General Awareness: World: UPSC Previous Year Questions (General Knowledge)
110 previous year UPSC Prelims questions on world general awareness are listed here, from 1996 to 2010. UPSC asked about international organisations and their headquarters, country groupings such as BRIC, books and authors, Nobel laureates and capitals. The explanations give the fact as it stood in the year the question was set.
Explanations state facts as of the year each question was asked; words like “recently” refer to that year.
Showing 21–30 of 110 questions
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UPSC 2008General Knowledge · General Awareness: World
Q21. Who among the following scientists shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with his son?
Explanation
Option (a) is incorrect: Max Planck won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1918 for his discovery of quantum theory, but he did not share it with his son.
Option (b) is incorrect: Einstein was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1921 for his work on the photoelectric effect, but he did not share it with his son.
Option (c) is correct: William Henry Bragg along with his son, William Lawrence Bragg, received the Nobel Prize in 1915 for their X-ray crystallography research, which helped in determining crystal structures.
Option (d) is incorrect: Enrico Fermi won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1938 for his work on nuclear reactions, but he did not share it with his son.
UPSC 2008General Knowledge · General Awareness: World
Q22. Which of the following pairs in respect of current power generation in India is/are correctly matched? (Rounded Figure)
Item
Value
1. Installed electricity generation capacity
100000 MW
2. Electricity generation
660 billion kWh
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Explanation
Pair 1 is incorrectly matched: In 2008, India’s installed power capacity was significantly higher than 100,000 MW. By 2006-07, India had already surpassed the 125,000 MW mark.
Pair 2 is correctly matched: India’s electricity generation in 2007-08 was around 660 billion kWh (or units). This figure is approximately correct.
UPSC 2008General Knowledge · General Awareness: World
Q23. Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the code given below the Lists:
UPSC 2008General Knowledge · General Awareness: World
Q24. Ogaden region has been a source of conflict between which countries?
Explanation
The Ogaden region has been a long-standing disputed territory between Ethiopia and Somalia. In 1977-1978, Somalia invaded Ethiopia in the Ogaden War, attempting to annex the region, but was eventually pushed back with Soviet and Cuban assistance to Ethiopia. Even today, the Ogaden conflict remains a source of tension due to the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), a separatist group fighting for independence from Ethiopia.
UPSC 2008General Knowledge · General Awareness: World
Q25. Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the code given below the Lists:
List-I (Service/Agency)
List-II (Country)
A. Foreign Intelligence Service
1. Israel
B. Ministry of State Security
2. Britain
C. Secret Intelligence Service
3. China
D. The Mossad
4. Russia
Explanation
List-I (Service/Agency) List-II (Country) Foreign Intelligence Service Russia Ministry of State Security China Secret Intelligence Service Britain The Mossad Israel
Additional insight:
The Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) is Russia’s external intelligence agency, a successor to the KGB after its dissolution in 1991. It handles espionage, foreign intelligence gathering, and counterintelligence. The Ministry of State Security (MSS) is China’s intelligence and security agency responsible for espionage, counterintelligence, and surveillance. It is known for its role in cyber espionage and political surveillance. Commonly known as MI6, the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) is Britain’s foreign intelligence agency. It primarily deals with espionage and intelligence gathering outside the UK. Mossad is Israel’s national intelligence agency, focusing on covert operations, counterterrorism, and intelligence gathering. It is one of the world’s most renowned intelligence services.
UPSC 2008General Knowledge · General Awareness: World
Q26. Norman Ernest Borlaug who is regarded as the father of the Green Revolution in India is from which country?
Explanation
Norman Ernest Borlaug, an american, is widely regarded as the Father of the Green Revolution, which transformed global agriculture by significantly increasing crop yields through high-yielding varieties (HYVs), fertilizers, and modern farming techniques. His work had a major impact in India, Mexico, and other developing nations, helping to combat food shortages.
