This section includes InterviewSolutions, each offering curated multiple-choice questions to sharpen your knowledge and support exam preparation. Choose a topic below to get started.
| 117951. |
Critically analyze Mabel’s weak economic conditions in the past as one of the reasons that led her to choose the old-fashioned dress. |
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Answer» Mabel did not belong to a rich family. She was one of a family of ten. They always had to be careful about their expenses, always counting the pennies. Her mother had to carry big cans the linoleum on the stairs was worn off, and there was always some minor domestic tragedy taking place. Even when they went to seaside resorts, they stayed at lodges which never faced the sea directly, but at an odd angle, so that they had to squint to see the sea. Maybe indirectly she was still fighting with her weak economic conditions of the past, and this had made her choose the old-fashioned dress or it could have been some memories of the past that made her do it. |
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| 117952. |
Neruda’s poem is a salute to the ordinary human being, who continues with life braving all odds. Do you agree? Give reasons. |
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Answer» Yes. In this poem, Neruda tries to delineate the journey of the human ‘life’ from its infancy to death and beyond. With a view to expressing the changes that the ‘life spirit’ undergoes through its journey from an infant to an adult and beyond death, Neruda uses ‘foot’ as a metaphor. That is why he calls ‘life’ during infancy as the infant foot and the life spirit of an adult as the adult foot. The whole poem can be summed up as the ‘surrender’ of life force to societal pressures. During infancy, the child’s spirit dreams of infinite possibilities and hence dreams of becoming a fruit or a butterfly. Once it starts growing in society the harsh realities of life expressed as ‘stones, bits of glass, ladder, and rough surface of the earth’, teach the infant spirit that it is a ‘foot’ which means ‘you have a role’ to play in the society and ‘you are an individual subservient to the whims and fancies of the society’. Once the infant spirit gradually accepts its defeat and tries to live in conformity with the norms of the society, it becomes an adult. This is expressed metaphorically as the ‘foot being imprisoned in a shoe’. Once you become a member of the society you learn to live like others, giving up your pleasures and gradually you get to know the realities of life. You go on slogging throughout your life without indulging in ‘love and sleep’ which symbolically represent your rights on this earth. You forego your rights and live like an adult and serve the society until you die and you get your freedom after your death. As long as your life spirit is in your body you have human awareness and you are aware of your limitations. Once you die you lose human awareness and your spirit is free to enjoy its freedom. In the poem, Neruda does not speak of the possibilities of the human spirit ‘rebelling’. Nor does he say that human spirit is being crushed by oppressive forces; the human spirit does not commit suicide. On the contrary, he describes the journey of the human spirit as an infant’s foot until it becomes an adult foot and after its death how it becomes free again. From this, it can be argued that Neruda’s poem is a salute to the human spirit for braving all odds and completing one’s cycle of life and death peacefully, and not rebelliously. |
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| 117953. |
Do you appreciate Mabel’s tendency of deciding her own value from the comments given by others? Explain your views. |
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Answer» No, I don’t. We all have our own likes and dislikes; we should wear what we like and behave in the manner we think is appropriate. We should not depend on the approval and comments of others to decide our value and worth. This is done only by those who have no confidence in themselves and no self-esteem. |
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| 117954. |
‘Foot’ is a keyword in the poem. Comment on Neruda’s skilful use of the word and its associations in terms of imagery to convey his ideas.ORHighlight the imagery used to bring out life’s hardships that deform the child’s foot. |
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Answer» In this poem, as the title ‘To the Foot from its Child’ suggests, ‘foot’ is the keyword in the poem. The poet uses ‘foot’ as a metaphor for his view of ‘life’. The poet personifies the ‘foot’ and focuses his attention on the ‘life’ of man, using the ‘foot’ as the protagonist. ‘Life’ begins in infancy and so even in the poem, ‘life’ begins as an infant’s foot. It is natural that children, who are naive and innocent, do not know that their foot is meant for walking and it has a function to discharge. Through the use of the ‘foot’ as a metaphor, the poet cleverly brings out the battle between harsh realities of life symbolically expressed as stones, streets, ladder, bits of glass, etc. The child dreams of becoming a butterfly or an apple. So naturally, the metaphor of foot helps the poet to convey his meaning through an imaginary battle fought between the child’s foot and the surfaces on which the child is likely to walk. The child’s foot is sure to be hurt when it walks on a street laden with stones and bits of glass and paths in the rough earth and when it climbs the ladder pressing his soft foot on the pointed edges of the rungs of the ladder. Then it realizes that it