Questions: 1. On January 30, 1982, computer programmer Richard Skrenta wrote the world’s first computer virus that ‘escaped’ to other networks. Among other things, the virus would display a poem about itself every 50th time a programme containing it was run. Name the virus. 2. What was the first virus of the original IBM Personal … Read more
New Delhi: Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman chairs the eighth pre-budget consultation in New Delhi, on Jan. 6, 2025. With Budget FY2025-26 scheduled to be presented on February 1, here is a look at some of the recently launched schemes, older schemes with significantly reduced funding, schemes under the Production Linked … Read more
Axiom Mission 4 crew clockwise: Commander Peggy Whitson, Mission Pilot Shubhanshu Shukla, Mission Specialist Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewsk, and Mission Specialist Tibor Kapu. Photo: X/@Axiom_Space Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla will be the pilot of the upcoming Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS). NASA and its international partners announced on Thursday (January 30, 2025) … Read more
New Delhi: Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman chairs the eighth pre-budget consultation in New Delhi, on Jan. 6, 2025. With Budget FY2025-26 scheduled to be presented on February 1, here is a look at some of the recently launched schemes, older schemes with significantly reduced funding, schemes under the Production Linked … Read more
Members of a rapid response team collecting ducks from a farm in Alappuzha for culling following a bird flu outbreak. An awareness programme on menstruation in Bengaluru. Under a very high magnification of 12000X, this scanning electron micrograph shows a large grouping of Salmonella bacteria. Two European regulators said they were tracking variants of the … Read more
Stubble burning solution: Chennai students win IIT Kharagpur award | Video Credit: The Hindu Every November, Delhi chokes under a blanket of smog. There are many reasons for why this happens. One is the much discussed and debated stubble burning in the nearby states of Punjab and Haryana. Farmers have taken to using alternative varieties … Read more
Data Point: R Ashwin’s achievements | Video Credit: The Hindu A colossus in Indian cricket, Ravichandran Ashwin, has called it quits in international cricket after a stellar career on the last day of the third Test match between Australia and India in Brisbane. The match had petered out to a draw but Ashwin’s abrupt decision … Read more
Mourners in Nuseirat on December 16, 2024 pray in front of the body of Al Jazeera journalist Ahmad Baker Al-Louh, who was killed along with Civil Defence members in an Israeli strike the day before. | Photo Credit: AFP As many as 757 journalists and media workers have been killed worldwide since 2015, as of … Read more
Layer of smog seen over Kartavya Path, Delhi. | Photo Credit: Sushil Kumar Verma The air quality in Delhi nosedived to hazardous levels on December 16, triggering the Central Air Quality Management (CAQM) in National Capital Region (NCR) and the adjoining areas to reimpose the Stage-IV restrictions under its Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP). When … Read more
For many low-and middle-income countries, remittances act as a major source of income. In 2024, India received an estimated $129.1 billion worth of remittances, the highest ever for a country in any year. Moreover, India’s share in global remittances was 14.3% this year, the highest such share since the turn of the millennium for any … Read more
Sci-Five | The Hindu Science Quiz: On Clean Energy Wind turbines dot the coastline along a giant solar farm near Weifang in eastern China’s Shandong province on March 22, 2024. START THE QUIZ 1 / 5 | Which of the following is a benefit of renewable energy? Produces zero greenhouse gas emissions Requires fewer natural … Read more
(1) Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh dies at 92 India’s former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, widely regarded as the architect of India’s economic reform and a landmark nuclear deal with the United States, has died. Singh was admitted to New Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences late Thursday (December 26, 2024) after his health … Read more
A relative adjusts the oxygen mask of a tuberculosis patient at a TB hospital on World Tuberculosis Day in Hyderabad, India, March 24, 2018. | Photo Credit: MAHESH KUMAR A. A recent report by the Resource Group for Education and Advocacy for Community Health (REACH) highlights efforts to address tuberculosis (TB) among migrants in Tamil … Read more
Since 2007, over 1 million immigrants have been granted green cards annually, except during the COVID-19 pandemic. A series of events has shone a spotlight on the U.S.’ H1B visa programme, which mostly benefits Indian workers. The programme allows U.S. employers to hire skilled foreign professionals for specialised roles. Recently, a month-old post on X … Read more
Women voters show their index fingers marked with an indelible ink after casting their vote in India’s national election in Prayagraj, India, May 25, 2024 | Photo Credit: Rajesh Kumar Singh The Election Commission (EC) has released granular data for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections recently. The gap between male and female turnouts was narrowing … Read more
