General Awareness

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY - August 2015

Aug 2015

May 20, 2024

Thotakura 1st Indian Space Tourist on Blue Origin's Private Astronaut Launch

Gopi Thotakura, an entrepreneur and a pilot, became the first Indian to venture into space as a tourist aboard Amazon founder Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin's NS-25 mission.
Thotakura was selected as one of the six crew members for the NS-25 mission, making him the first Indian space tourist and the second Indian to venture into space after the Indian Army's Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma in 1984.
Blue Origin's seventh human flight, NS-25, lifted off from Launch Site One in West Texas.
This mission was the seventh human flight for the New Shepard programme and the 25th in its history. To date, the programme has flown 31 humans above the Karman line, the proposed conventional boundary between Earth's atmosphere and outer space.

World's First 6G Device Launched in Japan

A Japanese consortium introduced the prototype of the world's first high-speed 6G device, which is claimed to transfer data at lightning speed. As per reports, the purported device can transmit data at a whopping 100 gigabits per second (Gbps) and can cover more than 300 feet. The device is 20x faster than the ongoing 5G technology.
The purported 6G device boasts an astounding data transmission rate of 100 gigabits per second (Gbps), dwarfing the capabilities of current 5G technology by a staggering factor of 20. Utilizing the 100 gigahertz (GHz) frequency indoors and the 300 GHz band outdoors, this prototype showcases the potential for unprecedented connectivity speeds.

May 18, 2024

India Ranks First in Adoption of GenAI across Asia-Pacific: Deloitte India

India emerged on top among 13 countries in Asia Pacific in adoption and use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), according to a Deloitte report, released in May 2024, based on a survey of 11,900 individuals across the region.
As per the report, titled 'Generative AI in Asia Pacific', 93% of students and 83% of employees in the country are actively engaging with GenAI.

May 17, 2024

NASA Appoints New Chief for Artificial Intelligence

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was established on July 29, 1958, with the signing of the National Aeronautics and Space Act, and it began operations on October 1, 1958. NASA is headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, which serves as its operational centre for space missions and research. In May 2024, NASA appointed David Salvagnini as its first Chief Artificial Intelligence (AI) Officer, expanding his role from Chief Data Officer. Bill Nelson, NASA's chief, emphasized Salvagnini's leadership in ensuring responsible AI usage for the benefit of humanity. Salvagnini will oversee AI implementation strategy, promote innovation, and manage AI tools and training.
Salvagnini joined NASA in June 2023 after over 20 years of leadership in technology for the intelligence community. Before NASA, he was the chief architect and director of a group at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

May 16, 2024

Soket AI Labs Launches Pragna-1B AI model in Collaboration with Google Cloud

Indian Artificial Intelligence (AI) research firm Soket AI Labs, in collaboration with Google Cloud services, announced the launch of an open-source multilingual foundation model, 'Pragna-1B'.
The model will provide AI services in Indian vernacular languages including Hindi, English, Bengali, and Gujarati.
Tailored specifically for vernacular languages, Pragna-1B offers balanced language representation and enables faster and more efficient tokenization suited for organisations seeking optimised operations and enhanced functionality.

TCS Unveils Global AI Centre of Excellence in France

In a significant move, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) announced the creation of a Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) Centre of Excellence in the French capital, Paris. The announcement was made during the prestigious "Choose France Summit" hosted by President Emmanuel Macron, underscoring TCS's commitment to the French market and the global AI landscape.
The new AI centre will be based in the upcoming TCS PacePort in the La Défense area of Paris, set to be inaugurated in June 2024. This state-of-the-art facility will become the seventh addition to TCS' global Pace network, joining the ranks of innovation hubs in cities like Amsterdam, London, New York, Pittsburgh, Toronto, and Tokyo.
The TCS AI Centre of Excellence in Paris will leverage the company's global ecosystem of startups, academia, and research organizations to bring the best of global AI capabilities to French companies. This collaborative approach aims to tap into France's deep talent pool in design and engineering, fostering the development of advanced human-centric AI technologies.

May 15, 2024

Google Launches AI-Powered Scam Protection at I/O 2024

At the Google I/O 2024 developer conference, Google showed off a new and useful tool that will help protect Android users from phone scams. This feature, which is powered by AI, is meant to make things safer by finding and warning users of possible scams over the phone.
Gemini Nano: Enhancing Call Security
Gemini Nano is the core of this new feature. It is a small version of Google's advanced language model that was made just for Android devices. Gemini Nano works offline and listens to call conversations in real-time, looking for trends and words that are often used in scam conversations. When it finds possible scams, it warns users right away, giving them time to end dangerous calls.

NASA and JAXA Forge Ahead with XRISM Despite Instrument Glitch

NASA and the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) decided to operate an instrument on the X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) satellite as-is for at least the next year and a half, despite encountering an issue affecting one of its instruments. This decision showcases the agencies' determination to push forward with this groundbreaking X-ray astronomy mission.
Launched in September 2023, XRISM carries two instruments developed in collaboration with NASA, designed to conduct cutting-edge X-ray astronomy observations. Despite the challenges posed by the instrument issue, the spacecraft has commenced its prime science mission, underscoring the resilience of this international collaboration.

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