(Prelims) IAS General Studies – 2009 (Part 6)

76. Elephant Pass, which is frequently in the news, is mentioned in the context of the affairs of which one of the following ?

(a) Bangladesh
(b) India
(c) Nepal
(d) Sri Lanka

Ans : d

• Elephant Pass, Northern Province, Sri Lanka is located in the gateway of Jaffna Peninsula. It has an important military base and formerly was the island’s largest salt field. It has thus regularly been the site of battles during the civil war.

77. Consider the following countries :
(1) Brunei Darussalam
(2) East Timor
(3) Laos

which of the above is/are member/members of ASEAN ?
(a) 1 Only
(b) 2 and 3 Only
(c) 1 and 3 Only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Ans : c

• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a political and economic organisation of ten Southeast Asian countries, which was formed on 8 August 1967 by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand (they signed the ASEAN Declaration, more commonly known as the Bangkok Declaration.). Since then, membership has expanded to include Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar (Burma), and Vietnam. Its aims include accelerating economic growth, social progress, and sociocultural evolution among its members, protection of regional peace and stability, and opportunities for member countries to discuss differences peacefully.
• Headquarters: Jakarta (Indonesia)

78. Consider the following countries :
1. Switzerland
2. Malta
3. Bulgaria

which of the above are members of European Union ?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Ans : b

Total 28 memmbers. Latest is Croatia.

79. Consider the following countries:
(1) Australia
(2) Namibia
(3) Brazil
(4) Chile

Through which of the above does the Tropic of Capricorn Pass ?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2, 3 and 4
(c) 1, 2 and 3
(d) 1, 2 , 3 and 4

Ans : d

The Tropic of Capricorn ( 23° 26′ 22″ south of the Equator) goes in the these countries, starting at the prime meridian and going west:

1.  Brazil
2. Paraguay
3.  Argentina
4.  Chile
5.  French Polynesia – passing just south of Tubuai
6.  Tonga – passing just north of the Minerva Reefs
7. Coral Sea Islands Territory (Australia) – passing just south of Cato Reef
8.  Australia
9.  Madagascar
10. Mozambique
11.  South Africa
12.  Botswana
13.  Namibia

Tropic of Cancer( 23°26′14.3″ north of the Equator) latitude passes through these countries:

The equator passes through 13 countries:

1. Ecuador,
2. Colombia,
3. Brazil,
4. Sao Tome & Principe,
5. Gabon,
6. Republic of the Congo,
7. Democratic Republic of the Congo,
8. Uganda,
9. Kenya,
10. Somalia,
11. Maldives,
12. Indonesia
13. Kiribati

80. In the structure of planet Earth, below the mantle, the core is mainly made up of which one of the following ?
(a) Aluminium
(b) Chromium
(c) Iron
(d) Silicon

Ans : c

• The Earth’s inner core is the Earth’s innermost part and it is a primarily solid ball with a radius of about 1220 kilometers (about 70% of the Moon’s radius). It is believed to consist primarily of an iron–nickel alloy and to be approximately the same temperature as the surface of the Sun: approximately 5700 K
• The Earth’s outer core is a liquid layer about 2,300 km thick composed of iron and nickel that lies above Earth’s solid inner core and below its mantle

81. Which one of the following pairs is not correctly matched ?
City                                                         River
(a) Berlin                      :                           Rhine
(b) London                   :                          Thames
(c) New York                 :                          Hudson
(d) Vienna                    :                          Danube

Ans : a

• Berlin is located in northeastern Germany on the banks of River Spree
• 

• 

• Hudson river flows through New York City and North Jersey. The source of the Hudson River is Lake Tear of the Clouds in the Adirondack Park
•  
• Main cities on Rhine: Basel in Switzerland, Strasbourg in France, Bonn, Duisburg, Mainz, Neuss in Germany, Rotterdam in Netherland, Regensburg in Bavaria (Germany)
• Main Cities on Dunabe:

1. Vienna – capital of Austria,
2. Straubing in Bavaria (Germany)
3. Linz, capital of Upper Austria
4. Bratislava – capital of Slovakia,
5. Budapest – capital of Hungary.
6. Belgrade – capital of Serbia
7. Galați – largest port on Danube (Romania)
8. Sulina – last city through which it flows (Romania)

82. Match List I with List II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists :
List I                                                        List II
( Famous Temple )                                         ( State )
(A) Vidyashankara                                   (1) Andhra Pradesh
(B) Rajarani Temple                                 (2) Karnataka
(C) Kandariya Mahadeo Temple              (3) Madhya Pradesh
(D) Bhimesvara Temple                            (4) Orissa

Code :
A              B                C               D
(a)      2               4                 3               1
(b)      2               3                 4               1
(c)      1               4                 3               2
(d)      1               3                 4               2

