Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters has been crowned the Miss Universe 2017. She hails from which country?
Correct Answer: D [South Africa]
Answer Explanation:
Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters, who represented South Africa, has been crowned
the Miss Universe 2017 at The AXIS at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas,
Nevada, United States. The runner-up was Miss Colombia Laura Gonzalez,
while the second runner-up was Miss Jamaica Davina Bennett. Nel-Peters
is the second titleholder from South Africa, and the first since
Margaret Gardiner won Miss Universe 1978. Contestants from 92 countries
and territories participated in the decades-old competition. This year’s
edition had the most contestants ever, including the first ever
representatives of Cambodia, Laos and Nepal.
Sathiyan Gnanasekaran has clinched men’s singles gold at the the 2017 ITTF Challenge Spanish Open. He hails from which state?
Correct Answer: A [Tamil Nadu]
Answer Explanation:
Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, an Indian table tennis player from Tamil Nadu,
has clinched the men’s singles gold medal at the 2017 ITTF Challenge
Spanish Open in Almeria, Spain. Sathiyan beat Japan’s Kazuhiro Yoshimura
11-7 3-11 11-6 6-11 13-11 11-7 in the men singles final on November 26,
2017. He is currently being supported by the Go Sports Foundation
through the Rahul Dravid Athlete Mentorship Programme.
Which union minister has launched an intensive program to train Elected Women Representatives (EWRs) of Panchayati Raj Institutions?
Correct Answer: B [Maneka Gandhi]
Answer Explanation:
Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, the Minister of Women and Child Development,
has launched an intensive training program for Elected Women
Representatives (EWRs) of Panchayati Raj Institutions and Master
Trainers in New Delhi on November 27, 2017. This capacity building
program is being organized by National Institute of Public Cooperation
and Child Development (NIPCCD) of the WCD Ministry which will ultimately
train approximately twenty thousand EWRs covering nearly 50 EWRs from
each district by March, 2018. The training program will include simple
engineering skills will give EWRs an insight into women’s issues as well
as focus on education and financial matters. The Capacity building of
EWRs is critical to empower women to participate effectively in the
governance processes. This will help them assume the leadership roles
expected of them and guide their villages towards a more prosperous
future.
Which bank has recently launched ripple-powered instant payment service for retail and corporate customers?
Correct Answer: C [Axis Bank]
Answer Explanation:
Private sector lender Axis Bank has recently launched instant
international payment services using Ripple’s enterprise blockchain
technology solution for retail and corporate customers. The bank has
launched a service for its retail customers in India to receive payments
from RAKBANK in UAE and for its corporate customers in India to receive
payments from Standard Chartered Bank in Singapore. Ripple makes
international remittances faster and transparent for customers while
ensuring security and improving efficiencies. The transactions reach
their destination account in minutes, with the certainty of settlement,
and with end-to-end visibility over the journey of the payment.
Gopi Thonakal has become the first Indian man to win Asian Marathon Championship. He hails from which state?
Correct Answer: D [Kerala ]
Answer Explanation:
Gopi Thonakal from Kerala has become the first Indian man to win
Asian Marathon Championship. He achieved the feat in the 16th edition of
the prestigious event, at Dongguan in China on November 26, 2017. Gopi
clocked 2 hours 15 minutes and 48 seconds to clinch gold. He, thus,
became the first Indian man to win the title after the formation of
separate Asian Marathon championships. Andrey Petrov of Uzbekistan
bagged silver while Byambalev Tseveenravdan of Mongolia won bronze.
Earlier, Asha Agarwal won the women’s title when it was part of the
biennial Asian Track and Field Championships.
Which of the following will be India’s first solar mission to take off in 2019?
Correct Answer: B [Aditya-L1 mission]
Answer Explanation:
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will launch the India’s
first mission to the Sun “Aditya-L1 mission” from Sriharikota in Andhra
Pradesh on the PSLV- XL launch vehicle in 2019. The Aditya-1 mission
was conceived as a 400kg class satellite carrying one payload, the
Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC) and was planned to launch in
800 km low earth orbit. It will be launched into the halo orbit around
the Lagrangian point 1 (L1) of the Sun-Earth system. This orbit has the
advantage of allowing continuous monitoring of the sun. The main aim of
the solar mission is to improve the understanding of dynamical processes
of the sun and help resolve some outstanding questions in solar
physics.
The Adichunchanagiri Wildlife Sanctuary (AWLS) is located in which state/UT?
Correct Answer: A [Karnataka ]
Answer Explanation:
The Adichunchanagiri Wildlife Sanctuary (AWLS) is located in
Nagamangala Taluk of Mandya district of Karnataka and is spread over
0.88 square kilometres. This was created mainly for the conservation of
peacocks. It also houses nearly 250 species of birds.
The scientists of which country have developed the world’s first artificial intelligence politician “SAM”?
Correct Answer: A [New Zealand]
Answer Explanation:
The scientists from New Zealand have developed the world’s first
artificial intelligence politician “SAM” that can answer a person’s
queries regarding local issues such as policies around housing,
education and immigration. It was created by Nick Gerritsen, an
entrepreneur in New Zealand. It constantly learns to respond to people
through Facebook Messenger as well as a survey on its homepage. It may
help to bridge the growing political and cultural divide in many
countries.
Who has won the women’s singles title at the Hong Kong Super Series badminton tournament 2017?
Correct Answer: B [Tai Tzu Ying]
Answer Explanation:
World no. 1 Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei has won the women’s
singles title at the Hong Kong Super Series badminton tournament by
defeating P V Sindhu in the final at Kowloon on November 26, 2017. This
was Tai’s 8th win against Sindhu in 11 meetings and fourth on the trot.
This is also Sindhu’s second loss in the four finals that she reached
this season. She had lost to Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara at the World
Championship final, while clinched two titles at India and Korea this
year.
Who is the director general of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)?
Correct Answer: C [Soumya Swaminathan]
Answer Explanation:
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is the apex body in
India for the formulation, coordination and promotion of biomedical
research. It funded by the Government of India through the Department of
Health Research, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Dr. Soumya
Swaminathan, who is the Director General (DG) of ICMR, is a globally
recognised researcher on tuberculosis and HIV. Currently, Dr.
Swaminathan is in news because she will assume the charge of Deputy
Director General of Programmes (DDP) at the World Health Organisation
(WHO) in Geneva in December 2017. It is the second-highest position in
the WHO. Dr. Swaminathan is the daughter of agriculture scientist M S
Swaminathan who is hailed as the father of the ‘Green Revolution’ in
India.
