovery of sulphur from contaminate water
• HAL AEROSPACE MUSEUM IN BENGALURU
• MIND OVER MATTER
• POPLAR TREE
• Starch dilemma
• BASE-RICH DIET BEST FOR HUMANS
• Einstein –The man who laid the foundation of LASERS HUNDRED
YEARS BACK
• MARINE BIOINVASION: MANMADE WAR IN THE OCEAN
• Asima Chatterjee first woman DSc of India
• THE CAVE OF CRYSTALS
• INDIAN WOMEN IN SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
➢ CSIR Ranked Ninth in the World
• The Council of scientific and industrial research (CSIR) has been ranked
ninth in the world based on the Scimago institutions ranking world report
2017.
• The Scimago institutions ranking is a composite indicator that combines
research performance, innovation outputs and societal impact measured
by their web visibility, to reflect scientific, economic and social
characteristics of institutions.
• Amongst 5250 institutions world-wide, CSIR stands at the 75th position.
• CSIR laboratories cover a wide spectrum of science and technology-from
radio and space physics, oceanography, geophysics, chemicals, drugs,
genomics, biotechnology and nanotechnology to mining, aeronautics,
instrumentation, environmental engineering and information technology.
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
• It has significant societal impact in areas such as environment, health,
drinking water, food, housing, energy, leather, farm and non-farm sectors
too.
➢ Poisonous cup of Gold
THE beautiful flowers and foliage of Solandra grandiflora, commonly known as
Poisonous Cup of Gold. The species is native to the Caribbean, Mexico, and
South America. Leaves and stem bark contain alkaloids. The cuticular wax
present on the leaf surface contains 92% alkanes, which Is reportedly
poisonous.
➢ Book your flying car!
• BY the end of 2018, a few lucky customers will own cars which can zip on
roads and take to the skies as well.
• PAL-V (personal Air and land vehicle), a company based in
Raamsdonksveer, Netherlands. This company is aiming to deliver its such
vehicle to the customer by the end of 2018. The basic design of this
wonder-car is based on a gyrocopter.
• Gyros are helicopter-like in construction and use phylons to mount the
rotating blades.
• The PAL-V uses two 100-horsepower engines which run on unleaded
petrol, flies at altitudes of 3500 metres and has a top speed of 170 km/hr
on the road.
• This vehicle has a capacity to fly for 500 km at a stretch. The prototype
made in 2012 has already undergone rigorous tests. The commercial vehicle
has to log in at least 150 hours of test flying and also obtain the European
Aviation Safety (EASA) certification before handing over to the customer.
➢ Abel Prize 2017
PROF. Yves Meyer of the France has been nominated for the Abel Prize 2017, “
for his pivotal role in the development of the mathematical theory of
wavelets.” (A wavelet is a mathematical function useful in digital signal
processing and image compression)
➢ Insect promises speedy biodegradation of plastic
• Recently an accidental detection of honeycomb wax moth by a Spanish
scientists has brought a ray of hope.
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
• She collected the larvae and placed it inside a plastic cover. After 40
minutes she found that the larvae were crawling (creeping) around the
plastic cover. She took out the plastic and observed there were holes in the
plastic cover made by the waxworms. Honeycomb wax moth is the
common name of Gallaria mellonella a Lepidopteran insect that belongs to
pyralidae family found widely. Beeswax is composed of a highly diverse
mixture of lipid compounds, including alkanes, alkenes, fatty acids and
esters. The authors propose that the caterpillar consumes the plastic and
degrades it, but this needs more research to determine whether this
chemistry is the result of G.mellonella enzymes involved in digestion or its
gut microbial flora.
➢ HOW I DIVED THROUGH SATURN’S RINGS
Cassini, the spacecraft travelled for seven long years, and on reaching the
giant planet in 2004. Cassini have encountered ma
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
The distance to Saturn from our planet is constantly changing as both of the
planets travel through space. When the two are closest, they lie approximately
746 million miles (1.2 billion kilometers) apart, or eight times the distance
between the Earth and the sun
Titan is the largest of Saturn’s moons and the first to be discovered. Titan is
the only moon in the solar system known to have a significant atmosphere.