is a ‘foot’. Here, the poet wants the reader to know that the adult world fights against the spirit of the child and makes him become aware of his role as an individual in human society. At this stage, the foot is imprisoned in a shoe, which means, the child’s consciousness reaches maturity and adulthood. Adulthood is now represented as ‘adult foot’ enclosed in a shoe. The adult foot gropes in the dark and learns about the harsh realities of life like a blind man. Here, it means, unlike the child’s foot which had more .freedom than the adult’s, the adult foot has to work in a rigid mould given by the society. The ‘shoe’ represents this framework given by society. Here again, the ‘foot’ as a metaphor comes to his help. Therefore, the poet chooses ‘shoe’ as representing societal norms and traditions. The blind adult foot now walks and works without respite until he dies. The different professions of man are mentioned. The adult foot may be a man’s foot or a woman’s foot and keeps walking through fields, markets, mines and ministries, and finally toils hard scarcely finding time to enjoy ‘love’ and ‘sleep’. Here also the metaphor of the ‘foot’ facilitates the expression in the line ‘scarcely taking time to bare itself in love or sleep’. Finally, it ceases to be a ‘foot’ when a man chooses to stop working. Thus, the ‘foot’ as a metaphor has been skillfully used by the poet to evoke the right imagery to suit his meaning. |
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| 117955. |
She felt much, much fonder of Miss Milan than of any one in the whole world. (Rewrite using ‘asfond … as’.) |
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Answer» She did not feel as fond of anyone in the whole world as she felt of Miss Milan. |
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| 117956. |
It smelt of clothes and cabbage cooking; and yet, when Miss Milan put the glass in her hand, an extraordinary bliss shot through her heart. (Rewrite using ‘though’.) |
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Answer» Though it smelt of clothes and cabbage cooking, when Miss Milan put the glass in her hand, an extraordinary bliss shot through her heart. |
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| 117957. |
Match the following and write the complete answers: A B 1. Miss Milan wanted to know (a) pick a hemp seed from between her lips. 2. Miss Milan let the canary(b) to be so dependent on people’s opinions. 3. Mabel felt it was very weak (c) she suffered tortures and was awoken to reality. 4. When Mabel was in Miss Dalloway’s drawing-room. (d) about the length of the skirt. |
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Answer» 1. Miss Milan wanted to know about the length of the skirt. 2. Miss Milan let the canary pick a hemp 3. Mabel felt it was very weak to be so dependent on people’s opinions. 4. When Mabel was in Miss Dalloway’s drawing-room she suffered tortures and was awoken to reality. |
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| 117958. |
The cause of Miss Mabel’s disappointment is not only her poor background in the past but her too much bookishness also Substantiate. |
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Answer» To a certain extent this is true. She keeps thinking about the depressing lines she has read written by Shakespeare; she also keeps thinking of the story of the fly and the saucer, and how she is a fly and the others are dragonflies, butterflies and beautiful insects. Probably her over-active imagination, which led to her continuous disappointment with various things, was also due to extensive reading. |
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| 117959. |
Examine how Neruda’s poem works out the contrast between colourful dreams and the humdrum reality of life.ORThe poem ‘To the Foot From its Child’ represents the conflict between illusion and reality. Elaborate. |
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Answer» The poem, ‘To the Foot from its Child’, presents a contrast between colourful dreams and humdrum reality of life. The poet conveys his view of life through his description of a foot. The foot is a metaphor for expressing the crushing of a child’s spirit through the challenges and restrictions that life places upon him. One can undoubtedly infer that the poem is basically a criticism of how people force children to grow in society and forget all their dreams and imaginations. With a view to delineating the forces that capture the child’s freedom and aspirations, the poet begins the poem making a statement directly that the child’s foot, which is not aware that it is a foot, would like to be a butterfly or an apple. From this one can infer that man’s spirit dreams of enjoying unlimited freedom in this world but it comes to know that it cannot enjoy unlimited freedom and has to pass through several obstacles before it matures into an adult. But, in time, stones and bits of glass, streets, ladders, paths in the rough earth go on teaching the foot that it cannot fly. As the infant is growing and developing into a mature adult, he is exposed to the harsh realities of life which are metaphorically expressed as stones, bits of glass, ladder, street, etc. These are the problems and obstacles an individual has to face. Thus, once the child becomes a boy, an adolescent, and an adult, the problems of life teach the individual that he is a ‘mortal’ and his powers are limited and can only serve the society as a member like other human beings. This sense is expressed in the line ‘that it cannot fly, cannot become a fruit and is defeated, falls in the battle, is a prisoner condemned to live