General Awareness

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY - August 2015

Aug 2015

Sep 01, 2019

IT Ministry Partners Google On 'Build For Digital India'

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) entered into a partnership with Google with the aim of rolling out "Build for Digital India", a programme that will give engineering students a platform to develop market-ready, technology-based solutions that address key social problems.
The programme will invite ideas from students to focus on areas of healthcare, agriculture, education, smart cities and infrastructure, women safety, smart mobility and transportation, environment, accessibility and disability and digital literacy.
Applicants will take part in online and offline learning opportunities on key technologies such as Machine Learning, Cloud and Android.
These will be offered through Google's Developer Student Club network and other Google Developer networks. Google will also offer mentorship sessions in product design, strategy and technology to the most promising products and prototypes.

IIT Kharagpur To Develop National AI Resource Platform

IIT Kharagpur has collaborated with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to develop a resource portal to promote learning and development in the artificial intelligence (AI).
Powered by Amazon SageMaker, a cloud machine learning platform, the National Artificial Intelligence Resource Portal (NAIRP) is aimed at making the search for AI learning resources simpler and more accessible to learners, practitioners and researchers in India.
The initiative has got funding from the Ministry of Human Resources Development, as part of the National Digital Library of India (NDLI) project which is being spearheaded by the premier institute.
With the launch of NAIRP, machine learning practitioners will be able to search quickly and get access to myriads of learning resources.

Aug 31, 2019

Wipro to Use Google Cloud for Digital Shift of Enterprises

Global software major Wipro widened the partnership with search engine behemoth Google to speed up digital transformation of enterprises through cloud adoption.
By collaborating with Google Cloud, Wipro will catalyse innovation for enterprises in industry verticals like consumer goods, banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), semiconductor and healthcare.
Google's cloud platform is a suite of computing services that runs on the infrastructure it uses internally for its end-user products Google Search and YouTube.
Wipro also aims to enable its customers to migrate faster, enhance their digital experiences and optimise business outcomes.
Wipro's expertise in digital transformation solutions will be an asset for enterprise customers as they look to move critical workloads to our cloud platform.

Chandrayaan-2 Completes 4th Orbit Change

The Indian space agency successfully completed the fourth lunar-bound orbit change for the Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft.
The spacecraft's manoeuvre began at 6.18 pm, using its onboard propulsion system for 1,155 seconds. The next lunar-bound orbit manoeuvre is scheduled on September 1, 2019.

Aug 28, 2019

Intel launches First Artificial Intelligence Chip Springhill

Intel Corp launched its latest processor, its first using artificial intelligence (AI), designed for large computing centres.
The chip, developed at its development facility in Haifa, Israel, is known as Nervana NNP-I or Springhill and is based on a 10 nanometre Ice Lake processor that will allow it to cope with high workloads using minimal amounts of energy.
Intel said its first AI product comes after it had invested more than $120 million in three AI startups in Israel.
The new hardware chip will help Intel Xeon processors in large companies as the need for complicated computations in the AI field increases.

Microsoft, Indian School Of Business Sign MoU To Set Up AI Digital Lab

The giant Microsoft and Indian School of Business (ISB) have signed a MoU to set up an AI (Artificial Intelligence) Digital Lab and also offer an executive programme titled "Leading Business Transformation in the Age of AI" at the B-School's campus.
The collaboration with Microsoft India will enable the institution to use AI to understand new phenomena that are relevant for business as well as policy and subsequently disseminate the knowledge to business leaders who will lead to transform their businesses through artificial intelligence to compete effectively.
The ISB expects to see about 1,000 CXOs undergoing the three-day non-technical programme in the next three to four years.
The AI digital Lab powered by PlatiFi technologies, a Microsoft partner, will provide an opportunity for ISB to enhance its research eminence through unique insights that will be derived from the research conducted by the lab which will also likely to have a significant impact on business and policy not just in India but all over the world.

Indian Institute Of Petroleum Sets Up Plant To Turn Plastic Waste Into Diesel

Union Science and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan inaugurated a plant at the Indian Institute of Petroleum which can turn plastic waste into diesel.
The scientists of IIP for discovering the technology after years of research, as it was a commendable step towards ensuring freedom from plastic.
The plant will also boost economic growth as it will produce 800 litres of diesel from one tonne of plastic waste which will be collected with the help of NGOs.