Nitrogen and methane extend around the moon 10 times as far into space as
Earth’s atmosphere, sometimes falling to the surface in the form of methane
rain.
After two decades in space, NASA’s Cassini spacecraft reached the end of its
remarkable journey of exploration.
Mission Events
Oct. 15, 1997, Launch of Cassini Spacecraft to Saturn. NASA.
June 30, 2004: Cassini arrives at Saturn.
December 24, 2004: The Cassini spacecraft releases the European Space
Agency-built Huygens probe at Saturn’s moon Titan.
January 14, 2005: The Huygens probe makes its descent through Titan’s
atmosphere to sample the chemical composition and surface properties of
the Saturnian moon.
June 2008: Cassini completes its primary mission to explore the Saturn
system and begins its mission extension (Cassini Equinox Mission).
September 2010: Cassini completes its extended mission (Cassini Equinox
Mission) and begins its second mission extension (Cassini Solstice Mission),
which goes through 2017 and will make the first observations of a
complete seasonal period for Saturn and its moons.
Many research done in this interval.
September 15, 2017: End of Mission as Cassini begins Final Entry into
Saturn’s Atmosphere.
Scientific Instruments
– Cassini orbiter:
– Ion and neutral mass spectrometer
– Visible and infrared mapping spectrometer
– Composite infrared spectrometer
– Cosmic dust analyzer
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
– Radio and plasma wave instrument
– Cassini plasma spectrometer
– Ultraviolet imaging spectrograph
– Magnetospheric imaging instrument
– Dual technique magnetometer
– Radio science subsystem
– Imaging science subsystem
– Radar
Huygens probe:
– Descent imager and spectral radiometer
– Huygens atmospheric structure instrument
– Gas chromatograph and mass spectrometer
– Aerosol collector pyrolyzer
– Surface science package
– Doppler wind experiment
Did you know?
• Saturn is called ‘The Jewel of the solar system’. The ring-like bands it
give it the mesmerizing look and the fascinating name.
• Saturn is all gaseous substances, mainly helium. Hence it does not
have a solid land-like surface.
• The beautiful rings of Saturn are not solid either; they are made up of
ice, dust, and rock: the sizes varying as much as a grain of sand to a tall
building.
• These rings are hardly a kilometer in thickness.
• Great winds and storms are part of Saturn’s atmosphere. The wind
speeds can be as high as 1800 km/hour. Storms last for months or
years.
• One Saturn year is about 30 Earth years (and Cassini stayed near
Saturn for nearly half a Saturn year).
• Due to fast spinning, Saturn days are around 10.25 hrs.
• Saturn gives off twice as much as heat than it receives from the sun.
This is mainly because of the high core temperatures.
• Earlier it was thought that Saturn’s rings formed later than the planet.
However, information collected by Cassini indicates that the bands
existed from the birth of the planet.
Cassini-Huygens Records of Saturn’s moons
• Two new moons-methone and pallene-were discovered in this mission.
• Saturn has 60 moons till date, the sizes of which range from a small
football field to as big as mercury.
• Cassini-Huygens gathered direct samples of Saturn’s largest moon Titan.
This is the only heavenly body besides Earth where a liquid form is found
on the surface. Though Titan is outside the habitable zone in the solar
system, this icy world has frozen water but essential compounds of
methane and ethane are available in liquid form.
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
• This mission has gathered and continues to obtain more data on these
moons which source chemicals for life to exist.
➢ Saturn Rings:
The rings of Saturn are the most extensive ring system of any planet in the Solar
System. They consist of countless small particles, ranging from μm to m in
size, that orbit about Saturn. The ring particles are made almost entirely
of water ice, dust and with a trace component of rocky material.
Saturn has four main groups of rings and three fainter, narrower ring groups.
These groups are separated by gaps called divisions.
Saturn is the second largest planet and is best known for its fabulous ring
system that was first observed in 1610 by the astronomer Galileo Galilei. Like
Jupiter, Saturn is a gas giant and is composed of similar gasses including
hydrogen, helium and methane.
Phobos, one of Mars’ moons, is getting closer to the planet.
