The Halal Certification
Context: “On November 18, 2023, the Food Safety and Drug Administration in Uttar Pradesh banned the production, storage, sale, and distribution of food products with halal certification in the state, except for export items.”
What is Halal Food?
- “Halal” is an Arabic term meaning “permissible” under Islamic law.
- It is commonly used in the context of dietary laws, referring to food that complies with Islamic principles.
- Meat is considered halal when animals are slaughtered using a specific method (single cut to the jugular vein while invoking prayers).
- Non-meat products like water, wheat, and even non-food items like cosmetics can also be certified halal if they do not contain any prohibited (haram) substances.
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Who Issues Halal Certificates?
- In India, there is no official government body regulating halal certification.
- Private organizations like the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Halal Trust and Halal India Pvt. Ltd. issue halal certifications.
- These agencies are accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB), which is recognized internationally.
Organophosphate
Context: Recently, a series of deaths in Jammu and Kashmir has raised suspicions of organophosphate poisoning, a chemical commonly used in pesticides and insecticides.”
What is organophosphate?
- These chemicals are used to protect crops from pests and control insect-borne diseases.
- Other name: phosphate esters, or OPEs
- They are also used in nerve gases (like Sarin), plastics, and solvents.
- Exposure to organophosphates can be harmful to humans, animals, and even plants.
- They affect the nervous system, leading to fatal consequences.
- It contains sulphur and phosphorus atoms.
- Common organophosphates include:
- Parathion
- Malathion
- Methyl parathion
- Chlorpyrifos
- Diazinon
- Terbufos
DeepSeek
Context: DeepSeek is a Chinese-made artificial intelligence (AI) model that has the tech world buzzing as it has occupied the top spot for free Apple Store’s downloads.
About DeepSeek
- DeepSeek is the name of a free AI-powered chatbot, which looks, feels and works very much like ChatGPT.
- Founded by: DeepSeek was founded in December 2023 by Liang Wenfeng, a serial entrepreneur who also runs the hedge fund High-Flyer.
- Based At: The Start up is based in Hangzhou,Zhejiang province,
- Reasoning Model -R1 :These models produce responses incrementally, simulating a process similar to how humans reason through problems or ideas.
- Censorship: DeepSeek is trained to avoid politically sensitive questions
- Example: A BBC respondent has asked the app about Tiananmen Square on 4 June 1989. It generated no answer from DeepSeek
- Cost Effective: Deepseek is claimed to cost only $6m (£4.8m) to train, a fraction of the “over $100m” cost of ChatGPT-4
- Advanced AI Chips: DeepSeek has used around 2,000 Nvidia H800 chips to train its model before USA banned the exports of Advanced AI Chips to China
- It has used a combination of high-performance chips and more affordable alternatives to develop the platform.
- Open Source Technology: DeepSeek new releases DeepSeek-V3 and DeepSeek-R1, are made open-source.
- Performance Capabilities: The DeepSeek AI models are created for complex reasoning performance demonstrating strong performance across mathematics, programming, and natural language processing.
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Paris AI Action Summit
Context: The Paris AI Action Summit, scheduled for February 10-11, 2025, is a key global event on AI governance and regulation.
- Hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron, it will be co-chaired by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Key Agendas of the Summit
- AI Governance & Public Interest: Balancing innovation and regulation to ensure AI benefits society.
- Market Concentration: Addressing the dominance of Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta in foundational AI models.
- AI Safety & Transparency: Building on previous summits in Bletchley Park (2023) and Seoul (2024) to establish ethical AI frameworks.
- Global AI Competition: Discussing US-China AI advancements and Europe’s struggle to compete due to regulatory constraints.
- Regulatory Approaches: Evaluating diverse AI policies such as EU’s strict stance, UK’s light-touch approach, and the US-China models.
Significance of the summit: It comes as the US launches a $500 billion AI project, and China makes significant AI breakthroughs by launching Deepseek .
Georgia Certified Malaria-Free
Context: Georgia has been certified malaria-free by the World Health Organization (WHO) joining 45 countries and 1 territory underscoring the global progress towards malaria elimination.
- Turkey is now the only country in the WHO European Region not yet certified malaria-free
About Malaria
- Malaria is a vector borne disease transmitted by female Anopheles mosquitoes and caused by plasmodium protozoa.
- Prevalence: Primarily affecting tropical and subtropical regions in Africa, South America, and Asia.
- Transmission: The parasites proliferate first in liver cells before invading Red Blood Cells (RBCs).
- Parasite: Five parasite species cause malaria in humans, with Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax posing the most significant threat.
WHO Certification Process: WHO grants malaria-free certification when a country proves that indigenous transmission has been interrupted nationwide for at least three consecutive years.
Bomb Cyclone
Context: Meteorologists are comparing Storm Éowyn to a bomb Cyclone due to its intensification.
About Bomb Cyclone
- A bomb cyclone is a rapidly intensifying midlatitude storm characterized by a sharp drop in atmospheric pressure and extreme weather conditions such as blizzards, thunderstorms, and heavy precipitation.
- A bomb cyclone is also referred to as explosive cyclogenesis or bombogenesis.
- “Bombogenesis” varies by latitude.
- At 60 degrees latitude, it is a drop of at least 24 millibars (24 hectopascals) over 24 hours.
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- Jet Stream Influence: Fast upper-atmosphere winds (200+ mph) enhance storm intensity.
- Cold-Warm Air Interaction: Strong temperature contrast drives rapid intensification.
- Oceanic Heat & Moisture: Warmer waters provide additional energy for storm deepening
Features of Storm Éowyn making it a Bomb Cyclone
- Extreme Pressure Drop: Storm Éowyn saw a 50-millibar pressure drop in 24 hours, more than double the threshold for explosive cyclogenesis.
- Impact on the British Isles: The storm caused hurricane-force winds across Ireland and Scotland, prompting red warnings from meteorological agencies.
- Record Wind Speeds: A 114 mph gust was recorded at Mace Head, Ireland, rivaling past extreme storms like the Great Storm of 1987.
- Path & Development: Originating off the U.S. East Coast, it traveled 2,000 miles across the North Atlantic, fueled by a strong jet stream and record-warm ocean temperatures.
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January 29, 2025
