Science & Technology

Analysis

Environment / Pollution

1. Explain the phenomenon of ozone depletion, it causes & effects. What efforts are needed to reduce it? (30 Marks)
2. What to do you understand by the term “Biodiversity”. Examine the causes & consequences of degradation of biodiversity. (30 Marks)
3. Justify the necessary logic “Biological Cleanup methods can be cheaper than the conventional physical & chemical pollution treatments”. (30 Marks)
4. Describe the sources of ionizing & non ionizing radiations & their effects on the biotic components of the atmosphere (30 Marks)
5.  Why do environmentalists regard asbestos & polythene as pollutants?
6.  Global Warming. Discuss. (30 Marks).
7.  What do you understand by the depletion of ozone layer & why is it considered harmful? Name ozone depleting substances & processes. What international ramifications took place to protect the ozone layer & what was the target agreed upon? (30 Marks).
8. Plastic Hazards. Discuss (30 Marks).
9. Discuss about environment, its components & its awareness.
10. What does the Montreal Protocol deal with? Discuss its role in protecting earth’s environment.
11. What are greenhouse gases? What Impact do they have on the Earth’s climate & with what consequences? Elaborate.

• Space/Defense Technology

1. Discuss the missile technology initiatives taken by India (15 Marks)
2. In which year and by which country was International Space Station launched? How many countries are participating in this program? What are the unique studies being made in the station which could not be made some  accurately on earth?
3. What is a cryogenic engine? Discuss its significance in India’s Space Program. (30 Marks).
4.  What is geostationary orbit? What would happen if it becomes too crowded?

• Emerging Scientific Technology

1. Explain how Nanoscience and Nanotechnology have revolutionized modern technology (30 Marks)
2. What is Superconductivity? Give its uses & applications.
3. Describe the importance of “Laser” in war & peace.

•  Computer Technology

1. What do you understand by optical computing? Why is optical computing envisaged to have muchbetter performance than that of electronic computing? (15 Marks)
2. What is digital convergence? Examine its implications for modern society. (30 Marks)
3.  Discuss in details Internet Telephony alternative. (30 marks).
4.  What is fibre optics? What advantage does it offer in telecommunications? Elaborate.
5.  Give an account of super computer development in India (20 Marks – UPSC – 1998)
6.  What is a super computer? Give an account of supercomputer development in India. (40 Marks  UPSC 1993)

• Biology

1.  Explain the objectives & the current achievements of Human Genome Project (15 Marks)
2. What is therapeutic cloning? Describe briefly the method & its potential applications.
3. What is biotechnology? Discuss the important applications of biotechnology (15 Marks).
4. Discuss the elements of ‘frozen semen technology’. What are ‘embryo transfer’, ‘transgenic animals’, ‘DNA recombinant technique’? (15 Marks)
5.  What is human cloning? Is it dangerous or beneficial? Discuss. (15 Marks).
6. What are stem cells? Why they have been in news recently (30 Marks)
7. Why is HIV considered so dangerous? Why has the spread of the virus proved so difficult tocontain, especially in the poorer countries of the world? (30 Marks).

• Energy

1. What are alternative fuels available for the transport sector? Discuss their characteristics,advantages & disadvantages of their utilization. (15 Marks)
2. Write a note on “Bio-Refinery versus Fossil Fuels”. (15 Marks)
3. Why is hydrogen being acclaimed as the fuel of the future. (15 Marks)
4. Discuss in detail alternative energy sources. (30 Marks)

• Agricultural Technology

1.  What is vermicomposting? Discuss its importance in the Indian context.
2.  How are transgenic Plants different from hybrid plants & what is their relevance in modern agriculture. Elaborate. (15 Marks).

•  Water Technology

1.  What is water harvesting? Describe the relevance in Indian Context.
2.  What are normal osmosis & reverse osmosis? Why has reverse osmosis become popular in India today?

•  Miscellaneous

1. What is interactive television? What special advantages are derived by using VOD services? What are the components of a typical VOD system? Which feature film was generated first entirely on computers & in which year?
2. What does the solar system consist of? Discuss the motion of the entire solar system as a whole & also the system of most of the bodies forming the solar system.
3. What are the fundamental constants & their use in the measurement system?

• Human Genome Project

1. The Human Genome Project (HGP) was an international scientific research project with a primary goal to determine the sequence of chemical base pairs which make up DNA and to identify the approximately 25,000 genes of the human genome from both a physical and functional standpoint. The project was headed initially by Dr. James D Watson & later by Dr. Francis Collins.
2. A working draft of the genome was released in 2000 and a complete one in 2003, with further analysis still being published. Most of the sequencing was performed in universities and research centers from the United States, Canada and Great Britain.
3. The mapping of human genes is an important step in the development of medicines and other aspects of health care.
4. While the objective of the Human Genome Project is to understand the genetic makeup of the human species, the project also has focused on several other nonhuman organisms such as E. coli, the fruit fly, and the laboratory mouse. It remains one of the largest single investigational projects in modern science
5. The Human Genome Diversity Project (HGDP) is a spinoff research aimed at mapping the DNA that varies between human ethnic groups. HGDP could unlock secrets behind and create new strategies for managing the vulnerability of ethnic groups to certain diseases. It could also show how human populations have adapted to these vulnerabilities.