In fact Saturn is not the only planet in our solar system that has rings, in fact all
the giant gas planets have them: Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune. However, these
other ring systems are extremely thin and almost impossible to see.
Planets like the Earth, Mars or Venus are made of rocky material and have
no rings.
Four spacecraft have flown by Saturn so far. In 1979, Pioneer 11 became the
first spacecraft to fly by and study Saturn up close. Voyager 1 flew by in 1980
and Voyager 2 in 1981. These spacecraft studied many of the moons of Saturn
as well.
Like Jupiter, Saturn is mostly a ball of hydrogen and helium
➢ Recovery of sulphur from contaminate water
Sulphate is one of those contaminates that deeply contaminates the water
bodies, agricultural fields and soil resources.
Sulphate from sewage wastewater and industrial effluents can lead to many
health risks as well.
A new bio-electrochemical method has been successfully developed by a
group of researchers from the CSIR-central Electrochemical research institute
(CECRI), Karaikudi.
The new approach involves the conversion of sulphate from contaminated
water to sulphur using an integrated approach of biological (sulphate
reducing bacteria, SRB) and electro-oxidation processes. This approach
convents the waste sulphate into a valuable which can be used in highperformance
batteries.
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
➢ HAL AEROSPACE MUSEUM IN BENGALURU
Today, the Indian civil aviation industry is the ninth largest civil aviation
market in the world, the Indian Air force is the fourth largest air force in the
world and the Indian space exploration budget is the eight largest space
budget in the world.
Aviation activity in India began in 1910 with flying of a few imported
European make airplanes by European pilots in Allahabad (three flights) and
Calcutta (two flights).
Military aviation began in India in October 1916, as a division of the Indian
Army.
HAL Heritage Centre and Aerospace Museum
To familiarize the Indian population with facts related to aerospace, avionics,
aeronautical science and related stuff, HAL established the Heritage centre
and Aerospace Museum in Bangalore.
The museum was inaugurated by Shri R.Roshan Baig, the then Union Minister
of Tourism on 30 August 2001.
Let’s take a tour of the museum looking at some rare and historically significant
exhibits.
1. Hindustan Trainer HT-2: (1953-1990)
2. HUL-26 PUSHPAK: first flight on 28 September 1958
3. Hindustan fighter HF-24 MARUT: first flight on 17 June 1961. MARUT
was extensively used by IAF during the India-Pakistan war of 1971.
4. Hindustan Jet Trainer HJT-16 Kiran: It was flown for the first time on 4
September 1964. It served the Indian Air force.
5. MIG-21 fighter/Trainer: MIG-21 aircraft was a supersonic jet fighter.
Between 1966 and 1987, HAL had produced three variants, namely,
MIG-21, MIG-21 M and MIG-21 BIS under license from USSR.
6. Advanced light Helicopter ‘Dhruv’.
7. ‘Canberra’ fighter Aircraft.
8. ‘Dove’ Aircraft.
9. Light combat Aircraft (LCA): which took first flight on 4 January 2001. It
is a single seat, single engine, light weight, all weather, multi-tactical
fighter aircraft.
10. Hindustan Jet Trainer HJT-36 Sitara: In 1999, HAL began development
of HJT-36 Sitara (Star), a subsonic intermediate jet trainer aircraft for
the Indian air force and the Indian navy. The prototype aircraft was
flown on 7 March 2003.
11. Pilotless Target Aircraft Lakshya: LAKSHYA (Target) is a pilotless target
aircraft (PTA) developed by the Defence Research and development
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
organization. It is a reusable remotely piloted high speed target drone. It
was test flown on 23 August 2012. Lakshya is used by all the three
services-Indian Army, Indian Navy and India Air force.
12. Canberra fighter aircraft: British make Canberra fighter aircraft which
was introduced in service of the Indian Air force in 1949. It was a
bomber, trainer and high altitude reconnaissance aircraft.
13. Dove aircraft: Dove aircraft designed and developed by British
manufacturer de Havilland was first flown by the Indian air force in
1950.
14. Air traffic control (ATC) Radar and antenna: The HAL museum displays
a huge Italian make air traffic control radar and antenna that was
commissioned in 1967.
