Home Blog Page 225

Today in History – 8 February

0

1785

Warren Hastings, British Viceroy, left India.

1834

Dmitri Mendeleev, a Russian chemist and inventor. He formulated the Periodic Law, created a farsighted version of the periodic table of elements, and used it to correct the properties of some already discovered elements and also to predict the properties of eight elements yet to be discovered was born on this day.

1872

Lord Mayo, Viceroy of India, was assassinated by prisoner Sher Ali during his visit to Andaman Islands.

1936

Jawaharlal Nehru elected president of Indian National Congress.

1943

Subhashchandra Bose started his journey to Japan from Kiel along with his secretary Major Abid Hassan in a submarine.

1994

Kapil Dev sets world record for Test Cricket wickets with 432.

How to Write to the Point Answers in Exam?

3
How to Write answer

As soon as you take one step up the career ladder, your effectiveness depends on your ability to communicate your thoughts in writing answer and in speaking. Learning to communicate effectively through the written words involves planning, thinking, communicating, exercising judgment, translating (if a second-language speaker) and making decisions. Writing is a skill based on principles and practices, and these principles are not clear cut – they need to be experienced rather than taught.

The 3 C’s of Effective Writing Answers

CLEAR: easy to follow with main points that stand out.

CONCISE: complete and comprehensive, yet readable in a short time.

COMPELLING: a convincing story that will inspire action.

Must Read: How to Overcome the Fear of Failure?

Here are the Ways to Write to the Point Answers in Exams

Focus on the Question

The terms of the question:

  • Decide what the question are, and underline the main keyword.
  • Ensure that you have defined them and answer the question asked
  • If you think they are problematic, define them at the beginning.
  • Make sure your definition is sound: do not try to stretch the meaning of words too far.
  • Concentrate on your answers and avoid being irrelevant.
  • Be sure that you show explicitly how your ideas relate to the question.
  • Make a plan of your answer, ensuring that you cover every point asked in the question

Wake up the Examiner!

  • Create a strong opening and closing paragraph
  • Just repeat the words of the question “This question asks about … “
  • Give a hackneyed dictionary definition of one or more of the terms in the question.
  • Try to wake the examiner up by starting with: A short controversial statement, A relevant quotation, A striking piece of evidence.
  • The main thing is to demonstrate that you have thought about the question.
  • A strong ending is important in that it creates the final impression the examiner carries away from your answer – Save a bold statement until the end Or finish with a useful quotation.

Also Read: How to Prepare Notes for UPSC Exam?

Think about your style

  • Develop a fluent style by giving some thought, however brief, to each sentence before you write it:
  • Be accurate as examiners award marks for ‘quality of language’.
  • Leave time for yourself to make new points.
  • Avoid repeating ideas
  • Use an appropriate tone and vocabulary
  • Make good use of quotations

Organize Your Time

  • Divide your time appropriately because in an examination you will almost certainly have several questions to write or sections to complete. Decide on the order in which you wish to answer them.
  • Make sure that you answer them all.
  • Jot down ideas about any of the questions you expect to answer: don’t hope to remember things – especially bearing in mind that you may be pressed for time towards the end.
  • Give each question the appropriate time and don’t exceed it.

Don’t Miss: How to Read NCERT Books for UPSC Civil Services Exam?

Plan your answers carefully

  • Have the confidence to take time to plan. You could usefully devote up to a quarter of the exam time to this process. It is worth it because:
  • You will save time in the end.
  • It is much more efficient than sitting and trying to think of the next point
  • You will have a sharper, more fluent and authoritative answer.

Practice Past Papers

There really is no better way to get exam ready than by attempting past papers. This process isn’t just about preparing an answer for a specific question, it’s about understanding how you approach a question in an exam, how to structure your answer, the timings you should assign and what information will get marks.

Must Read: How to Prepare for Comprehension test of CSAT?

Manage Your Time

This is where you need to be strict on yourself. Once you have assigned a time limit for each question, you MUST move on once you hit it or you won’t be able to give the next question your full attention.

