Addapedia Odisha | Daily Current Affairs | 11 December 2023 | Download PDF

Google launched Project Gemini, an AI model trained to behave in human-like ways that’s likely to intensify the debate about the technology’s potential promise and perils.

Key points

• The rollout will unfold in phases, with less sophisticated versions of Gemini called ‘Nano’ and ‘Pro’ being immediately incorporated into Google’s AI-powered chatbot Bard and its Pixel 8 Pro smartphone.
• Gemini will be able to quickly summarise recordings made on the device and provide automatic replies on messaging services, starting with WhatsApp
• Based on a demonstration of Gemini for a group of reporters, Google’s ‘Bard Advanced’ might be capable of unprecedented AI multitasking by simultaneously recognising and understanding presentations involving text, photos and video.

• Lionel Messi has been named Time magazine’s ‘Athlete of the Year’ for 2023 
• He got an eighth Ballon d’Or award recently. 

• The Union government released ₹493.60 crore to Andhra Pradesh and ₹450 crore to Tamil Nadu in the wake of the damage inflicted by severe cyclonic storm Michaung
•  Centre also approved another tranche of ₹561.29 crore for Chennai for flood mitigation efforts for ‘Integrated Urban Flood Management activities for Chennai Basin Project’ under the National Disaster Mitigation Fund (NDMF)

• Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) leader Lalduhoma was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Mizoram
• Mr. Lalduhoma announced 12 programmes of his new government to be implemented in the next 100 days.
• Mr. Lalduhoma had served as the security in-charge of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi
• He is a former IPS

• The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a pair of gene therapies for sickle cell disease, including the first treatment based on the breakthrough CRISPR gene editing technology.
• The agency approved Lyfgenia from bluebird bio, and a separate treatment called Casgevy by partners Vertex Pharmaceuticals and CRISPR Therapeutics for the illness.
• Both the therapies were approved for people aged 12 years and older.

About Sickle cell disease 

• It is a painful, inherited blood disorder that can be debilitating and lead to premature death. 
• It affects an estimated 1,00,000 people in the U.S., most of whom are Black.
• In sickle cell disease, the body makes flawed, sickle-shaped hemoglobin, impairing the ability of red blood cells to properly carry oxygen to the body’s tissues.
• The sickle cells tend to stick together and can block small blood vessels, causing intense pain. It also can lead to strokes and organ failure.
• The only longer-term treatment for sickle cell disease is a bone marrow transplant.

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) enhanced the UPI payment limits for healthcare and education to ₹5 lakh from ₹1 lakh, and the limit on recurring e-payment mandates for credit card and insurance premia payments as well as mutual fund investments to ₹1 lakh from the current limit of ₹15,000.
• It has also decided to lay down a regulatory framework for web-aggregation of loan products. 
• This is expected to result in enhanced customer centricity and transparency in digital lending.

• Human Rights Day (HRD) is celebrated annually around the world on 10 December every year.
• The date was chosen to honor the United Nations General Assembly’s adoption and proclamation, on 10 December 1948, of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
• The regulated theme to celebrate Human Rights Day 2023 is ‘Freedom, Equality and Justice for All.’

• Odisha government to implement ‘Mukta Soft’ application in as many as 23 Urban Local Bodies (ULB) in the state
• The 23 ULBs are Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Berhampur, Rourkela and Sambalpur Municipal Corporations, Puri, Baripada, Kotpad, Jaipur, Keonjhar, Kesinga, Jharsuguda, Jajpur, Paradip, Chhatarpur, Hinjilikatu, Athagarh, Padmapur, Balangir, Phulbani, Boudhgarh, Bhadrak and Balasore.

Key points

• Mukta Soft application is being implemented to make the implementation of Mukhyamantri Karma Tatpar Abhijana (MUKTA) more transparent and punctual.
• The Odisha government is implementing the Mukta Yojana to provide work to the hands of urban people. 
• Priority is being given to women self-help groups and slum development associations

Conservationists have urged the Odisha government to declare Mahendragiri in Gajapati district as a biosphere reserve following the sighting of a Royal Bengal Tiger in the Odisha-Andhra Pradesh border, recently.

About Mahendragiri

• It is a mountain in Rayagada block of the district of Gajapati, Odisha, India.
•  It is situated amongst the Eastern Ghats at an elevation of 1,501 metres (4,925 ft).
• This is the second highest mountain peak of Odisha after Deomali in Koraput district. 
• Mahendragiri hill and its surrounding areas are recognized as a biodiversity hot spot due to numerous medicinal plants and other species that are found here. 
• It is home to over 600 flowering plants. 

• The state government has sanctioned `18 crore for the development of Daringbadi tourist site in Kandhamal district
• Daringbadi is considered the Kashmir of Odisha
• Every year the footfall of tourists is increasing at Daringbadi.

• Deomali Peak, with an elevation of about 1,672 m, is the highest peak in the state of Odisha. 
• It is situated near Doodhari village, Pottangi Panchayat division which is about 70  km from Koraput via Semiliguda. 
• It is surrounded by deep green forest, the peak is rich in flora and fauna. 
• This hill range is rich in mineral resources such as bauxite, limestone and gemstones. 
• Deomali is dotted with brooks and deep valleys, and inhabited by tribes such Kandhas, Parajas, Bhumia, Malis and Bhotias.

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