National Current Affairs – UPSC/KAS Exams- 26th December 2018
Centre wants fake news traced
Topic: Infrastructure Development
IN NEWS: The government has sought public comments on the proposed amendments to the IT Act that seek to make it mandatory for platforms such as WhatsApp, Facebook and Twitter to trace “originator” of “unlawful” information, while also removing such content within 24 hours after being notified.
More on the Topic:
- As per the draft ‘The Information Technology [Intermediaries Guidelines (Amendment) Rules] 2018’ the intermediary after being notified by the appropriate authority should remove or disable access to unlawful content within 24 hours in the “interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality, or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence, on its computer resource without vitiating the evidence in any manner…”
- The intermediary is also expected to preserve such information and associated records for at least 180 days for investigation purposes as against 90 days now.
- The government clarified that it does not regulate content appearing on social network platforms.“These social network platforms, though, are required to follow due diligence as provided in section 79 of the Information Technology Act 2000… and ensure that their platforms are not used to commit and provoke terrorism, extremism, violence and crime.
Source: The Hindu
Utilising Sound wave Force
Topic: Science and Technology
IN NEWS: Scientists have successfully used sound waves to levitate and manipulate multiple objects simultaneously for the first time, using the system to “sew” a thread into a piece of fabric.
More on the Topic:
- The system could be use to acoustically stitch up internal injuries or deliver drugs to target organs.
- Sound exerts a small acoustic force and by turning up the volume of ultrasonic waves, too high pitched for humans to hear, scientists create a sound field strong enough to move small objects.
- Acoustic tweezers have similar capabilities to optical tweezers, the 2018 Nobel prize winner, which uses lasers to trap and transport micro-particles. However, acoustic tweezers have the edge over optical systems when it comes to operating within human tissue.
- Lasers only travel through transparent media, making them tricky to use for applications within biological tissue. On the other hand, ultrasound is routinely used in pregnancy scans and kidney stone treatment as it can safely and non-invasively penetrate biological tissue.
- Another advantage is that acoustic devices are 1,00,000 times more power efficient than optical systems.
- “Optical tweezers are a fantastic technology, but always dangerously close to killing the cells being moved, with acoustics we’re applying the same sort of forces but with way less energy associated. There’s lots of applications that require cellular manipulation and acoustic systems are perfect for them.
Source:The Hindu
Ultima Thule
Topic: Science and Technology
In news: A NASA spacecraft is hurtling toward a historic New Year’s Day flyby of the most distant planetary object ever studied, a frozen relic of the early solar system called Ultima Thule
More on the Topic:
- The unmanned spaceship New Horizons, 6.4 billion km away, is poised to zoom past Ultima Thule at a distance of just 3,500 km. That’s more than three times closer than New Horizons came to Pluto when it zipped by the dwarf planet in 2015.
- Ultima Thule (pronounced TOO-lee) lies in the Kuiper Belt, a vast cosmic disc left over from the days when planets first formed.
- Astronomers sometimes call it the “attic” of the solar system. The Kuiper Belt begins some 4.8 billion km beyond the Sun, past the orbit of Neptune. “It is teeming with literally billions of comets, millions of objects like Ultima which are called planetesimals, the building blocks out of which p.lanets were formed, and a smattering — a handful of dwarf planets the size of continents, like Pluto
- Ultima Thule is also in a freezing area of space, suggesting it may remain well preserved. “Really, it is a relic from the formation of the solar system.
Significance:
- It is important because this region of the solar system, being so far from the Sun, preserves the original conditions from four and a half billion years ago”. “So when fly by Ultima, we are going to be able to see the way things were back at the beginning.
Source: The Hindu
U.S. withdrawal from Syria
Topic: International Affairs
In news: The U.S. military has confirmed that the order to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria had been signed, after President Donald Trump held talks with his Turkish counterpart to negotiate a pull-out that has stunned Washington’s allies.
More on the Topic:
- 2,000 U.S. troops would leave civil war-racked Syria, where they have been deployed to assist in a multinational fight against the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group.
