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Analysis of UPSC GS Paper 3(S&T) for years 2013-17

Questions per year

6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Application Biotech IPR New Tech Policy Space
based

Section wise analysis

Space
15%

Application based
Policy 20%
5%

Biotech
New Tech 20%
25%

IPR
15%

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 Year Section Question
Application What is a digital signature? What does its authentication mean? Give various salient built-
2013
based in features of a digital signature.
What are the areas of prohibitive labour that can be sustainably managed by robots?
Application
2015 Discuss the initiatives that can propel the research in premier research institutes for
based
substantive and gainful innovation.
Application What do you understand by Umpire Decision Review System in cricket? Discuss its
2013
based various components. Explain how silicone tape on the edge of a bat may fool the system?
Application What do you understand by Run-of river hydroelectricity project? How is it different from
2013
based any other hydroelectricity project?
Stem cell therapy is gaining popularity in India to treat a wide variety of medical conditions
2017 Biotech including leukaemia, Thallessemia, damaged sornea and several burns. Describe briefly
what stem cell therapy is and what advantages it has over other treatments?
What do you understand by Fixed Dose drug Combinations (FDCs)? Discuss their merits
2013 Biotech
and demerits.
Can overuse and free availability of antibiotics without Doctor’s prescription, be
2014 Biotech contributors to the emergence of drug-resistant diseases in India? What are the available
mechanisms for monitoring and control? Critically discuss the various issues involved.
2016 Biotech What is allelopathy? Discuss its role in major cropping systems of irrigated agriculture.
Bringing out the circumstances in 2005 which forced amendment to the section 3(d) in
Indian Patent Law, 1970, discuss how it has been utilized by the Supreme Court in its
2013 IPR
judgement in rejecting Novartis’ patent application for ‘Glivec’. Discuss briefly the pros and
cons of the decision.
In a globalized world, Intellectual Property Rights assume significance and are a source of
2014 IPR
litigation. Broadly distinguish between the terms—Copyrights, Patents and Trade Secrets.
India’s Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL) which has a database containing
formatted information on more than 2 million medicinal formulations is proving a powerful
2015 IPR
weapon in country’s fight against erroneous patents. Discuss the pro and cons of making
the database available publicly available under open source licensing.
Discuss the advantage and security implication of cloud hosting of servers vis-a-vis in
2015 New Tech
house machine based hosting for government business.
How does the 3D printing technology work? List out the advantages and disadvantages of
2013 New Tech
the technology.
What is an FRP composite material? How are they manufactured? Discuss their
2013 New Tech
application in aviation and automobile industries.
Why is nanotechnology one of the key technologies of the 21st century? Describe the
2016 New Tech salient features of Indian Government’s Mission on Nanoscience and Technology and the
scope of its application in the development process of the country.
Give an account of the growth and development of nuclear science and technology in
2017 New Tech
India. What is the advantage of fast breeder reactor programme in India?
Scientific research in Indian universities is declining, because a career in science is not as
2014 Policy attractive as are business professions, engineering or administration, and the universities
are becoming consumer-oriented. Critically comment.
What do you understand by “Standard Positioning System” and “Precision positioning
2015 Space system” in the GPS era? Discuss the advantage India perceives from its ambitious IRNSS
programme employing just seven satellites.
Discuss India’s achievements in the field of Space Science and Technology. How the
2016 Space
application of this technology has helped India in its socio-economic development?
India has achieved remarkable successes in unmanned space missions including the
2017 Space Chandrayaan and Mars Orbitter Mission, but has not ventured into manned space
mission, both in terms of technology and logistics? Explain critically

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