Current Affairs Quiz - May, 2024

Notes:
IN-SPACe, India’s National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre, received the Geospatial World Forum Leadership Award for “Public Policy: Enabling Industry Development” at the 2024 event in Rotterdam. Rajeev Jyoti and Kriti Khatri accepted the honor on behalf of IN-SPACe. The award recognizes their groundbreaking efforts in advancing India’s space sector and supporting non-government entities. GWF Leadership Awards commend innovation and contributions to the global geospatial field since 2007.

Notes:
Archeologists recently discovered Sahul, a lost landscape aiding ancient human migration across continents during the last ice age. Sahul, a supercontinent, connected present-day Australia, Papua New Guinea, and Tasmania. This land bridge facilitated human movement from Asia to Australia around 70,000 years ago. Ice ages are geologic periods featuring extensive ice cover, lasting millions of years, reshaping continents. The earliest known ice age dates back over 570 million years, during Precambrian time.

Notes:
World Telecommunication and Information Society Day is observed on May 17 annually to explore the use of ICT and the Internet in societies and to address the digital divide. Each year, the ITU selects a theme; for 2024, it is “Digital Innovation for Sustainable Development.” Sustainable development, as defined by the 1987 Brundtland Commission report, aims to meet present needs without compromising future generations’ ability to do the same.

Notes:
The 2nd India-Australia-Indonesia Trilateral Maritime Security Workshop was held from May 15-17, 2024, at INS Dronacharya, Kochi, India. The theme was ‘Indian Ocean Region: Collaborative Efforts to Enhance Regional Maritime Security’. Chaired by senior naval officials from the three countries, discussions focused on maritime security challenges, Information Exchange mechanisms, Maritime Domain Awareness, and enhancing interoperability among the navies. The workshop aimed at fostering cooperation to address present-day maritime threats in the Indian Ocean Region.

Notes:
The inaugural Summit on Clean Cooking in Africa, held in Paris on May 14, 2024, drew over 1,000 delegates from nearly 60 countries. The summit highlighted the critical health and environmental impacts of traditional cooking methods used by over a billion Africans. Despite progress in China, India, and Latin America, clean cooking remains elusive in Africa, where over 70% of people in countries like Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana rely on biomass.

Notes:
Archaeologists have discovered the first evidence of rock art in Mangaluru city in the form of a pair of human footprints on a natural stone boulder near the Boloor Panne Koteda Babbu Swamy shrine. The footprints may have been created in the first or second century A.D.

Notes:
A red panda was recently sighted in Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary, Arunachal Pradesh. This herbivore species uses its bushy tail for balance and warmth. It’s shy, arboreal, and an ecological indicator. Resembling a house cat, it inhabits mountainous forests across Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, and Nepal, with half its habitat in the Eastern Himalayas. Threatened by habitat loss, it’s classified as Endangered by IUCN, listed on CITES Appendix I, and protected under India’s Wildlife Protection Act 1972.

Notes:
Alexander Zverev won his second Italian Open singles title, while world no. 1 Iga Swiatek claimed her third Italian Open title. Swiatek defeated Aryna Sabalenka in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3, to win her 21st career title. This marks Swiatek’s third Italian Open victory in the last four years; she did not qualify for the final last year.

Notes:
Pig Butchering Scams, also known as “sha zhu pan” scams, are rising globally, notably in India. Scammers create fake online personas to lure victims into fraudulent investment schemes. They build trust over time, dubbed “fattening the pig,” before stealing money. Initially contacting targets through social media or dating apps, scammers deceive victims into cryptocurrency trading via fake apps. Withdrawal attempts are met with excuses or hefty fees, making fund retrieval challenging due to blockchain transactions’ nature.

Notes:
A new plant species, Emblica Chakrabarti, was found in Kerala’s Ernakulam district, specifically in Adichilthotti within the Edamalayar forest range. Belonging to the Phyllanthaceae family, Emblica plants typically thrive as shrubs in tropical rainforests, reaching up to 2 meters in height. They flower and bear fruit from December to June. This discovery adds to the biodiversity of the region, highlighting its ecological significance.