04.02.2008

• NASA beams music across the universe!
• NASA has decided to beam across the universe the Beatles’ song recorded 40 years ago. The music will be digitised and beamed through its deep-space communications network on a 431 light year journey to the North Star, Polaris, where it is scheduled to arrive in 2439.
• The song is titled “Across the Universe”.
• Today is the 45^th anniversary of NASA’s deep-space communications network and 50^th anniversary of NASA’s foundation.
• A layman’s definition of fiscal policy
• It encompasses tax, expenditure and debt (borrowings) policy of the government.
• REITs to get tax concessions similar to the mutual funds
• REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts) are similar to mutual funds in structure and the way they distribute income. They give indirect exposure in realty to investors who do not have the expertise or the capital. They invest largely in big projects like shopping malls / commercial complexes. Abroad, they distribute at least 90% of their net income as dividend. They are largely seen as low volatile investment options offering steady income through all market conditions, as they largely invest in income-generating real estate.
• They are registered under the Indian Trusts Act and have to be approved by SEBI. Investors buy units in them just like they do in a mutual fund.
• The income-tax law now provides for a pass-through status for mutual funds and all income the fund earns is tax-free in its hands. But the dividend that it distributes to its investors is liable to dividend-distribution tax of 25%. Unit holders need not pay tax on their dividend income. SEBI has recommended a similar treatment to REITs also.
• Air passenger traffic in India
• According to the AAI (Airports Authority of India) figures, about 16.21 mn people flew on international routes to and from India during the period April to October 2007-08.
• On producing energy from waste
• India reportedly produces waste equivalent to fuel or energy that would fetch $100 bn annually.
• According to government figures, Mumbai alone generates 8000 tonnes of waste every day, of which 5% is plastic waste.
• According to an estimate, around Rs. 3,000 crore is spent every year by municipal bodies on collection and disposal of garbage.
• OWC (Organic Waste Converter) is a device that costs about Rs. 4 lakhs and is used by hotels and hospitals to convert organic waste into manure.
• The health of the Indian economy, as indeed that of the world economy is dependent on the effective policy measures that the US will be initiating in staving off a recession. Comment.
• In a span of just eight days, the US Federal Reserve has brought down federal funds rate from 4.25% to 3%. The President and the Congress agreed on a fiscal stimulus package, costing $150 bn. Whether the expected outcomes will be able to stimulate the flagging consumer demand and thereby save its economy from sliding into recession remains to be seen.
• The proponents of what is called the “decoupling theory” argued that, with the rise of India and China and the growth of bilateral trade between Europe and China, the global economy can be kept insulated from the economic travails of the US. The recent meltdown in the global stock markets, acting on cues from the US exposed the limitations of that theory. Financial markets all across the world are strongly interlinked and the US is not only the largest exporter and importer of goods and services but also of capital.
• Hence the statement is correct.
• What are the ill-effects of solar wind?
• Solar wind is a stream of high-energy charged particles from the sun travelling faster than the speed of sound. They cause mutations to DNA; and this in turn can lead to cancer.
• So, for long space voyages – the likes of the one planned for a manned mission to Mars (expected to take about 8 months of travel in space) – the ill effects of solar winds have to be countered.