Current Affairs, News & Facts of 19 Jan 2016

Well-known filmmaker and lyricist Geethapriya, 84, passed away after a battle with throat cancer in Bengaluru, Karnataka. He has directed 40 films and penned over 250 songs in Kannada films.

Facts to know about Geethapriya :

• Geethapriya was born as Lakshman Rao Mohite in 1931, and Marathi was his mother tongue.
• He started to work in the Kannada film industry in the mid-1960 but soon started film directiopn.
• He was christened 'Geethapriya' meaning 'lover of songs' as a result of his work as a song-writer.
• Geethapriya directed many top stars in the Kannada film industry like Rajkumar and worked in the film industry for over five decades

Popular works : Some of his best works include Yaava Janmada Maithri (1972), Beluvalada Madilalli (1975), Besuge (1976), Hombisilu (1978), Putani Agent 123 (1979), Preethisi Nodu (1981) and Mouna Geethe (1985). He directed his last film Shravana Sambhrama in 2003.

Awards and Honours : Puttanna Kanagal award (1986) for lifetime achievement and Karnataka Rajyotsava award.

French President Francois Hollande has declared state of economic emergency to redefine France’s economic and social model. Under the state of economic emergency the govt. of France has proposed series of economic measures to boost long-stagnant economic growth and reduce chronic unemployment.

Proposed economic measures :

• Creation of 500,000 vocational training schemes, additional subsidies for small companies and a programme to boost apprenticeships
• Integrate youth from France’s troubled suburbs, including minorities who face job discrimination, into the global economy.
• Loosening of France’s rigid working time rules, and a bonus of 2,000 euros to small businesses that hire young people.
• Updating country’s labour-friendly business model in an increasingly online and border-free economy.

Joblessness in France :

Since 2012, when Mr Hollande came to power, more than 600,000 people are facing  joblessness while the problem of unemployment has decreased in other large European economies.The jobless rate in France is above 10 per cent compared with a 9.8 per cent EU average. The rate in the UK is 5.2 per cent and in Germany 4.2 per cent as of November 2015. 

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has achieved a milestone by successfully launching the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying Jason-3 Ocean-monitoring satellite. The satellite was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. 

It should be noted that  Jason-3 is the 4th mission in the joint US-European series of satellite missions that measure Global Sea Level Rise. The rocket company SpaceX had managed a historic first controlled return of an orbital stage last month.

Facts to know about Jason-3 :

• Jason-3 is equipped with with radar altimeter that will measure sea-level variations of oceans across the world with very high accuracy. 
• The data provided by Jason-3 will boost hurricane forecasting and marine navigation. It will also help the navigators to determine current direction and speed.
• It will also seek to boost hurricane forecasting and marine navigation. It will provide scientists with critical information about ocean circulation patterns.
• It will act as an early warning system for El Niño by detecting the developing bulge in surface waters associated with the warming.
• Jason-3 will measure the shape of the global sea surface to an accuracy of better than 4cm. It will track currents, tides, winds, wave heights, and will help forecast the intensity of storms.

Note :- Before this two missions of Jason has been launched that are Jason-1 and Jason-2 OSTM which were launched in 2001 and 2008 respectively.

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket :

Falcon 9 designed and manufactured by SpaceX  is a family of two-stage-to-orbit launch vehicles, named for its use of nine engines. Both stages of this two-stage-to-orbit vehicle are powered by rocket engines that burn liquid oxygen (LOX) and rocket-grade kerosene (RP-1) propellants.The first stage is designed to be reusable, while the second stage is not reusable.

Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) has  launched an algorithm trading test facility for investors on its equity and derivatives platform. The new service is free-of-cost for market participants.

Algorithm trading test facility :

• The members will be able to test their trading strategies with live market data feed during market hours and historical market data.
• BSE has also made a provision to generate data analytics reports to check the performance of the strategies.
• Algorithm trading uses mathematical models and software codes to make transaction decisions on exchanges and execute them at high speed.
• Besides, it would provide individual test session for each member and “there is no time slot booking for login sessions for trading members".

What is algorithm trading test ?

• Algorithmic trading which is also known as blackbox trading, is a trading systems that is dependent on complex mathematical formulas and high-speed, computer programs to determine trading strategies.
• These strategies use electronic platforms to enter trading orders with an algorithm which executes pre-programmed trading instructions accounting for a variety of variables such as timing, price, and volume.
• Algorithmic trading is widely used by investment banks, pension funds, mutual funds, and other buy-side (investor-driven) institutional traders, to divide large trades into several smaller trades to manage market impact and risk.

Gunter Butschek has been appointed Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director of Tata Motors, ending a long search for a suitable candidate for the post.Tata Motors which is country’s largest auto maker across segments has been leaderless since the death of its former chief Karl Slym in Bangkok in January 2014.

Butschek, 55, will lead all operations of Tata Motors in India and in international markets, including South Korea, Thailand, Indonesia and South Africa. Jaguar Land Rover, the company’s UK subsidiary, will continue to be managed by its CEO and director Ralf Speth, who is also on the board of Tata Motors.

In his new role Butschek, will be responsible for the task of turning around the fortunes of a Tata Motors whose domestic passenger car sales and market share have  roughly halve in the past two years, with profit held up mainly by Jaguar Land Rover.