in a shoe’. Here, the ‘shoe’ can be taken to mean the human society that regulates his mind and activities. Wearing the shoe refers to the infant becoming a mature adult. Soon after entering adulthood the individual explores ‘life’ within the shoe. He loses touch with the reality of the outside world but experiences the world through the eyes of society. This again means that a lot of restrictions are imposed on the individual. Now that he is an adult he keeps on walking without respite through the fields, mines, markets and ministries. The line ‘this foot toils in its shoe, scarcely taking time to bare itself in love or sleep’ expresses the fact that once he realizes that he is a man destined to live in a society, he learns to face the humdrum realities of life. He has no time to let his human spirit indulge in ‘love’ and ‘sleep’. He is a prisoner and keeps on working until he dies. Once he dies his spirit loses its human awareness and is once again as free as the children. |
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| 117960. |
Name the leaders of moderate and extremist thinking. |
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Answer» The leaders with moderate thinking: Important leaders of moderate thinking in national movement were Gopal Krishana Gokhale, Dadabhai Naoroji, Mahadev Ranade, Pherozeshah Mehta, K.T. Tailang, A.O. Hume, Anand Mohan Ghosh, Womesh Chunder Bonnerjee. The leaders with extremist thinking: Main leaders of extremist thinking in Indian National Movement were Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai, Bipin Chandra Pal, Aurobindo Ghosh, etc. |
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| 117961. |
She dared not look in the glass. She could not face the whole horror.(Rewrite as affirmative sentences.) |
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Answer» She was afraid to look in the glass. She was unable to face the whole horror. |
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| 117962. |
Describe Miss Milan. |
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Answer» Miss Milan was poor and hard-working. Her face was red and her eyes bulged. Her pleasures in life were few and cheap; one of them was allowing her pet canary to pick a hemp-seed from between her lips. She was patient and had to endure a lot of difficulties. |
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| 117963. |
Who was a moderate leader of the Congress ? (a) Gopal Krishna Gokhale (b) Dadashai Naoroji (c) Mahadev Govind Ranade(d) All these |
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Answer» (d) All these |
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| 117964. |
In which of the following years, the Russian revolution took place ? (a) in 1917 (b) in 1919 (c) in 1939 (d) in 1945 |
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Answer» (a) in 1917 |
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| 117965. |
Mabel is thinking too much about her dress. Pick out some sentences supporting the above statement. |
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Answer» She looked at herself with the dress on, finished, an extraordinary bliss shot through her heart. Suffused with light, she sprang into existence. |
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| 117966. |
Mabel is thinking too much about her dress. Pick out a sentence supporting the above statement. |
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Answer» She could not face the whole horror – the pale yellow, idiotically old-fashioned silk dress with its long skirt and its high sleeves and its waist and all the things that looked so charming in the fashion book, but not on her, not among all these ordinary people. |
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| 117967. |
Who was the composer of National Anthem Jana Gana Mana? |
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Answer» Rabindranath Tagore. |
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| 117968. |
A major revolutionary leader was: (a) Shyamji Krishna Verma (b) Vinayak Damodar Savarkar (c) Rash Behari Bose(d) All these |
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Answer» (d) All these |
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| 117969. |
Name any four writers whose books were helpful in the spread of revolutionary feelings amongst Indian masses. |
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| 117970. |
Complete the exercise by filling in with the right modals:1. The ……………. (fare/fair) in the village was breathtaking. Fill in with the correct homophone.2. Mohan won a ……………. (meddle / medal) in the swimming competition. Fill in with the correct homophone.3. When it …………….(rains/reins), it pours. Fill with the correct word.4. We were early but they were ……………. (Fill in with the antonym of the underlined word)5. I (heard / herd) that the assistant worked for half the wages. (Cross out the wrong word)6. They planned to steal the gold. (Frame a ‘Wh’ question so as to get the underlined words as the answer) |
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Answer» 1. fair 2. medal 3. rains 4. late 5. herd |
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| 117971. |
What would we do today, if we needed copies of text from a big book? |
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Answer» Today, one would just take a photocopy xerox. of the required material. |
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| 117972. |
(a) Fertilisation in humans can occur only once in a month. Why ?(b) What is the scientific name of (i) womb, and (ii) birth canal ? |