- Thousands of IS jihadists are thought to remain in Syria. Trump’s sudden decision sparked turmoil within his administration.
- While the counter-ISIS military campaign is in its final stage, the enduring defeat of ISIS is far from assured at this point. In a recent report, the lead inspector general estimated that as many as 30,000 ISIS fighters remain in Syria. Equally concerning, indicators of an incipient ISIS insurgency have appeared with increasing frequency.
- At the same time, S. civilian assistance to stabilize areas liberated from ISIS could be curtailed without a U.S. military presence on the ground. This assistance—focused on rubble removal, the provision of essential services, and building local governance institutions—has been critical for helping civilians in ISIS-liberated areas get back on their feet.
- The lessons learned from the 2011 U.S. military withdrawal from Iraq underscore the need to set the conditions for ISIS’ last defeat by addressing underlying grievances and ensuring against the emergence of power vacuums.
- The S. withdrawal will leave a dangerous power vacuum on the ground that could lead to new conflicts erupting. Most urgently, Turkey has been threatening a military incursion in Syria against the Kurds.
Source: The Hindu
NOTA Analysis
Topic: Polity and Governance
Background:
- In People’s Union For Civil Liberties v. Union Of India (September 27, 2013), the Supreme Court had ruled that a None of the Above (NOTA) option “may be provided in EVMs” so that voters are able to exercise their “right not to vote while maintaining their right of secrecy”.
- On October 29 that year, the Election Commission of India (ECI) said that if a situation arose where the number of NOTA votes exceeded the number of votes polled by any of the candidates, the candidate with the highest number of votes would be declared winner. This, it said, was in accordance with Rule 64 of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961.
- This provision made the NOTA option almost redundant. While it ensured confidentiality for a voter who did not want to choose any of the candidates and yet wished to exercise her franchise, the provision clarified that a NOTA vote would not have any impact on the election result, which is what interests candidates, political parties, and voters. Soon after this, candidates began campaigning against NOTA, telling voters that choosing the option meant wasting a vote.
Rationale behind NOTA:
- The ECI seemed to have completely overlooked the spirit of the judgment, illustrated in the following excerpts: “For democracy to survive, it is essential that the best available men should be chosen as people’s representatives… This can be best achieved through men of high moral and ethical values, who win the elections on a positive vote. Thus, in a vibrant democracy, the voter must be given an opportunity to choose NOTA…, which will… compel the political parties to nominate a sound candidate.
- Democracy is all about choice. This choice can be better expressed by giving the voters an opportunity to verbalize themselves unreservedly and by imposing least restrictions on their ability to make such a choice. By providing NOTA button in the EVMs, it will accelerate the effective political participation in the present state of democratic system and the voters will be empowered.
- When the political parties will realize that a large number of people are expressing their disapproval with the candidates, there will be a systemic change and the political parties will be forced to accept the will of the people and field candidates who are known for their integrity.
Source:The Hindu
Bullet Train
Topic: Science and Technology
In news: The latest information obtained by an activist under the Right to Information (RTI) has revealed that Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project may turn out to be a loss-making proposition and burden Maharashtra’s already dwindling finances.
More on the Topic:
- Several objections have been raised by various departments over the economic viability of the Shinkansen train, which could result in losses in the form of wasted Floor Space Index (FSI) and delayed loan repayment in the absence of proper frameworks.
- Some part of the FSI at the station proposed at Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) in Mumbai could “remain unutilised because of the height restrictions, leading to revenue losses”.
- Both Planning and Finance departments have called for a thorough study of bullet train economics in other countries before a decision is taken on its feasibility in India. Additionally, the departments said the Centre must clarify the formula for sharing the loan burden if the project remains loss-making for a long period of time. Since the State is coping with serious loss in income and further burden of loans, the impact of this project on government finances needs to be considered.
About Bullet train:
- The train, with a capacity of 750 passengers, will travel at speeds between 320 km/hr and 350km/hr and is expected to reduce travel time between Ahmedabad and Mumbai to three-and-a-half hours or less from the present eight. The project is expected to be completed in seven years.
Source: The Hindu