Spacecraft Carrying Russian Humanoid Robot Docks At ISS

An unmanned spacecraft carrying Russia's first humanoid robot to be sent into orbit successfully docked at the International Space Station, following a failed attempt.
The lifesize robot named Fedor -- short for Final Experimental Demonstration Object Research -- copies human movements, a key skill that allows it to help carry out tasks remotely.
It blasted off in a Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft from a Russian spaceport in southern Kazakhstan and is due to stay on the ISS until September 7, 2019 learning to assist astronauts in the space station.
An aborted docking had increased uncertainty over the future of Russia's space programme, which has suffered a number of recent setbacks.

Aug 27, 2019

'Meghdoot' App Launched

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) and Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, have launched a mobile application that will provide location, crop and livestock-specific weather-based agro advisories to farmers in local languages.
The application, called 'Meghdoot', has been developed following directions of the ministry of earth sciences. Kripan Ghosh, head of the agriculture meteorology division, Climate Research and Service (CRS) Centre, IMD, Pune the app was launched on the foundation day of the ministry of earth sciences.
The users can get district specific weather information, forecasts and crop advisories. The benefit of the app is instant access to district-specific agricultural information. For instance, crop advisories are currently circulated among farmers and put up on the IMD website in PDF format. This includes advisories for all districts. Through the app, farmers and other users can directly get information relevant to their respective districts.

Cartosat-3 Satellite To Be Launched By ISRO

India will launch its advanced cartography satellite, Cartosat-3, towards the end of October or early November, K Sivan, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said.
Sivan said Cartosat-3 will be launched using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket.
An earth observation or remote sensing satellite, Cartosat-3 is an advanced version with better spatial and spectral characteristics as compared to the Cartosat-2 series satellites.
Cartosat-3 will also have strategic applications with better pictures.

Atos, C-DAC Ink Pact For Collaboration On Quantum Computing, AI In India

The technology firm Atos signed a cooperation agreement with C-DAC (Center for the Development of Advanced Computing) for technological advancement in quantum computing, artificial intelligence and exa-scale computing.
The partnership includes the creation of a 'Quantum Computing Experience Center' at the C-DAC headquarters in Pune. Its objective is to bring together academic, scientific, research and industry users to quickly acquire skills and develop more experience in the field of quantum computing with the support of the Government of India.
The center will allow the advanced study of applications of quantum theory, creating new technologies and platforms for information security, connectivity and information technology

Centre For Avian Ecotoxicology Inaugurated In Coimbatore

A National Centre for Avian Ecotoxicology was inaugurated at Salim Ali Centre for Ornithlogy and Natural Sciences (SACON).
The centre, inaugurated by Union Environment and Forest Minister Prakash Javadekar, would explore the impact of chemical contaminants on individual species of birds and, where possible, link them to population and communities.
The centre would study the movement of environmental contaminants such as pesticides, heavy metals, poly-cyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, poly chlorinated biphenyls and drugs through food chain, and their harmful effects on birds.
Ecotoxicological studies assume significance at a time when ecological factors are unable to explain continued mortality of birds leading to population decline over a period of time.
Highlighting the near extinction of vultures, from 40 million to nearly one thousand in India, Javadekar said the Centre had banned diclofenac given to cattle, due to which the vultures were dying.
The Ministry through a project at an estimated cost of Rs 4 crore funded modernising the facility at SACON, a centre of excellence, to handle the challenges posed by the continued entry of newer chemicals into the environment.

Google Launches Its Smart Display 'Nest Hub' In India For Rs 9,999

Google launched Nest Hub, its smart speaker with screen, in India for Rs 9,999.
The device is available on Flipkart, Tata Cliq, Croma, and Reliance Digital in chalk and charcoal colour options.
Google Nest Hub features a 7-inch touchscreen panel and is compatible with Android, iOS, Mac, Windows, Macbook and supports Bluetooth 5.0 along with Wi-Fi.
The device comes with built-in Google Assistant, YouTube app and live albums from Google Photos.
Apart from YouTube, It offers all the major Google applications such as Calendar, Google News, Duo and Play Store.
One can also access some third-party apps such as Spotify, Voot, Gaana and JioSaavn.

Aug 26, 2019

Chandrayaan 2 Sends First Moon Picture

Chandrayaan 2, a day old in its orbit around the moon, started undergoing phased manoeuvres to shorten the elliptical orbit in preparation for the September 7, 2019 landing. ISRO compressed the current elliptical orbit to 4,412 km at the far end from the moon.
ISRO chief K. Sivan said the crucial process of taking up soft landing of the Vikram Lander will be taken up in the early hours of September 7, 2019.
Elaborating about the complexity involved, he said the speed of the spacecraft needs to be brought down to "zero".
The Mare Orientale basin and Apollo craters are identified in the picture.

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