15. Meteorological Radar: HAL museum displays a large X-band (8 to 12
GHz) meteorological radar that was primarily used to detect weather
around an aerodrome for intimating the pilots flying into or away from
the aerodrome.
16. Heat shield of polar satellite launch vehicle (PSLV): Polar satellite
launch vehicle is an expandable launch system operated by the Indian
space research organization (ISRO) for the first time in 1993. The heat
shield of PSLV is exhibited in HAL museum.
17. Geosynchronous satellite launch vehicle (GSLV): Geosynchronous
satellite launch vehicle is an expandable launch system operated by the
Indian space research organization (ISRO) since 2001. There is a scale
down model of GSLV on display in HAL museum.
➢ MIND OVER MATTER
• New scientific studies are revealing tantalizing insights into an otherwise
unknown relationship between us and the bacteria. What adds more
flavor to this entire relationship is that the gut microbial population can
be altered by simple changes in the diet.
• Most bacteria take permanent residence in our gut where they help in
digestion of food and extraction of nutrients.
• The brain cells called neurons communicate with each other by releasing
chemicals. So if there is transient change in the kind of chemical secreted or
in its amount, the nature of response generated in the body could be
altered. For instance, it takes increasing levels of only one hormoneserotonin
to make you feel happy, content, and in love, while changes in
the levels of another factor-norpinephrine are linked with anxiety and
depression.
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
• Fresh data coming in from all over the world now show that even bacteria
can trigger the release of chemicals that can influence communication
between neurons.
• University of Queensland have proposed that repeated parasitic infections
in children that cause gut dysbiosis may also affect brain development.
• The researchers noticed that most patients of Parkinson’s complained of
GI tract problems from an early age. This prompted them to look into the
relation between gut microbes and development of Parkinson’s.
➢ POPLAR TREE
POPLAR based agroforestry system is a successful model adopted by farmers
on a large scale resulting in productivity enhancement.
Poplar (populous sp.) is a tall, fast-growing tree of the Northern Hemisphere
viz. American and European countries and less in Asia.
The tree produces large quantities of biomass in a short span of time, is easy
to propagate and cultivate, and gives high income for farmers. Poplars are
also extensively used for wood, veneer, and bioenergy.
Although in India, there are six indigenous Poplars distributed in the
Himalayan region.
Poplar wood is used for match splints, plywood, packing cases, sports, goods,
pulpwood, furniture, toy manufacture, etc. Today, most of the plywood in the
market is from poplar. The world’ largest poplar plantation is in the north
Indian states.
➢ Starch dilemma
Our day starts and ends with a varied number of starch sources like toast, roti,
idli, biscuits, cakes, noodles, potato and many more.
About 50% of our populations check their sugar levels on monthly basis which
exemplifies the fact that India is the diabetic capital of the world.
According to the California based CADI (coronary artery disease among Asian
Indians) research foundation, India had around 62 million heart patients in
2015.
A number of dietary charts and dietitians insist more on wheat, oat and
whole grain diet, keeping away white rice.
Interesting updates on Resistant starch (RS) is igniting consumer interest these
days.
• Resistant Starch: Resistant starch is a type of starch that isn’t fully broken
down and also not fully absorbed, but rather turned into short-chain fatty
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
acids (SCFA) by intestinal bacteria. This may lead to some unique health
benefits. SCFAs may benefit us in many ways.
Table 3. Benefits of Resistant starch for human health
• Aids in blood sugar control
• Reduces obesity by improving satiety
• Improves gut health and avoids colonic disease to an extent
• Improves bone density by enhancing absorption of calcium and other
minerals
• Laxative effect of resistant starch inverses the ease and frequency of
stools, easing constipation
• Boosts the immune system with flourishing good gut flora
• Prevents colon cancer
• stimulate blood flow to the colon
• increase nutrient circulation
• inhibit the growth of pathogenic bacteria
• help us absorb minerals
• help prevent us from absorbing toxic/carcinogenic compounds
Note:
1. The amount of SCFAs we have in our colon is related to the amount and type
of carbohydrate we consume.