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Answer» (a) Fertilisation in humans can occur only once in a month because ovulation takes place once every month i.e. an egg is released once every month by ovary. (b) (i) Uterus. (ii) Vagina. |
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| 117973. |
How would these advantages differ from the advantages of using a long term perspective in managing our resources? |
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Answer» The management of natural resources requires a long-term perspective so that these will last for the generations to come and will not merely be exploited to the hilt for short term gains. This management should also ensure equitable distribution of resources so that all, and not just a handful of rich and powerful people benefit from the development of these resources. |
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| 117974. |
How would these advantages differ from the advantages of using a long-term perspective in managing our resources?.. |
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Answer» Exploiting resources with short-term aim is beneficial for the present generation to meet current basic human needs while using with a long-term perspective aims to fulfil the need of future generations. A long-term perspective in managing our resources is a sustainable practice that enables the present generation to use natural resources judiciously so that their availability is ensured for the future generations too. |
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| 117975. |
How is the knowledge of chemistry important to mankind ? |
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Answer» Importance of chemistry to mankind chemistry plays an important role to provide us with things of daily use like toothpaste, soap, detergents, paints, clothes,medicines, fertilisers, pesticides, plastics, in preparing fuels, consumer products like glass, paper, pencils, pens, in substances used in defence like gunpowder, T.N.T. etc. |
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| 117976. |
Why does the management of natural resources require a long-term perspective? |
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Answer» Management of natural resources requires a long-term perspective so that it helps in sustainable development and it should be available for our future generations too. Exploiting resources for long-term prospective meet the needs of future generation also. The management of natural resources for future use is a sustainable practice. The judicious use of natural resources in present generation enables the future generation too, to use them for their benefits. |
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| 117977. |
How is chemistry helpful in improving the health of human beings ? |
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Answer» Chemistry is very helpful in improving the health of human beings by providing Antibiotics, Pain killers, Pencilin, Tetracycline etc. It has provided us with Vitamins, Enzymes, Minerals and Anesthesia (chloroform, formalene etc.) |
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| 117978. |
The Chipko movement was a forest conservation movement where people embraced the trees to prevent them from being cut. Chipko-type movements date back to 1170 AD when in Khejarli village Prasanna khamkar of Rajasthan, 363 Bishnois sacrificed their lives to save khejri trees.1. Ecology is permanent economy.TRUE or FALSE?a. TRUEb. FALSE2. What is the main aim of Chipko movement?a. Deforestationb. Social and ecological movement by rural villagersc. Dancingd. None of the above3. Chipko movement is good for sustainability. Give reasons.a. Trees are savedb. Natural and existing trees are protectedc. Both A and Bd. None of the above4. What is the main effect of Chipko movement in India?a. Major agenda in politicsb. Major cutting of forestsc. Major miningd. All of the above5. How Chipko movement benefit the environment?a. Conserving forestsb. Avoiding cutting treesc. Both A and Bd. None of the above |
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Answer» 1. a. TRUE 2. b. Social and ecological movement by rural villagers 3. c. Both A and B 4. a. Major agenda in politics 5. d. None of the above |
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| 117979. |
State what happened when the “Chipko Movement” spread across communities and media. |
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Answer» Chipko movement was originated from a small village Reni in 1974 where a group of women under the leadership of Gaura Devi protest against indiscriminate felling of trees by hugging them. The Chipko movement spread slowly to other parts under the leadership of Shri Sunderlal Bahuguna of Silyara in Tehri region. Chipko movement is the movement where people form a circle around the tree and hug them to prevent falling of trees. The local people of TehriGarhwal district of UP realize the importance of forests and protest against felling of trees as well as giving forest products to other regions. It helped in saving trees which ultimately result in conserving soil and water sources which maintain balance in our nature. |
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| 117980. |
Differentiate between the terms – food preservatives and food processing with appropriate examples. |
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Answer» Food preservatives – are substances or chemicals – added to food or beverages to 1. Prevent decomposition by bacteria or microbes. 2. Reduce risk of food borne infections. 3. Preserve nutritional quality of food.
