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General ScienceMediumAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2024, GK

Which set of vegetables is underground stem or modified stem of a plant?

  1. A.Potato, artichoke, round gourd
  2. B.Onion, garlic, carrot
  3. C.Potato, onion, garlic
  4. D.Potato, garlic, turnip

Correct answer

C. Potato, onion, garlic

Explanation

The correct answer is C, Potato, onion, garlic. All three are underground modified stems: the potato is a stem tuber, and onion and garlic are bulbs.

A stem can be told from a root by its nodes and buds. The eyes of a potato are nodes with buds, which is why a piece of potato with an eye grows into a new plant; the tuber stores starch. In onion and garlic the true stem is a small flat disc at the base, and the fleshy layers or cloves around it are leaves full of stored food, so the whole bulb is a modified shoot. Other underground stems are ginger and turmeric (rhizomes) and colocasia (corm).

A is wrong because round gourd (tinda) is a fruit, and the artichoke eaten is a flower bud.

B is wrong because carrot is a modified tap root, not a stem.

D is wrong because turnip is a modified tap root.

Exam tip: potato tuber, ginger rhizome, onion bulb and colocasia corm are stems; carrot, radish, turnip, beetroot and sweet potato are roots.

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Q1.General ScienceAsked in: UPSC Civil Services · CSE Prelims 2023, GS Paper IMedium

Consider the following actions :

1. Detection of car crash/collision which results in the deployment of airbags almost instantaneously

2. Detection of accidental free fall of a laptop towards the ground which results in the immediate turning off of the hard drive

3. Detection of the tilt of the smartphone which results in the rotation of display between portrait and landscape mode

In how many of the above actions is the function of accelerometer required?

  1. A.Only one
  2. B.Only two
  3. C.All three
  4. D.None
Show answer
Correct answer: C. All three

An accelerometer measures acceleration, including the pull of gravity, and each of the three actions depends on reading it. An accelerometer is a small sensor, today usually a MEMS (micro-electro-mechanical system) chip, that senses changes in speed and the direction of gravity.

Q2.General ScienceAsked in: UPSC Civil Services · CSE Prelims 2023, GS Paper IMedium

Consider the following statements :

1. Carbon fibres are used in the manufacture of components used in automobiles and aircrafts.

2. Carbon fibres once used cannot be recycled.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. A.1 only
  2. B.2 only
  3. C.Both 1 and 2
  4. D.Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer
Correct answer: A. 1 only

Carbon fibre is widely used in cars and aircraft for its strength and low weight, and it can be recovered and recycled.

Q5.General ScienceAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2025, GKEasy

A body floats in a liquid if the buoyant force is :

  1. A.equal to its weight.
  2. B.less than its weight.
  3. C.greater than its weight.
  4. D.zero.
Show answer
Correct answer: A. equal to its weight.

A floating body is in equilibrium, so the upward buoyant force exactly balances its weight. By Archimedes' principle, a body in a liquid is pushed up by a force equal to the weight of the liquid it displaces.