2. Studies have shown that consumption of RS can aid blood sugar control
bypassing the digestion in the small intestine and reaching the colon where
bacteria ferment to release short chain fatty acid (SCFA) like butyric acid,
propionic acid and acetic acid that support gut health. So, RS acts as a
nutraceutical and its consumption leads to many health benefits
All starches are composed of two types of polysaccharides: amylose and
amylopectin.
Amylopectin is highly branched, leaving more surface area available for
digestion. It’s broken down quickly, which means it produces a larger rise in
blood sugar (glucose) and subsequently, a large rise in insulin.
Amylose is a straight chain, which limits the amount of surface area exposed
for digestion. This predominates in RS. Foods high in amylose are digested
more slowly. They’re less likely to spike blood glucose or insulin.
Note: resistant starch is so named because it resists digestion.
WAYS TO INCREASE RESISTANT STARCH (RS) CONTENT IN FOOD
• Storage of rice or different cereal products at 4⁰C up to 12 and 24 hour
significantly increased RS content
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
• Add coconut oil before cooking the rice, and afterward cool the rice in
fridge.
• Slow cooking methods like roasting increases RS more than fast ones like
boiling do.
• Cooking, cooling and reheating; increase RS content.
➢ BASE-RICH DIET BEST FOR HUMANS
• Living organisms need to have appropriate pH in and around their cells.
Maintenance of pH is critical for the proper functioning of every part of the
body, which is always striving to maintain an acid-base balance. This is also
known as acid-base homeostasis.
• The pH of the blood is usually maintained in the range of 7.35 to 7.45. If the
blood pH falls below 6.9 it causes diabetic coma whereas above 7.9 may
lead to tetanus or lock jaw.
• The stomach on the other hand is extremely acidic with a pH of 0.7 to 1.9.
• The pH of the saliva is usually acidic but varies within a range of 5 to 8
depending on the food we eat.
pH Regulators in Human Body
lungs and kidneys jointly maintain the Acid-base balance in the body.
Healthy body pH range6.0 6.5 7.0 7.5
There are many health problems associated with increased acidity in the body.
• Decreased growth factors
• Mild hypothyroidism
• Higher levels of blood cortisol
• Decreased uptake and release of oxygen
• Loss of muscle mass
• Altered regulation of metabolities and minerals
• Enzymatic changes in cells
• Growth hormone resistance Acidosis Alkalosis When the blood has low alkalinity or
too much acid, it results in the decrease of the blood pH, called acidosis.
When the blood has low acid and too much base it increases blood pH and
is known as alkalosis. Low level of carbon dioxide in the blood, or loss of
acid from the blood causes alkalosis. It Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill) is also caused by over abundance of
bicarbonate in the blood.
Acidosis leads to poor lung function or slow breathing, renal disease, kidney
failure, obesity, dehydration, diabetes, diarrhea, dehydration and pancreatic drainage.
Alkalosis leads to irritability, muscle stwitching and cramps, tingling of the
fingers and toes and around the lips.
The acidic food does not directly damage our internal system but regular
consumption of acid-forming foods lead to tremendous pressure on the body,
causing acidosis-acidaemia.
Dietary interventions such as lowering animal protein and increasing
vegetable and fruit consumption and nutritional supplementation with salts
such as K+ and Mg+ normalize acidosis.
So, we should eat plenty of vegetables and fruits, as well as other plant foods,
such as whole grains and beans for acid-base balance in our body.
➢ Einstein –The man who laid the foundation of
LASERS HUNDRED YEARS BACK
• A hundred years back Albert Einstein laid the foundation of alone of the
most revolutionary inventions of the 20th century-LASER (light
amplification by stimulated emission of radiation).
• His theory of stimulated emission of radiation, published in 1917,
stimulated and guided research endeavours towards development of a
working LASER for the next 43 years culminating in the invention of the first
operational LASER by Theodore Maiman in 1960.
• The term LASER conjures up images of incredible sources of light energy
and magic light machines that can cut and drill metals, destroy satellites,
read and send data, cool atoms, trigger fusion and perform complicated
surgeries.