Remember to leave yourself some time at the end to go back over your answers and add in little notes or pieces of information about the topic. You never know, this could help bump you up a grade!

Read All Questions Carefully

The stress of the situation can cause you to misread a question, plan your answer out, start writing your response and then realise you made a mistake and wasted vital time. Even though you generally won’t be writing answers to every question on the paper, reading all questions thoroughly will ensure you make the right choices and can highlight how much you know about the topic.

Don’t forget to attempt all questions that you have selected. However, be careful of MCQ questions with negative marking. If you’re not sure of the answer you could cost yourself some valuable marks.

Also Read: How to Prepare for Civil Services Aptitude Test (CSAT)?

Explore Both Sides of an Argument

Building your argument in the main body of your exam answer will give your overall opinion credibility. Encourage yourself to explore both sides of an argument and then conclude with a critical analysis of your answer.

Many questions you approach will look as though they seek a straightforward answer but in reality they want you to fully outline a structured essay. Don’t fall into the trap of providing a one-sided view, get your hands dirty and open your mind to other possibilities.

Structure Your Answer

Don’t just jump into writing your answer. Take the first few minutes to plan the structure of your essay which will save you time when you are delving into meaty parts. Always stay on topic; if you’re discussing the role of women in society as portrayed by the author in Of Mice and Men, don’t digress and start outlining other themes in the book for example.

Most essays should have an introduction, three main points and a conclusion. A lot of students see a conclusion as a final sentence to finish the piece off. A strong conclusion give an A grade student the chance to shine by bringing everything together and fortifying their opinion.

Don’t Miss: How to Read The Hindu Newspaper for IAS Preparation?

Work out exactly what you’re being asked

It sounds really obvious, but lots of students have trouble answering questions because they don’t take time to figure out exactly what they’re expected to do – instead, they skim-read and then write the essay they want to write. Answer the question asked not the one you would have liked to be asked. Avoid being irrelevant. And be sure that you show explicitly how your ideas relate to the question.

Be as Explicit as Possible

Use forceful, persuasive language to show how the points you’ve made to answer the questions. Main focus should be on tangential or irrelevant material – but many students lose marks even though they make great points, because they don’t quite impress how relevant those points are.

Must Read: How to Improve Your Communication Skill?

Be Brutally Honest with Yourself About Whether a Point is Relevant Before you Write it.

It doesn’t matter how impressive, original or interesting it is. It doesn’t matter if you’re panicking, and you can’t think of any points that do answer the question. If a point isn’t relevant, don’t bother with it. It’s a waste of time, and might actually work against you as they will lose focus on your really good points.

Review Your Answers Thoroughly

Smart students can still make the mistake of handing their answer book in without checking through what they have written. Proof read your answers as much as you can to correct any spelling mistakes and add any extra comments you think are worth mentioning.

Don’t Miss: How to make an Effective routine?

Today in History – 7 February

0

1687

Mughal army won the Gowalkonda fort. Kutubshahi came to end.

1795

Dutch Prince William V accepts British occupation of Dutch Indies.

1856

Wajid Ali Shah, ruler of Oudh, was asked to abdicate by the British Resident on grounds of chronic misrule.

1983

Eastern News Agency was established in Calcutta.

1992

Shalki’, the first submarine designed in India, joined Indian Navy.

1993

Medium-range surface to surface missile, ‘Prithvi‘ successfully launched for the 10th time.

1997

Bal Thackeray, Shiv Sena supremo, found guilty of contempt of court and sentenced to simple imprisonment of one week and a fine of Rs. 2000 by Nagpur bench of Mumbai HC for his statement that ”a judge had demanded a bribe of Rs. 35 lakhs for favouring a litigant”.

1999

Indian leg-spinner Anil Kumble became the second only bowler in Test history after J.C. Laker (England) to take all ten wickets in an innings against Pakistan in the second Test in Delhi.

What is Cloud Computing?