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| 117981. |
Name the chemicals which help in increasing food production. |
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Answer» Chemicals which help in increasing food production are fertilisers like urea, sodium nitrate, potash, ammonium phosphate, calcium nitrate etc. Pesticides like aldrin, malathion which are used to kill pests. Insecticides like D.D.T., B.H.C. fungicides like sulphur, bordeaux mixture etc. |
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| 117982. |
What are fossil fuels? How are they formed? |
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Answer» Fossil fuels are obtained by degradation of dead remains of plants and animals which are buried under the surface of earth over a million years ago. They are called so as they are produced by degradation of biomass over a million years ago. They are an important source of fuels. The two fossil fuels are coal and petroleum. |
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| 117983. |
Who started the “Chipko Movement”? |
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Answer» Sunderlal Bahuguna. |
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| 117984. |
Give two examples for each of the following substances : (a) food preservatives (b) fuel (c) fungicides (d) medicines (e) building materials (f) chemical war weapons |
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Answer» Two examples of : (a) Food preservatives : 1. Sodium Benzoate 2. Sodium metabisulphate 3. Sugar 4. Common salt (b) Fuel: 1. L.P.G. 2. Petrol 3. Coal (c) Fungicides : 1. Sulphur 2. Bordeaux mixture (d) Medicines : 1. Penicillin 2. Painkillers 3. Antibiotics (e) Building materials : 1. Cement 2. Steel 3. Glass (f) Chemical war weapons : 1. TNT 2. RDX |
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| 117985. |
"What was Chipko Andolan"? How did this Andolan ultimately benefit the local people and the environment? |
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Answer» 'Chipko Andolan (Hug the Trees Movement) was a movement started by women of Reni village in Ciarhwal, who hugged the tree trunks preventing the contractors from felling the trees. |
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| 117986. |
What is the ultimate source of energy for the fossil fuels? |
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Answer» Plants trap solar energy during photosynthesis and convert it into food and animals get energy when they eat them. Fossil fuels are made from fossilized plants and animals. Therefore, we can say that the sun is the ultimate source of energy of fossil fuels. |
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| 117987. |
Name the place where “Chipko Andolan” organised. |
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Answer» Reni Village in Garhwal. |
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| 117988. |
How did 'Chipko Andolan' ultimately benefit the local people ? Explain briefly. |
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Answer» The Government had to rethink their priorities in the use of forest produce and change their forest policies, this ensured a stable availability of the forest produce to the villagers. It led to efficient management of forest and also resulted in conservation of soil and water which ultimately benefited the local people.