LASER Types, Properties and Applications
• Since the first LASER invented by Maiman in 1960, thousands of new
LASERs have been developed so far.
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
• Schawlow even made a joking reference to the “edible” LASER (made of
flavored gelatin) and the “drinkable” LASER (made of an alcoholic
mixture).
• LASERs are classified in several ways such as the choice of the active
material used for LASER action, mode of operation (pulsed or continuous),
power, efficiency and applications.
• Some well-known types of lasers are solid state lasers, gas lasers (further
classified as atom lasers, molecular lasers and ion
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
• LASERs also have applications using Lidars (light detection and ranging) for
measuring locations e.g.. airborne bathymeters to measure the depth of
water or the location of any submerged object,
• monitoring of volcanic aerosols that may affect global climate and
monitoring of atmospheric pollution.
➢ MARINE BIOINVASION: MANMADE WAR IN THE OCEAN
• More than 90% of the world trade and commerce is carried out by shipping.
These huge fleets cause dispersal of organisms which are attached to their
hulls or carried in ballast water.
• The exchange of organisms results in invasions of the native ones thus
compromising the integrity of the marine ecosystem.
• Cargo ships have a specialized compartment called the Ballast tank that
holds water for the purpose of providing adequate stability to the cargo
vessels at sea. This water is designated as “Ballast water”. These ballast
tanks are connected to pumps which can pump water in or out.
• It is estimated that every year nearly 12 billion tonnes of ballast water is
filled at one port and dispensed at other ports causing an imbalance in the
ecosystem.
• Various vectors have been identified. These unintentional vectors change
the biodiversity and cause the restructuring of the food web.
Ballast water Bio-invasion vector
Ballast water contains multitude of organisms ranging from microscopic
bacteria and algae to macroscopic starfish and mussels.
Zebra mussels are small aquatic molluscs native to the Black sea of Eastern
Europe and were introduced to Western, Northern Europe, and Eastern half
of North America.
Green Crab (carcinus maenas) hail from North East Atlantic Ocean and Baltic
Sea and were introduced to Australia, South Africa and South America.
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
Global Response
Complexity and trans-boundary nature of ballast water control and
management led the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) to propose
the “International convention for the control and management of ship’s
ballast water and sediments”. It stipulates the roles of coastal, port and flag
states as well as shipping industries in protecting the maritime environment by
embracing effective ballast water management measures.
According to IMO’s guidelines ships should exchange ballast water at sea
before entering the port. Mid-water exchange has been proposed so that the
port areas are not affected with organisms.
Six countries namely Brazil, China, India, Iran, South Africa and Ukraine are
included in the Global ballast water management programme (Globallast).
Mumbai has been chosen as a demonstration site.
In spite of such vigorous efforts in trying to eradicate the effects of bioinvasion,
the methodologies of invasion management are yet to be developed
properly and effectively.
➢ Asima Chatterjee first woman DSc of India
Japanese starfish (Asterias amurensis) comes from the Northern pacific
ocean and was introduced to southern Australia.
Black Striped mussel (mytilopsis sallei) is native to Panama Canal in South
America and has been introduced to India, Hong Kong, Japan, Fiji and
Taiwan.
Black striped mussels create havoc where they are introduced.
Algal Bloom: Algal Bloom is defined as the uncontrolled increase of algae in
a particular water body. Some algal blooms that are known to be particularly
lethal are usually members of the genus Alexandrium and Karenia.
It is a fast spreading menace that has invaded innumerable coastal areas all
over the world due to coastal upwelling and through ship’s ballast water.
The marine ecosystem has been significantly affected due to the production
of toxins by these algae, for example cyanotoxins, saxitoxic, domoic acid
and brevetoxin. They cause hepato-panoreatic, digestive, neurological and
immunological impairment in marine organisms who feed on them.
Bottlenose dolphins and Atlantic Right whales have been reported to face
extinction due to this menace. This problem has also proved to be costly in
terms of economy and human health.
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
She was the first woman to be awarded the Doctorate of science (DSc) degree
by an Indian university; first woman scientist to occupy a chair in Calcutta
university, first woman general president of the Indian science Congress and
also first woman awarded the Shanti swaroop Bhatnagar award in science.