4
Cloud computing is a general term for anything that involves delivering hosted services over the Internet. These services are broadly divided into three categories: Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). The name cloud computing was inspired by the cloud symbol that’s often used to represent the Internet in flowcharts and diagrams.
A cloud service has three distinct characteristics that differentiate it from traditional hosting. It is sold on demand, typically by the minute or the hour; it is elastic — a user can have as much or as little of a service as they want at any given time; and the service is fully managed by the provider (the consumer needs nothing but a personal computer and Internet access). Significant innovations in virtualization and distributed computing, as well as improved access to high-speed Internet and a weak economy, have accelerated interest in cloud computing.
A cloud can be private or public. A public cloud sells services to anyone on the Internet. (Currently, Amazon Web Services is the largest public cloud provider.) A private cloud is a proprietary network or a data center that supplies hosted services to a limited number of people. When a service provider uses public cloud resources to create their private cloud, the result is called a virtual private cloud. Private or public, the goal of cloud computing is to provide easy, scalable access to computing resources and IT services.
Infrastructure-as-a-Service like Amazon Web Services provides virtual server instanceAPI) to start, stop, access and configure their virtual servers and storage. In the enterprise, cloud computing allows a company to pay for only as much capacity as is needed, and bring more online as soon as required. Because this pay-for-what-you-use model resembles the way electricity, fuel and water are consumed, it’s sometimes referred to as utility computing.
Platform-as-a-service in the cloud is defined as a set of software and product development tools hosted on the provider’s infrastructure. Developers create applications on the provider’s platform over the Internet. PaaS providers may use APIs, website portals or gateway software installed on the customer’s computer. Force.com, (an outgrowth of Salesforce.com) and GoogleApps are examples of PaaS. Developers need to know that currently, there are not standards for interoperability or data portability in the cloud. Some providers will not allow software created by their customers to be moved off the provider’s platform.
In the software-as-a-service cloud model, the vendor supplies the hardware infrastructure, the software product and interacts with the user through a front-end portal. SaaS is a very broad market. Services can be anything from Web-based email to inventory control and database processing. Because the service provider hosts both the application and the data, the end user is free to use the service from anywhere. (Source: TechTarget)
Must Read:

Project Mausam

2

Project Mausam, a Ministry of culture project, aims to explore the multi-faceted Indian Ocean World that extends from East Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, the Indian subcontinent and Sri Lanka to the Southeast Asian archipelago. The project is collecting archaeological and historical research to document the diversity of cultural, commercial and religious interactions in the Indian Ocean. Archeological Society of India (ASI) is functioning as its nodal agency and Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) is functioning as project’s Research Unit.

The Project Mausam is going to encourage research on themes linked to the study of Maritime Routes through international scientific seminars and meetings by adopting a multidisciplinary approach. It would promote the production of specialized works, as well as publications for the general publicwith an endeavour at encouraging a wider understanding of the concept of a common heritage and multiple identities.

Must Read: Sagarmala Project for Port-led Industrialization

Objectives of Project Mausam

The principal objectives of the project Mausam are: transnational nomination of Maritime Cultural Routes; formation of a comprehensive database and UNESCO web platform on Maritime Cultural Landscapes and Routes; and connecting other UNESCO cultural conventions with World Heritage convention, through this theme.

Goals of Project Mausam

The Project’s goal is to transcend present-day national and ethnic frontiers, documenting and celebrating the common cultural values and economic ties of the Indian Ocean World. This step is going to not only strengthen current relationships between countries across the Ocean, but also set an example for new bridge of co-operation and continued ties and interaction.

In order to redefined cultural landscape, Project Mausam is trying to identify gaps in listing of sites and filing in the lacuna by providing a holistic, multi-layered perspective drawing links between the existing categories of “Natural and Cultural” Heritage. This would help in redefining concept of Cultural Landscapes and permit for a fresh, multi-faceted approach to understand past and present-day relationship.

Project Mausam is an exciting and multi-disciplinary project that rejuvenates long-lost ties across countries of the Indian Ocean ‘World’ and creates new avenues of cooperation and exchanged.

Launched by India in partnership with member countries, the Project ‘Mausam’ is going to take a significant step in recording and celebrating this important phase of world history from Africa, Arab and Asian-world perspectives.

Read Also: Initiation of Three IT Enabled Projects