Current Affairs of May 2013-Part 1 of 5

1.Name the asteroid, big enough to wipe out whole human civilization that passed relatively close to Earth on 31 May 2013.
a) Asteroid 1998 QE2
b) Asteroid 2013 QE2
c) Asteroid 1998 EQ2
d) Asteroid 2013 EQ2
Answer: (a) Asteroid 1998 QE2

2. Which Islands in India were declared as the world biosphere reserve by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in the Month of May 2013?
a) Lakshadweep Islands
b) Andaman Islands
c) Daman and Diu
d) Nicobar Islands
Answer: (d) Nicobar Islands

3. Name the centuries-old frozen plants that were revived by the researchers from Teardrop Glacier.
a) Arctic plants
b) Canadian Arctic plants
c) Bryophytes
d) Teardrop plants
Answer: (c) Bryophytes

4. V. Narayanasamy inaugurated _________, established at Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) complex at Byalalu. Fill in the blank with an appropriate option.
a) Astronautical Society of India (ASI) Centre
b) ISRO Navigation Centre (INC)
c) Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS)
d) Navigation Satellite System
Answer: (b) ISRO Navigation Centre (INC)

5. Which report at D11 Conference held from 28 May 2013 to 30 May 2013, revealed that the Internet users in India were the second largest online sharers in the world? 
a) Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB) Report
b) Wall Street Journal’s Report
c) D11 Report
d) Meeker Report 2013
Answer: (d) Meeker Report 2013

6.Which equities and equity derivatives trading block declared on 31 May 2013 that it received approval from SEBI for operating separate debt as well as SME trading platforms?
a) National Stock Exchange (NSE)
b) Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE)
c) MCX Stock Exchange (MCX-SX)
d) Unified Debt Exchange 
Answer: (c) MCX Stock Exchange (MCX-SX)

7. The National Green Tribunal on 31 May 2013 gave approval to Sterlite Industries Ltd for operating which plant in Tuticorin district of Tamil Nadu?
a) Copper Plant
b) Electricity Plant
c) Uranium Plant
d) Nuclear Plant 
Answer: (a) Copper Plant

8. Aditya Birla Chemicals (India) on 31 May 2013 declared that the Board of Directors approved to acquire which division of Solaris Chemtech Industries?
a) Chlor-Alkali Division
b) Phosphoric Acid Division
c) Aluminium Division 
d) Chlor-Alkali & Phosphoric Acid Division (CA&P Division)
Answer: (d) Chlor-Alkali & Phosphoric Acid Division (CA&P Division)

9. Which budget passenger carrier launched seven new flights to its domestic system on 30 May 2013?
a) Jet Airways
b) IndiGo
c) SpiceJet
d) JetConnect 
Answer: (b) IndiGo

10. Which US-based company was acquired by TVS Logistics Services Ltd.  in a deal worth 50 crore Rupees?
a) Wainwright Industries
b) Manufacturers Equipment and Supply Company (MESCO)
c) General Motors
d) None of these 
Answer: (a) Wainwright Industries 

11.National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is looking forward to lease out the historic launch pad in Florida. For what purpose was this launch pad used? 
a) For the first moon mission and by the Atlantis Shuttle 
b) By the Kennedy Space Centre commercial purposes
c) For carrying the astronauts to distant destinations
d) For International Space Station purposes 
Answer: (a) For the first moon mission and by the Atlantis Shuttle

12. Name the only satellite of Ecuador that collided with the Russian rocket debris which was launched 30 years ago.
a) Kryasor
b) Peaguo
c) None of these 
d) Pegaso (Pegasus)
Answer: (d) Pegaso (Pegasus)

13. The University Science Instrumentation Centre at Mangalagangotri and Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for what purpose?
a) Research on volcanic activities
b) Research on radioactivity
c) Research on uranium activities
d) Research on power production
Answer: (b) Research on radioactivity

14. Which Russian Capsule filled with 45 mice and 15 newts along with other animals returned from a month’s long mission in Orbit on 19 May 2013?
a) Orenburg Capsule
b) Kryasor
c) Bion-M craft
d) None of these 
Answer: (c) Bion-M craft

15. Astronomers at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory discovered a cluster of __________ clouds between our two nearby galaxies- Triangulum (M33) and Andromeda (M31).
a) Carbon
b) Sulphur
c) Nitrogen
d) Hydrogen 
Answer: (d) Hydrogen 

16.Yahoo, in the month of May 2013, redesigned the Flickr photo-sharing service by offering which facility to its users?
a) New app for Android devices
b) Redesigned user-interface
c) 1 TB storage without levying any fee
d) New Activity Feed
Answer: (c) 1 TB storage without levying any fee

17. Morgan Stanley on 20 May 2013 signed an agreement to sell its Indian wealth management unit to which company?
a) Bajaj Alliance
b) Mahindra and Mahindra
c) Muthoot Finance
d) Standard Chartered
Answer: (d) Standard Chartered

18. Which cricketer’s face and signature were engraved on limited edition gold coins of Valuemart Gold and Jewels?
a) Chris Gayle
b) Sachin Tendulkar
c) Ricky Ponting
d) Don Bradman 
Answer: (b) Sachin Tendulkar

19. Where is Morgan Stanley, the American multinational financial services corporation headquartered? 
a) New York
b) Las Vegas
c) Canada
d) Texas
Answer: (a) New York

20. How many limited edition gold coins with Sachin Tendulkar’s face and signature engraved on them were launched on 13 May 2013 by Valuemart Gold and Jewels on the occasion of Akshaya Tritiya?
a) 34000
b) 50000
c) 200000
d) 100000
Answer: (d) 100000