Her research career spanned over six decades. Her major interest was in
chemistry of natural products from Indian medicinal plants.
Born on 23 September 1917 in Kolkata, west Bengal, since her childhood Asima
Chatterjee was interested in medicinal plants to treat diseases. She felt the
urge to introduce it in modern medical system and devoted her life to separate
the chemical components of plants and other living organisms, including
those of marine sources, followed by elucidation of their molecular structure,
which was painstaking work at that time.
➢ THE CAVE OF CRYSTALS
• BURIED a thousand feet below Mexica’s Naica Mountain, lay a cave filled
with crystals. The shiny ice-like beams emerge from all sides of the caves
including the floor, making it look spectacular.
• In 1990, Naica, a group of miners discovered a cavern beneath the Naica
mine workings. It was named the “Cave of Swords”. In April 2000, while
miners were excavating a new tunnel, drilling through the Naica fault line,
they discovered another cave named the “Cave of Crystals” or “Giant
Crystal Cave”.
• The Cave of Crystals is a natural marvel in Chihuahua, Mexico known for its
extraordinary crystals and their slowest growth rate ever. Some crystals
may have taken as much as a million years to form.
• The cave is extremely hot, with air temperatures reaching up to 58⁰C
(136⁰F) with 90 to 99 percent humidity. It is so hot that visitors have to
wear protective suits and carry backpacks of ice-cooled air in order to
survive for just a few minutes.
The main chamber of the cave houses selenite crystals gypsum, some of the
largest natural crystals ever discovered. Geologists report that these natural
crystal formations are incredibly complex, yet so simple. The crystals were
formed by hydrothermal fluids emanating from the magma chambers below.
An underground magma chamber below the cave heated the ground water
which was saturated with sulphide ions.
The oxygen slowly diffused into the heated water and oxydised the sulphides
into sulphates. The hydrated sulphate gypsum crystallized at an extremely
slow rate over the course of at least 500,000 years, forming the enormous
crystals found today.
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
The subterranean spectacle is undoubtly one of the world’s most incredible
displays of natural mineral formations.
INDIAN WOMEN IN SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
1. Who was the first lady scientist elected as the General President of the
Indian science congress Association in 1975?
a) Prof. Asima Chatterjee.
b) Prof. Nivedita menon
c) Prof. K.K. usha
d) Prof. Jayanti Ghosh
2. Who is known as the ‘Missile woman’ of India?
a) R. Bindu
b) Tessy. Thomas
c) Sunetra Gupta
d) Manju Ray
3. Who established the first woman lead biotechnology company (biocon
limited) in India?
a) .Kiran mazumdar shaw
b) Sunetra Gupta
c) Sudha murthi
d) Manju ray
4. Who was the first woman president of the national academy of
sciences, India?
a) Dr. tessy Thomas
b) Dr. Sunitha Krishanan
c) Dr. Vina mazumdar
d) Dr.. Manju Sharma
5. Who were the first Indian women to visit the Antarctica?
a) Dr. Aditi Pant & Dr. Sudipta sengupta.
b) Dr. Manju Bansal & Dr. Saraswathi gora
c) Dr. Kanta gupta & Dr. Khadija mumtaz
d) Dr. Sunetra Gupta & Dr. Soniya Nityanand
6. Who was the first Indian woman to travel in space?
a) .Kalpana Chawla
b) Kanta Gupta
c) Anita Gel
d) Utsa Patnaik
7. Who became the first female recipient of the prestigious Indian
science and Technology award “Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar prize for
science and Technology (SSB)”?
Dr. Ravi Agrahari’s Classes
(Scientist in IIT Delhi, Author of Mc Graw Hill)
a) Prof. Asima Chatterjee.
b) Prof. Vanaja lyengar
c) Prof. Chandramukhi Basu
d) Prof. Rohini Balakrishanan
8. Name the first Indian woman who won the ‘L’ Oreal-UNESCO’ award
for the “women in science Asia/pacific region”.
a) Prof. Sunetra Gupta
b) Prof. Indira Nath.
c) Prof. Mangala Narlikar
d) Prof. Vanaja Iyengar