Science and Technology MCQ Set 43
Showing question 211 to 215 of total 301 MCQs
MCQ Set: 43
Solve the question on your notebook and check it by clicking (Answer and Explanation) below question.
Question No: 211
NASA scientists have developed technology to help _____ land during emergencies.
- Drones
- Planes
- Jets
- Choppers
Answer and Explanation
Answer: A
Explanation
NASA scientists are developing a technology to help drones land safely during emergencies. The announcement regarding the new technology was made by NASA on 25 May 2017. After eight test flights, the technology has successfully spotted safer landing zones like swamps or drainage ditches to crash instead of on top of people’s cars.
This crash-landing software for drones was developed by Patricia Glaab, an aerospace technologist at NASA Langley Research Centre, and her fellow NASA colleague Lou Glaab.
The software links on-board drone components like batteries and motors to monitor their health.
The technology help them identify when something on the drone goes wrong, and puts the aerial vehicles in a crash-landing mode.
When triggered, the software checks a pre-installed database of nearby safe zones and identifies one for safe landing. The software also incorporates technology that lets drones recognise and avoid objects on the ground using on-board cameras.
Question No: 212
Researchers have identified a new way to slow the growth of cancer cells using which gene editing technology?
- CRISPR-Cas9
- CRISPR-Cas10
- CRISPR-Cas11
- CRISPR-Cas12
Answer and Explanation
Answer: A
Explanation
Researchers in the United States have reportedly identified a new way to slow down the growth of cancer cell, according to reports released on 28 May 2017.
The research, conducted by researchers belonging to the University of Rochester in the US, has been published in the latest issue of the journal, Science.
The new method involves a protein called Tudor-SN and the gene-editing technology CRISPR-Cas9.
Researchers after a comprehensive study discovered how Tudor-SN is significant in the preparatory phase of the cell cycle, the period when the cell gets ready to divide.
Tudor-SN is more abundant in cancer cells than in the healthy ones and so, targeting the protein could help slow down the fast-growing cancer cells.
The findings were made in kidney and cervical cancer cells in the laboratory and though they are still a long way from being applied on people, they could help cancer patients in the future.
Question No: 213
Which new species found in Ecuador is also known as the glass frog?
- Hyalinobatrachium caku
- Hyalinobatrachium jaku
- Hyalinobatrachium yaku
- Hyalinobatrachium daku
Answer and Explanation
Answer: C
Explanation
A group of scientists have discovered a new species of glass frog, of the genus Hyalinobatrachium.
The frog’s beating heart can be seen right through its chest. The new species, Hyalinobatrachium yaku was found in the Amazonian lowlands of Ecuador.
The frog boasts green spots across its back and a ‘red heart fully visible’ underneath, visible due to the transparent membrane around its organs.
Though Hyalinobatrachium yaku is not the only see-through species in existence, its markings, unusual call, and reproductive behaviour set it apart from the rest.
Given their habitat in the Amazonian lowlands, the researchers warn that these frogs are at risk. Apart from environmental concerns such as water pollution, extraction of natural resources, increased the level of regional road development, could also threaten populations of the new species.
Oil extraction and the resulting road development could destroy their habitat and create barriers between nearby populations, preventing their dispersal and interaction.
The glass frogs belong to the amphibian family Centrolenidae.
Glass Frog: Know More
While the general background coloration of most glass frogs is primarily lime green, the abdominal skin of some members of this family is transparent.
The internal viscera, including the heart, liver, and gastrointestinal tract, are visible through the skin, hence the common name is given glass frog.
They are arboreal animals, meaning they spend most of their lives in trees and will come to the ground only during the mating season.
Females lay 20 to 30 eggs on the underside of leaves that hang right above the water.
Males guard the eggs until these are ready to hatch and fall on the below water stream. As of now, more than 60 different species of glass frogs are known, the latest being Hyalinobatrachium yaku.
Question No: 214
Where is the world's largest telescope being constructed?
- Atacama desert
- Gobi desert
- Thar desert
- Sahara desert
Answer and Explanation
Answer: A
Explanation
Construction works for building Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) has commenced in Chile.
After completion, the Extremely Large Telescope will become the world’s largest optical telescope which will be five times larger than the top observing instruments that are in use today.
The telescope will be constructed at a 3,000 meter-high mountain in the middle of the Atacama desert.
The telescope is scheduled to commence its operations in 2024.
The ELT is funded by the European Southern Observatory. The organization comprises of European and southern hemisphere nations. It is expected that construction costs of ELT would come around 1 billion euros at 2012 prices.
The main mirror of the ELT will measure some 39 meters (43 yards) across. This massive size of the mirror will be of immense use to expand the understanding of the universe.
The telescope will enhance the ability of astronomers to find more smaller planets, image larger ones, and possibly characterize their atmospheres.
These capabilities will be key in understanding if life is present in those planets or not.
The dry atmosphere of the Atacama desert offers perfect observing conditions one can find on Earth. No wonder around 70% of the world’s astronomical infrastructure are slated to be built in the Atacama desert by the 2020s.
European Southern Observatory: Know More
Established in 1962.
European Southern Observatory is a 16 nation intergovernmental research organization for ground based astronomy.
Its observatories are situated in Chile.
It has built and operated many technologically advanced telescopes like New Technology Telescope, Very Large Telescope (VLT), Atacama Large Millimetre Array etc.
Question No: 215
Indian researchers saw reduction in TB bacteria using phytochemical bergenin extracted from which tree?
- Sakhua
- Shala
- Shorea robusta
- Only a and b are same
- All 3 of the above are the same
Answer and Explanation
Answer: D
Explanation
A team of Indian researchers achieved a 100-fold reduction in tuberculosis bacteria load in lungs of mice after 60 days of treatment using bergenin.
Bergenin is a phytochemical isolated from tender leaves of sakhua or shala tree (Shorea robusta). Unlike the regularly used antibiotic drugs that target the TB bacteria, the bergenin compound modulates the immune system to kill the bacteria found inside the macrophages, which is a type of white blood cells.
The study conducted by the Indian researchers show that the bergenin compound can be used to clear the bacteria.
In fact, when it is used in combination with other TB drugs, the compound can produce good results.
The researchers undertook several studies to understand the mode of action of the compound.
The compound was unable to directly kill tuberculosis bacteria when treated with the compound.
However, in the case of in vitro studies, the compound was able to kill the bacteria found inside infected cells.
In mice infected with TB and treated with the compound, there was significant reduction in the bacterial load in the lungs.
Unlike in the case of in vitro studies, in mice the compound was found to activate not only the macrophages but also other cell types (T cells) that led to effective killing of the bacteria.
A significant reduction in the number of granulomatic lesions was seen in animals treated with the compound.
Also, the bacterial load was 100-fold lower in mice treated with the compound compared with animals that were not treated with bergenin.
The bergenin compound was selectively enhancing the frequency of interferon-gamma and interleukin-17-producing T cells in the TB infected animals.
Interferon-gamma promotes bacteria-killing nitric oxide inside macrophages thus promoting the generation of protective immune responses against tuberculosis bacteria.
The compound can be used in patients with drug-resistant TB too, as it does not target the bacteria directly but modulates the immune system to kill the bacteria.