Why in the news? Leveraging advancements in CRISPR-based genetic engineering, researchers have created a system that restrains populations of mosquitoes that infect millions each year with debilitating diseases. What is CRISPR Technology: “CRISPR” stands for “clusters of regularly interspaced short …
About Chandrayaan 2 Chandrayaan 2 is an Indian lunar mission that attempted to conduct a soft landing on the Moon’s south polar region. Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) launched Chandrayaan 2, a mission comprising an orbiter and a soft lander …
CONTEXT The forthcoming 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow from November 1-12, 2021 is to re-examine the coordinated action plans to mitigate greenhouse gases and climate adaptation measures. Hence, in order to achieve the goal …
What is Fortification of Food? Fortification is the addition of key vitamins and minerals such as iron, iodine, zinc, Vitamin A & D to staple foods such as rice, milk and salt to improve their nutritional content. These nutrients may …
Why in News: A rare merging of three supermassive black holes has been spotted by a team of astrophysicists in India. What is a blackhole A black hole is a place in space where gravity pulls so much that even …
Why in News: Moderna, the Massachusetts-based American biotechnology company, has indicated that it may begin human trials for a vaccine for HIV (human immunodeficiency virus). What is HIV? HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is a virus that attacks the body’s immune …
How atomic energy works? Atomic energy can be released in two ways – either by breaking up heavy nuclei, like uranium, into smaller fragments, releasing a lot of energy in the process, or by fusing together light nuclei like hydrogen …
What is smog? Smog is air pollution that reduces visibility. It was first described over 5 decades ago as a mixture of smoke and fog, hence the name “smog”—but today it has a more specific definition and composition. Smog is …
About GMOs Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) can be defined as organisms i.e. plants, animals or microorganisms in which the genetic material (DNA) has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally by mating or by natural recombination. The …