Top News Highlights- 10 October 2024

Inauguration of MACE Observatory

• Location & Significance: Located at Hanle, Ladakh, it is the largest imaging Cherenkov telescope in Asia, situated at an altitude of ~4,300 m, making it the highest of its kind in the world.
• Objective: The MACE Observatory will observe high-energy gamma rays to help in the study of the most energetic phenomena in the universe such as supernovae, black holes, and gamma-ray bursts.
• Development: Domestically designed and developed by the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, supported by the Electronics Corporation of India and other collaborators, as a demonstration of India’s ability to undertake advanced scientific research and technology.

Trade Weaponization

• Definition & Tools: Foreign policy tool use of trade weaponization-the creation of obstacles to trade, imposition of sanctions, and embargoes.
• Consequences: It will eventually cause protectionism, trade wars, and supply chain disruption posing a severe threat to the global economy.
• Way forward against these consequences: Ways to battle against it are through institutional cooperation by forums like IPEF and strategic measures for resilience in the supply chain.

Nobel Prize in Physics

• Laureates: Awarded to John Hopfield & Geoffrey Hinton for work in training artificial neural networks (ANNs) which is considered the foundation for advancement in machine learning.
• Impact on AI: Their study refreshes AI systems implemented in varied applications, including image and natural language processing.

India Eliminates Trachoma

• WHO Announcement: The World Health Organization announced that India is now free of trachoma, a major public health milestone.
• Background & Interventions: Trachoma was one of the causes of blindness in India, leading to some successful interventions have been the NPCBVI and WHO’s SAFE strategy.

Digital Arrest Scam

• New Form of Cyber Frauds: A type of fraud in which fraudsters are taking the garb of a police officer and putting victims under ‘digital arrest’ to collect money from them.
• Preventive Measures: Awareness and education toward such scams will prevent the theft of personal and financial information.

Key Concepts and Policies

• Cherenkov Radiation: It was discovered by Pavel Alekseyevich Cherenkov; it is the emission of light by charged particles passing through a nonconducting medium.
• Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs): It is a subcategory of machine learning that has been recognized to model the workings of the human brain. ANNs have been able to assume a significant role in the development of AI technologies.
• Trachoma: The infectious disease caused by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis, once a major cause of blindness in India.