Prelims Focus 27th June 2024

International Hydrographic Organisation (IHO) 

In News: The International Hydrographic Organisation (IHO) celebrated ‘World Hydrography Day’ to raise awareness about hydrography.

• • It (established in 1921) is an intergovernmental business enterprise that plays a crucial position in making sure the safety of navigation and the protection of the marine environment.
  • Its number one goal is to make certain that all the world’s seas, oceans, and navigable waters are correctly surveyed and charted.

• Functions and Activities

• • Survey Best Practices: The IHO troubles hints and first-class practices for hydrographic surveys, making sure top notch information series.
    • It coordinates the activities of countrywide hydrographic offices global, and supply requirements for hydrographic statistics and product specifications;
  • Nautical Charts: It units requirements for nautical charts, critical for secure navigation.
  • Hydrographic Information: The IHO maximises the use of hydrographic information, reaping rewards mariners, researchers, and environmentalists.
    • It develops tips for statistics assurance, which include cybersecurity and facts first-class evaluation.
    • It promotes ocean sustainability through accomplishing out to non-navigation users of hydrographic statistics.
  • Capacity Building: The enterprise helps ability constructing in member states, fostering know-how in hydrography.
    • It motivates collaboration amongst global companies, academia, and enterprise for standardised maritime statistics products.

Front Running

In News: An allegation against a mutual fund indulging in front running, indicating that this illegal practice remains a concern in the financial markets.

• • It is the illegal practice of using private statistics to alternate in securities (buy or sell) or derivatives (options or futures) before a giant order is located. This gives the front-runner an unfair gain as they are able to profit from the expected charge motion as a result of the massive order.
  • In 2022, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) amended the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Mutual Funds) Regulations, 1996 to encompass provisions especially aimed toward curtailing front strolling.

• Why is Front Running Illegal?

• • It undermines investor self belief in the fairness and integrity of financial markets.
  • It creates an uneven playing field, favoring people with access to privileged records over ordinary traders.

Meta AI

In News: This chatbot is called Meta AI and runs on Llama 3, and now all users in India can use it in applications such as WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, and Facebook. This roll out was initially a few countries only and has greatly increased after the general elections.

• Meta later launched its Llama 3-powered AI chatbot called Meta AI for all its users in India on apps such as WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, and Facebook. 
• The baseline prioritization is comparable to the parameters of the current ChatGPT, Google new Gemini, and Anthropic’s Claude, which were previously available only to certain user groups. 
• Some of the things Meta AI can help with are summarising, planning workout, suggesting recipes, writing an email and can also connect to Instagram Reels and Facebook feeds. 
• In tests, Meta AI had culture bias and Meta is continuously working to make improvements to it. 
• As for the limitations, the AI chatbot does not save the previous conversations, thus respecting the users’ privacy. 
• While it is not possible to totally deactivate the activity, there is an option of opting out during search. 
• Being used by over 500 million people in the country, WhatsApp in Meta’s family targets to provide its group chat features an improved capability of scheduling and making decisions. 
• The Llama 3 model has been built with fewer computational resources and it outperforms in natural language processing, and retains the real-time capability as well as the preservation of personal information.

3D Hydrogel

In News: New research at IISc Bengaluru has developed a 3D hydrogel culture system mimicking the mammalian lung environment. This advancement by the Department of Bioengineering will enhance TB study, helping researchers better understand infections and evaluate the efficacy of medicines.

• New work published in the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru enhances TB research with a new 3D hydrogel culture model that mimics the lungs of mammals. 
• Flat culture plates are not as effective as they do not mimic the lung tissue environment to the best of their abilities thereby leading to the accumulation of less precise data. 
• IISc’s 3D hydrogel method utilises collagen since it forms the foundation of lung cells’ extracellular matrix. 
• Human macrophages are able to have a direct interaction with the TB bacteria using the developed 3D hydrogel system like being in actual lung conditions. 
• This method can maintain mammalian cells for about three weeks, theoretically far longer than the average 4-7 day cultures that are likely to be disrupted by Mtb’s slow replication rates. 
• Highlights with the use of the system involved the efficiency of pyrazinamide, which is a widely used TB drug The results through the RNA analysis were also in close resemblance with human specimens. 
• IISc’s 3D hydrogel culture method is one of the significant leaps in TB research which may help in offering better diagnosis and hence better treatment plans and has yielded a patent application in India.

Julian Assange

In News: Julian Assange, WikiLeaks founder, was released from a UK prison on June 24 after a London High Court bail order. His release, announced on Twitter, is significant due to prolonged legal battles and international tensions, particularly with the US.

• Julian Assange, 49, a WikiLeaks founder and an Australian citizen that hacks the media, left a UK prison on June 24 upon the London High Court bailing order announced on twitter in caps as JULIAN ASSANGE IS FREE. 
• His release is important because his cases dragged on in courts for a long time and relations with other countries, especially with the United States.  
• Deal with the US: It is also claimed that Assange had come to a plea bargain agreement with the U. S Department of justice where he pleaded guilty to one count of acquiring and disclosing classified information. In exchange for this, Lenient moves to ensure that he does not receive another five years in prison which has already been served. 
• Background: Assange, 52 is the face of WikiLeaks that was founded in 2006; the organization released secret US and otherGlobal companies’ papers. It rose to popularity when it leaked classified documents of U. S military Operations in Af-Pak and Iraq, and releasing in 2010 US diplomatic cables putting pressure on the international relations.
• US Government’s Response: I could not find any previous charges against Assange until in 2019, when he was charged with 18 counts of violating the Espionage Act and the Computer Fraud & Abuse Act for putting the lives of U. S. officials in danger, and working with Manning, who leaked information that was classified. 
• Legal Challenges: His legal problems include allegations of rape in Sweden, which he said is a plot to deport him to the U. S. He later sought refuge in Ecuador Embassy in London from 2012 to 2019 after the Ecuador government withdraws his asylee status and was arrested when the U. S offered to extradite him. 
• Implications: Assange will be tried in Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands, possibly in an attempt to not send Assange to the U. S. Soil. His trial and plea deal could possibly put to close legal proceedings started decades ago, post/pre-contemporary discourses on human rights, freedom of the press, and national security.

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