Weekly update on all the happening
in Science & Technology, in and around the nation;
Headlines
- MOM Team will be
awarded Space Pioneer Award 2015.
Declared
by the US based National Space Society
(NSS); to be awarded at the 34th International Space Development Conference
to be held at Toronto, Canada (May 2015); Team based in Bangalore under
Mayilsamy Annadurai won the award under the Category Science & Engineering;
for accomplishing two significant
mission: firstly MOM (Mangalyan) is the first space craft to go around the
mars orbit in its maiden attempt; secondly the space craft in an elliptical orbit
with high epoxies with high resolution camera – take images of mars – aiding researches
& studies; Time Magazine listed Mangalyan among the 25 best inventions of
2014 – Super Smart Space Craft;
- Dr. A. S. Kiran
Kumar – New Chairman of ISRO – 8th Chair – Succeeding Dr. K.
Radhakrishnan;
Former
Director of Space Application Centre (SAC) Ahmedabad – Started career in ISRO
in 1975; played a crucial role in developing image sensors for the Baskara
Satellite, also made immense contribution in developing key components for
Chandrayan I & Mangalyan Mission, also contributed for Ocean floor
instruments used in weather forecasting, landscape mapping; Also to serve as a
Secy. of the Dept. of Space, Ministry of Earth Science; Physics Graduate with
Dual M.Tech from IISc;
- Endemic Native
Indian plants under the threat of Climate Change.
Study
undertaken by the team lead by Dr. Vishwas Sudhir Chitale, IIT-Kharagpur; 637
Endemic plant species were studied – study suggest these plant species will be
adversely impacted even with the moderate change – also study says, Species likely
to shift to the northern & north-eastern Himalayas & Indo Burma; Study
based on Computer model predicting
future distributions (in 2050 -80 taking 2010 as base year) – 637 Endemic Plant
species – in 3 Biodiversity Hotspots in India – Himalaya, Western Ghats &
Indo Burma; Research studies published in PLOS one;
India
is one of the 12 Mega Diversity countries of the world and has 11% of the
Global Flora concentrated in the 2.4% of the global land;
- Pomegranate juice
increase lifespan – collaborated Study Report by IISc & Trans-disciplinary
University and Foundation for Revitalization of Local Health Tradition;
Study
based on an Ancient Ayurvedic Concept
called Rasayana – fruit juices to heal & rejuvenate; Study done on a
species of fruit fly called Drosophila Melanogaster; Study Report Pomegranate
Juice increases longevity and delay ageing; Study published in the Journal
Frontiers in Public Health; Many health benefits: Powerful Anti-Oxidant, Anti-Cancer,
Immune Supporting effect, Juice rich in Nutrient and lowers cholesterol, Blood
pressure and other Cardiac & Stroke related factors;
- Fog and effects on
Human Health and life (IN FOCUS Segment)
Cold
Winter Morning – when temperature dipped in the northern part of India –Most
news channels rushed with report of delay & cancellation of Trains &
Flights, because of FOG; Science Behind the phenomenon of Fog –Fog is a cloud
at ground level or a type of low-lying
cloud – Made up of condensed water droplets – Ice crystals suspended in the
air at or near the earth surface – The threshold point is called the Dew Point (where no longer it can hold all the water vapour ) - Fog is generally
formed when there is 100% humidity in the air – when this air near the ground
close to Dew point, the water vapour in the air condensed around the dust &
salt particles present in the air and visible as Fog in the air; Fog formation
is heavily influenced by nearby bodies of water; Topography, wind condition and
human activities also affect formation; Both can have adverse effects on Human
Health; Advection Fog – occurs when
Moist Air passes over a cool surface by advection; Precipitation fog/ Frontal Fog – forms as precipitation falls in to
the drier air below the cloud, the liquid droplet evaporate in to water vapour –
Water vapour cools and condense at the dew point – Fog forms; Hail Fog - occurs during hail storms –
due to decreased temperature & increased moisture – leading to saturation in
very shallow layer near the surface of the Earth – most often occurs when there is warm humid layer at top and the wind
is light; Ice Fog – water droplet
freeze in to tiny crystals in mid-air - when the wind temperature below freezing
point – generally below Zero; Lake fog,
River fog, and Sea Fog are due to the influence of the Water bodies;
Adversely
affect the day to day life of Human
·
Fog affect the
visibility – Dense fog often result in serious accidents – Railways &
Airways are worst affected; Also affect Shipping & Trade;
·
Serious side
effect is the formation of SMOG (Smoke + Fog) – Blackish fog – cause allergies like
Asthma, Irritation in Eyes, Cold and Pulmonary diseases like Pneumonia, Lung
Cancer.
Some
animal depend on wet fog as a principle source of water particularly otherwise
desert like climate (many African Coastal areas);
- History of Science
- Segment
1825
– Sir Edward Frankled – One of the originators of organometallic chemistry –
Stated the atoms elementary substance has a definite saturation capacity – can
combine only with the certain limited number of atom of the other elements;
1736
– James Watt – Steam Engineering – Steam Engine – improved power efficiency
& cost-effective of the engineering by adding a stepped condenser avoiding excess
loss of steam;
1930
– Edwin Eugen Aldrin – second man to set foot on the moon – Mechanical engineer
selected by NASA for Apollo 11 Mission – accompanies Neil Armstrong as the
second lunar module pilot;
1775
– Andre Marie Ampere – French Physicist & Mathematician – father of
Electrodynamics – Unit of current (Ampere) – two current carrying parallel wire
attracts or repel depends on the direction of the flow;
1960
– Hydronauts travelled to the bottom of the Mariana Trench (Pacific Ocean) – reached
the bottom surface after five hours journey – spent 25 minutes on the sea floor;
- Science Express –
S & T Activities
·
Workshop on Low Carbon pathways for Growth in India
- Sir David King, British Foreign Secy., Special Representative for the climate
change – India’s Rapid Economic Growth would fuel Energy Demand and urge it to
explore Range of Energy Alternatives; Usefulness of 2047 calculator
– in planning the economics around the Energy Infrastructure; Adaptation of
2047 Calculator will help India plan its Energy future; Refer: IESS2047 http://indiaenergy.gov.in/
·
Rich Biodiversity
of India – Research Team from S&M College of Kerela – Reported discovery of
3 new species of plant;
·
BARC invited
application from Engineering Graduates for the enrollment in its flagship
programme Orientation course at BARC school; Provide adequate knowledge &
develop skills in Nuclear Sci-Tech for the Trainee Scientist; Visti: www.barc.gov.in/careers/
·
Mystery behind
the Stripes of Zebra – Temperature, Predation, searching for an Association;
·
WHO announced –
in 4 weeks – test to assess the potency of Ebola Vaccine would begin in Western
Africa; Trails are to be conducted in Liberia,
Sierre Leone & Kenya. Vaccine from GSK, MSD;
·
Fossils of last
ancestor of Bony fishes;
·
Central Power
Research Institute (Bangalore) – Govt. Approved 996 Cr investment proposal –
for Short Circuit Test Facility, Transmission tower test facilities, Facilities
for switch gear testing & development, Testing of Transformer oil, Smart
Grid research labouratory;
·
Vikram Sarabhai
Memorial Award to Dr. M.Y.S. Prasad, Director of Satish Dhawan Research Centre;
for outstanding contribution in R&D in the field of Space Science;
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