Current Affairs 2014

Maryam Mirzakhani became the first woman to bag Fields Medal

Who: Maryam Mirzakhani

Where: Seoul, South Korea

What: became the first woman to win coveted Fields Medal

When: 13 August 2014

Current Affairs [July 2014]

• NASA celebrates 45 years of moon landing
  On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to set foot on the moon.
  Forty-five years later, NASA will celebrate Monday the giant leap by honouring Armstrong, who died in 2012, with a renaming ceremony of the historic "operations and checkout building" at Cape Canaveral in Florida, the launch site.

• Japan ends 60-year military's ban on fighting abroad
  Japan took a historic step on July 01 2014 by ending a ban that has kept the military from fighting abroad since 1945. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe but a move that has riled China and worries many Japanese voters.
  The change, the most dramatic shift in policy since Japan set up its post-war armed forces 60 years ago, will widen Japan's military options by ending the ban on exercising "collective self-defence," or aiding a friendly country under attack.

• US names Antarctica mountain Mt.Sinha after an Indian-American scientist
  To Honour an Indian-American scientist Akhouri Sinha, The United States named a mountain in Antarctica as Mt. Sinha. The mountain was named as the recognition of Sinha's work done as an explorer in 1971-72.
  Sinha's pioneering biological research expedition has provided critical data about the animal populations in Antarctica.

Current Affairs [June 2014]

• Earth's largest water reservoir located inside Earth's mantle
  Earth's largest water reservoir might be located deep inside the Earth's mantle. This was revealed by a study published in the journal Science on 13 June 2014.
  The study was conducted by the Northwestern geophysicist Steve Jacobsen and University of New Mexico seismologist Brandon Schmandt.

• Cabinet Clears China MoU For Industrial Parks
  The Indian government has given in principle approval to an MoU to allow China to set up industrial parks the country. The move comes ahead of the five-day visit of Vice-President Hamid Ansari to China from Thursday.
  China, which has established five industrial parks in ASEAN countries like Cambodia, Indonesia and Vietnam, is keen to set up similar industrial parks in India. The states being examined for the purpose include Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana.

• NASA built World's most powerful telescope to track alien's life
  National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) plan to build Advanced Technology Large Aperture Space Telescope (ATLAST) in Portsmouth. It will be the World's most powerful and largest telescope once it is built.

Current Affairs [May 2014]

• Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Plaza coming up in Texas
  A seven-foot tall bronze statue of India's freedom movement leader will be the centrepiece of the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial of North Texas with walls inscribed with some of his quotes.
  After four years of planning and fundraising, ground was broken at Thomas Jefferson Park in Irving for the memorial last Saturday, according to dallasnews.com.

• Royal Navy Submarine Service appointed first female submariners
  Royal Navy Submarine Service of United Kingdom appointed female submariners for the first.
  Pioneering lieutenants Maxine Stiles, Alex Olsson and Penny Thackray on 5 May 2014 have become the first women to serve in the Royal Navy Submarine Service. This step was taken for the first time in the 110-year history of the Submarine Service.

Current Affairs [April 2014]

• Government to Issue E-Visa to tourists from 180 Countries
  The government will soon operationalise electronic travel authorization or e-Visa facility to inbound tourists from 180 countries.
  According to Tourism Secreatry Parvez Dewan, the government will operationalise the electronic travel authorization within a year.
  Dewan was speaking at the inauguration of the first edition of Incredible India Travel Bazaar (IITB), organised by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) in partnership of with the tourism ministry.

Current Affairs [March 2014]

• One Million Kids Suffer From TB Annually: Study
  As the world observes World TB Day Monday, a shocking research reveals that despite improved medication and government as well as aid agencies' efforts, the number of children suffering from tuberculosis (TB) annually has doubled since 2011.
  Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) and Harvard Medical School (HMS) in Boston have estimated that around one million children suffer from TB annually- twice the number previously thought to have tuberculosis and three times the number that are diagnosed every year, the researchers claimed.
• India, Singapore win 2014 UN Water for Life award
  India and Singapore have won the 2014 edition of the UN-Water's Water for Life Best Practices Award for their sustainable practices of water resources. This was announced Friday during an official UN ceremony here to mark World Water Day 2014 that falls March 22.
• India seeks level playing field for all in Global Internet
  Close on the heels of the US decision to relinquish its oversight of Internet Corporation for Assignment of Names and Numbers (ICANN), a global multi-stakeholder meeting – NETmundial – on the future of internet governance will be held in Sao Paulo, Brazil, April 23-24. Nearly 800 delegates representing government, private sector, civil society, academia and technical communities, including several from India, are expected to attend this meeting.