Ans : a

• The Vidyashankara temple in Sringeri, was built in commemoration of the pontiff Vidyashankara, around 1357-58 C.E.. It was built by Vidyaranya, patron-saint of Harihara and Bukka, the brothers who founded the Vijayanagara empire.Inscriptions in the temple record contributions made by several Vijayanagara emperors but the temple was probably built on an earlier Hoysala site as it combines Hoysala and Vijayanagara architectural features. The golden image of Sarada was also installed then at the sarada temple.The basement is elaborately sculpted with animals, puranic stories, Siva, Vishnu, Dasavatara, Kali, Shanmukha and so on.
• The Kaṇḍariya Mahadeva Temple is the largest and most ornate Hindu temple in the medieval temple group found at Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh
• Draksharama is a town in East Godavari District, Andhra Pradesh. The Bhimeswara Swamy temple in this town is one of the Five Powerful temples of Lord Siva, known as Pancharama Kshetram The Siva deity is known as Bhimesvara Swamy.
• Rajarani Temple is an 11th-century Hindu temple located in Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Odisha, India.

83. Consider the following statements :
(1) In the world, the tropical deserts occur along the western margins of countries within the trade wind belt.
(2) In India, the East Himalayan region gets high rainfall from north-east winds.

which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Ans : a

• North-East monsoon is the predominant feature in Eastern Himalayan region which causes rainfall.

84. Match List I with List II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists :
List I                                                List II
( Geographic Feature )                            ( Country )
(A) Great Victoria Desert                          (1) Australia
(B) Grand Canyon                                    (2) Canada
(C) Lake Winnipeg                                   (3) New Zealand
(D) Southern Alps                                     (4) USA

Code :
A            B          C           D
(a)         1             2           4           3
(b)         1             4           2           3
(c)         3             2           4           1
(d)         3             4           2           1

Ans : b

85. Consider  the following statements :
(1) Between Census 1951 and Census 2001 the density of the population of India has increased more than three times.
(2) Between Census 1951 and Census 2001 the annual growth rate (exponential) of the population of india has doubled

which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Ans :  a

86. Which one of the following rivers dose not originate in India ?
(a) Beas
(b) Chenab
(c) Ravi
(d) Sutlej

Ans : d

Indus River

• The Indus River is one of the longest rivers in Asia. It flows through Pakistan, the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir, and western Tibet.
• Length: 3,200 km
• Basin area: 1,165,000 km²
• Sources: Sênggê Zangbo, Tibetan Plateau, Gar River
• Mouths: Arabian Sea, Nal Sarovar Bird Sanctuary
• Countries: India, China, Pakistan
• Cities: Karachi, Peshawar, Gilgit, Rawalpindi, Attock, Thatta, Jamshoro, Mithankot

87. Cape Canaveral, the site from which space shuttles are launched is located on the coast of
(a) Florida
(b) Virginia
(c) North Carolina
(d) South Carolina

Ans : a

• Cape Canaveral was chosen for rocket launches to take advantage of the Earth’s rotation. The linear velocity of the Earth’s surface is greatest towards the equator; the relatively southerly location of the cape allows rockets to take advantage of this by launching eastward, in the same direction as the Earth’s rotation. It is also highly desirable to have the downrange area sparsely populated, in case of accidents; an ocean is ideal for this.The east coast of Florida has the logistical advantages over potential competing sites.

88. At which one of the following places two important rivers of india originate; while one of them flows towards north and merges with another imporant river flowing towards bay of Bengal, the one flows towards Arabian Sea ?
(a) Amarkantak
(b) Badrinath
(c) Mahabaleshwar
(d) Nasik

Ans : a

• Amarkantak region is a unique natural heritage area and is the meeting point of the Vindhyas and the Satpuras, with the Maikal Hills being the fulcrum.
• Narmada (towards Arabian sea), the Son River (flows north and meets ganges which flows in the Bay of Bengal), Johila River and the Amadoh, which is a major early tributary of the Godavari, all rise from the Amarkantak plateau.

89. Who of the following scientists proved that the stars with mass less then 1.44 times the mass of the Sun, end up as White Dwarfs when they die?
(a) Edwin Hubble
(b) S. Chandrasekhar
(c) Stephen Hawking
(d) Steven Weinberg

Ans : b

• The Chandrasekhar limit is the maximum mass of a stable white dwarf star. The limit was named after Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, the Indian-American astrophysicist who independently discovered and improved upon the accuracy of the calculation in 1930, at the age of 19.
• The Chandrasekhar Limit is now accepted to be approximately 1.44 times the mass of the sun; any white dwarf with less than this mass will stay a white dwarf forever, while a star that exceeds this mass is destined to end its life in that most violent of explosions: a supernova.
• A white dwarf or degenerate dwarf, is a stellar remnant composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. They are very dense; a white dwarf’s mass is comparable to that of the Sun, and its volume is comparable to that of the Earth. Its faint luminosity comes from the emission of stored thermal energy. The nearest known white dwarf is Sirius B, 8.6 light years away, the smaller component of the Sirius binary star.

90. Which one of the following brings out the publication called “Energy Statistics” from time to time ?
(a) Central Power Research Institute
(b) Planning Commission
(c) Power Finance Corporation Ltd.
(d) Central Statistical Organization

Ans : d

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