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| 117989. |
Define the following terms:(i) Coliform, (ii) Recycling (iii) Sustainable development, (iv) Chipko Andolan, (v) Watershed management. |
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Answer» (i) Coliform: A group of bacteria found in human intestines, whose presence in water indicates contamination by disease-causing microorganisms. (ii) Recycling : The act of processing used or abandoned materials for creating new products. (iii) Sustainable development : A pattern of resources used for obtaining economic and social growth of the present generation while preserving the resources for the needs of future generations. (iv) Chipko Andolan : A grass root level movement in which the villagers hugged the forest trees and prevented their mass felling by the contractors. (v) Watershed management : A scientific method of developing land and water resources to increase the biomass production without causing ecological imbalance. |
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| 117990. |
Why should we use the exhaustible natural resources judiciously? |
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Answer» Coal and petroleum are exhaustible natural resources and were formed millions of years ago. The stock of these resources are limited and may be exhaust after say 40 -50 years and they cannot be renewed. These resources should be used judiciously so that these can also be used by a future generation. Secondly, excessive use of a natural resource such as coal, petrol causes pollution and global warming. Therefore, we must use coal and petroleum with care |
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| 117991. |
Coal and petroleum are which type of resources? Give reason. |
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Answer» Coal and petroleum are exhaustible and non-renewable resources because once they are getting exhausted and cannot be renewed by the natural process. |
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| 117992. |
Explain the ways in which humidity is expressed. |
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Answer» 1. Specific humidity is a ratio of the water vapor content of the mixture to the total air content on a mass basis. It is expressed in grams of vapour per kilogram of air. 2. Absolute Humidity is the mass or weight of water vapour present per unit volume of air. It is expressed usually in grams per cubic meter of air. 3. Relative humidity is a ratio between the actual amount of water vapour present in the air and the maximum amount of water vapour it can hold at a given temperature. It is expressed as a percentage. |
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| 117993. |
The earth receives energy from ………(a) Current (b) Electro magnetic radiation (c) Waves (d) Heat |
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Answer» (b) Electro magnetic radiation |
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| 117994. |
Which gases are released from the combustion of petroleum and coal? |
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Answer» When coal and petroleum are burnt completely, carbon dioxide, water, oxides of nitrogen and oxides of sulfur are released but when combustion takes place in the insufficient air (oxygen), then carbon monoxide is formed instead of carbon dioxide. |
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| 117995. |
We should use coal and petroleum judiciously. Why? State any four reasons. |
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Answer» We should use them judiciously because- a. They are an important source of fuels. Petroleum products like petrol, diesel etc. are used as fuel in automobiles. Coal is used in thermal power plants to generate electricity and also used as a fuel for domestic purposes. b. They took millions of years to get formed hence if consumption will over exceeds it may lead to exhaustion of these resources. c. We should use them judiciously so that our future generations can take benefits from them. d. Burning of these fuels cause pollution, global warming so we should use them wisely. |
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| 117996. |
Give three changes you will make to stop or lower the use of coal and petroleum. |
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Answer» (i) Switch off lights when not required, and use CFL bulbs. (ii) Not to use petrol fuel vehicles instead opt for CNG. (iii) Use cycle or walk to go short distances. |
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| 117997. |
State whether the following statements are True or False1. The climate does not often change like weather.2. Soil does not affect the distribution of temperature.3. The lowest temperature ever recorded on the earth is – 89.2°C.4. Humans are sensitive even to small variation in pressure. |
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Answer» 1. True 2. False Correct statement: Soil affect the distribution of temperature. 3. True 4. False Correct statement: Humans are not sensitive even to small variation in pressure. |
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| 117998. |
List out the weather elements and associated measuring instruments. |
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Answer» Temperature, rainfall, pressure, humidity and wind are the major elements of weather and climate. 1. Temperature: Measured in scales like Celsius, Fahrenheit and Kelvin. Meterorologists Measure the temperature by the Thermometer. Stevenson screen and minimum and maximum thermometer. 2. Rain: Is a major component of the water cycle and is the source of most of the fresh water on the earth. Rainfall is measured by raingauge. 3. Air Pressure: Meteorologist uses barometer/aneroid barometer to measure the air pressure. Barograms are used for recording continuous variation in atmospheric pressure. 4. Humidity: Hygrometer is used to measure the humidity, (which comprises wet and dry bulbplate side by side in the Stevenson screen) |
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| 117999. |
Define‘weather’. |
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Answer» Weather is the day today conditions(state) of the atmosphere at any place as regards sunshine, temperature, cloud cover. Wind fog condition, air pressure, humidity, precipitation and such other elements. |
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| 118000. |
Suggest a general practice which will help in the reduction of coal and petroleum use. |
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Answer» Some simple choices can help in reduction coal and petroleum use: |
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