UPSC 2008General Knowledge · General Awareness: World
Q27. Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the code given below the Lists:
List-I (Organization) List-II (Associated Convention /Person/Place / Headquarters) Amnesty International Peter Benenson Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Viskuli Danube Commission Belgrade Convention Europe Space Agency Paris
Additional insight:
Amnesty International is a human rights organization founded in 1961 by Peter Benenson, a British lawyer. The organization campaigns against human rights violations worldwide. The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) was formed after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. The Belavezha Accords that established the CIS were signed in Viskuli, Belarus. The Danube Commission was established under the Belgrade Convention of 1948. It oversees navigation and cooperation along the Danube River, which flows through Central and Eastern Europe. The European Space Agency (ESA) was founded in 1975, and its headquarters is in Paris, France. It is responsible for space exploration and satellite programs in Europe.
UPSC 2008General Knowledge · General Awareness: World
Q28. How much is one barrel of oil approximately equal to
Explanation
A barrel of oil is a standard unit of measurement used in the oil industry worldwide. It represents the volume of crude oil or petroleum products. One barrel of crude oil is equal to approximately 159 litres (42 U.S. gallons). This is the internationally accepted oil barrel volume.
UPSC 2008General Knowledge · General Awareness: World
Q29. Which of the following pairs is/are correctly matched? 1. Francis Collins: Mapping human genome 2. Sergey Brin: Google Search Engine 3. Jimmy Wales: Wikipedia Select the correct answer using the code given below: Codes:
Explanation
Pair 1 is correctly matched: Francis Collins led the Human Genome Project (HGP), which successfully mapped the entire human DNA sequence. He played a key role in decoding genetic information, impacting medicine and biotechnology.
Pair 2 is correctly matched: Sergey Brin, along with Larry Page, co-founded Google in 1998. They developed PageRank, the algorithm behind Google’s search engine technology.
Pair 3 is correctly matched: Jimmy Wales, co-founded Wikipedia in 2001. Wikipedia became the world’s largest online encyclopedia, offering free knowledge globally.
UPSC 2007General Knowledge · General Awareness: World
Q30. Who among the following is considered as the inventor of the World Wide Web (WWW)?
Explanation
Tim Berners-Lee - Invented the World Wide Web (WWW) in 1989 at CERN. Developed HTML (HyperText Markup Language), HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol), and the first web browser.
Answer key for these questions
Q
UPSC year
Correct answer
21
2008
(c) William Henry Bragg
22
2008
(b) 2 only
23
2008
(b) A-3; B-4; C-1; D-2
24
2008
(d) Ethiopia and Somalia
25
2008
(c) A-4; B-3; C-2; D-1
26
2008
(a) United States of America
27
2008
(a) A-3; B-1; C-4; D-2
28
2008
(b) 159 litres
29
2008
(d) 1, 2 and 3
30
2007
(c) Tim Berners-Lee
What UPSC has tested in General Awareness: World
Klaus Schwab is the founder of the World Economic Forum.
The headquarters of the Organization of the Islamic Conference are at Jeddah.
The first Pugwash Conference on Science and World Affairs was held at Nova Scotia, Canada.
William Henry Bragg shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with his son.
Barack Obama is the author of The Audacity of Hope.
BRIC stands for Brazil, Russia, India and China.
Frequently asked questions
How many previous year UPSC questions are there on General Awareness: World?
This page covers 110 previous year UPSC Prelims GS Paper-I questions on General Awareness: World (General Knowledge), asked from 1996 to 2010. Each has the correct answer and an explanation.
Who founded the World Economic Forum?
Klaus Schwab, a German economist, founded it in 1971 as the European Management Forum. It is best known for its annual meeting at Davos, Switzerland, and for reports such as the Global Competitiveness Report.
Where was the first Pugwash Conference held?
In Pugwash, Nova Scotia, Canada, in 1957. It brought together scientists to discuss the dangers of nuclear weapons, and the movement later shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 1995.
Which scientist shared a Nobel Prize in Physics with his son?
William Henry Bragg, who shared the 1915 prize with his son William Lawrence Bragg for their work on analysing crystal structure using X-rays. William Lawrence Bragg remains the youngest Nobel laureate in physics, at 25 years of age.