A Muslim man watches from his house after a shop was demolished in the area that saw communal violence during a Hindu religious procession in New Delhi, India, Wednesday, April 20, 2022. | Photo Credit: Altaf Qadri On an index measuring religion-related hostilities for 2022, India scored the highest among 198 nations, according to a … Read more
While dropout rates decreased nationally, some States show concerning trends. | Photo Credit: FILE PHOTO There has been a marked improvement in the share of students continuing education into higher grades in 2024 compared to 2019, across India, without dropping out of school. Overall, of every 100 girls who started schooling, over 80 completed their … Read more
(1) Manu, Gukesh among four Khel Ratnas Double Olympic-medallist Manu Bhaker and chess world champion D Gukesh were among four winners of the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award announced by the Sports Ministry, which also named an unprecedented 17 para-athletes in the list of 32 Arjuna awardees to honour their resounding success at the … Read more
Enrolments dropped by 16% in recognised Madrasas in 2023-24 compared to 2018-19 The number of students enrolled in Indian schools in 2023-24 declined by 1.22 crore compared with 2018-19, show data. Officials argue that Aadhaar numbers and unique student IDs have been used to identify beneficiaries of educational schemes and, in the process, duplicate entries … Read more
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath pays tribute to B.R. Ambedkar on his death anniversary, in Lucknow, Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. | Photo Credit: Nand Kumar On December 17, Home Minister Amit Shah made some contentious comments on B.R. Ambedkar, which not only sparked debates in Parliament but also led to scuffles. There have also been protests … Read more
Data Point: Why Indian students face higher visa rejection rates in Australia | Video Credit: The Hindu Australia is facing a severe housing crisis. The government attributed last year’s sharp rise in immigration to be a key factor contributing to the crisis. In response, it has implemented measures to restrict the inflow of students whose … Read more
Anti Naxal Force (ANF) personnel at Pittabail, near Hebri, in Udupi district where the encounter of wanted Maoist leader Vikram Gowda took place late on November 18, 2024 | Photo Credit: UMESH S SHETTIGAR On Monday, eight security personnel were killed when Maoists blew up their vehicle with an improvised explosive device (IED) in Bijapur, Chhattisgarh. … Read more
Several ophthalmology institutions in South India connect village and town eyecare workers with research centres in hospitals In the book Mission Possible by Swami Subramanian and Aparajithan Srivathsan (Notion Press, Chennai), they suggest ways to pave the road to Universal Health Coverage. It is a positive book that suggests paving the way to universal health coverage, with … Read more
(1) Powerful quake hits Tibet, kills over 100 A devastating earthquake in China’s remote Tibet region killed at least 126 people and damaged thousands of buildings on Tuesday (January 7, 2025), with tremors also felt in neighbouring Nepal’s capital Kathmandu and parts of India. The quake struck rural, high-altitude Tingri county, about 80 km north … Read more
That targeted nutritional support to TB patients and household contacts can improve TB treatment outcomes, reduce the number of new cases and deaths is now well known, particularly after the RATIONS trial carried out in between August 2019 and August 2022 in four districts of Jharkhand among 2,800 pulmonary TB patients and 10,345 household contacts. The trial … Read more
Over the last decade, States have been relying more and more on transfers and grants from the Centre. In the last decade (FY16 to FY25), 23-30% of the total revenue of States was collected from the Centre as transfers. However, in the 2000s and the first half of 2010, the share was 20-24%. Also, close … Read more
A new study has for the first time described a phenomenon researchers refer to as ‘contagious urinations’. The study of 20 captive chimpanzees living at the Kumamoto Sanctuary in Japan shows that, when one chimpanzee pees, others are more likely to follow. The researchers documented peeing behaviours in the Kumamoto chimpanzees over more than 600 hours, … Read more
In the week since the fires in the Los Angeles County broke out, which have destroyed thousands of homes, at least 24 lives have been lost and 16 people were reported missing. The 24 deaths were attributed to the two major fires raging across the county: the Eaton fire, which accounted for 16 of them … Read more
Dinosaurs long dominated the earth’s land ecosystems with multiple forms, including plant-eating giants like Argentinosaurus, meat-eating brutes like Tyrannosaurus, and weirdos like Therizinosaurus, with its Wolverine-like claws. But the origin of dinosaurs — precisely when and where they first appeared — remains a bit of a puzzle. Researchers are now proposing a surprising location for … Read more
Originally intended for small and marginal farmers, the PM-KISAN was later extended to all farmers who owned lan | Photo Credit: G.N. Rao The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN), which provides yearly income support of ₹6,000 to eligible farmer families in three instalments, has been through highs and lows both in terms of coverage … Read more