NOTE: Please remember that following ‘answers’ are NOT ‘model answers’. They are NOT synopsis too if we go by definition of the term. What we are providing is content that both meets demand of the question and at the same time gives you extra points in the form of background information.
Geography:
Q1. What do you understand by marine heat waves? Discuss its reason for increasing frequency and the impact it has on the marine and land ecosystem. 15M
Introduction
Marine heat waves (MHW) are periods of extremely high temperatures overseas and in oceans. MHWs have increased by 50% over the past decade and are more severe. They can last for weeks or even years. They can affect small areas of the coastline or span multiple oceans.
Body
Marine heat waves can occur in summer or winter – they are defined based on differences in expected temperatures for the location and time of year, such as exceeding a seasonally-varying threshold for at least 5 consecutive days. Successive heat waves with gaps of 2 days or less are considered part of the same event.
Such heat waves are caused by an increase in the heat content of oceans, especially in the upper layers. They have been recorded in surface and deep waters, across all latitudes, and in all types of marine ecosystems.
Reasons for increasing frequency of Marine heat waves:
- Human-induced Global Warming: Around 90% of the warming caused by greenhouse gas emissions is absorbed by the oceans. As more GHG emissions are raising so is the amount of absorption causing an increase in ocean surface temperature.
- According to the IPCC -If current human carbon emissions are not reduced, a one-in-hundred-days event (at pre-industrial carbon dioxide levels) is projected to become a one-in-four-days event by 2031–2050, and a one-in-two-days event by 2081–2100.
- El Nino: The increase in marine heat waves is due to rapid warming in the Indian Ocean and strong El Nino events. El Nino generally has a warming effect on the world’s ocean and land surfaces.
- In 2015-16, the world witnessed a strong El Nino event that had wide-ranging impacts on weather conditions around the world, including MHW in the Bay of Bengal.
- Increased Sea surface temperatures (SST): SST has increased at a rate of nearly 0.6°C per century. This warming has increased the likelihood of marine heat waves occurring.
- Ocean Currents: The most common drivers which can build up areas of warm water and air-sea heat flux or warm through the ocean surface from the atmosphere.
- MHW in Tasman sea in 2015 due to intensification of East Australian Current Extension.
- Weak Winds: Sunlight normally penetrates the atmosphere and heats the ocean’s surface. When there are light winds, the warm water does not mix with the cooler water below. It floats on the surface of the water and continues to heat up, resulting in marine heat waves.
- The immediate cause of the Blob phenomenon in the Pacific during 2013 was the lower than normal rates of heat loss from the sea to the atmosphere
Impact of Marine heat waves on –
- Marine ecosystem
- Habitat Destruction – due to coral bleaching, seagrass destruction, and loss of kelp forests, affecting the fisheries sector adversely.
- A recent survey showed that 85% of corals in the Gulf of Mannar near the Tamil Nadu coast got bleached after the marine heatwave in May 2020.
- Accelerating Ocean acidification process – Rise in CO2 absorption by ocean causing an increase in ocean surface temperature. This in turn accelerates the ocean acidification process.
- This threatens some animals’ ability to create and maintain carbonatic shells. Ocean acidification could destroy shelled animals by 2030
- Degrades Marine ecosystem and loss of biodiversity- leading to mass mortality of marine invertebrates. Changing conditions can help invasive alien species to spread, which can be devastating for marine food webs.
- In 2011, MHW along the coastline of Western Australia caused extensive coral bleaching, mass die-out of marine life, and wiped out kelp forests.
- Causes Deoxygenation – decreasing the oxygen holding capacity of the Ocean leads to habitat compression, reducing growth rate, changing visual function, interferes with reproduction, and increasing disease susceptibility.
- In 2003, MHW over the Mediterranean sea lead to mass mortality of rocky benthic communities.
- Colonization – Apart from the above negative impacts, marine heat waves also have some positive impacts on the Marine ecosystem.
- In the southeast of Australia Where the spiny sea urchin can only colonize further south when winter temperatures are above 12C. A winter warm spell there can help promote the colonization of spiny sea urchins.
Land Ecosystem
- Natural calamities – Higher water temperatures associated with MHWs can cause extreme weather events such as tropical storms and hurricanes, and disrupt the water cycle; making floods, droughts and wildfires on land more likely.
- Impact on Terrestrial Ecosystem – The marine heat waves in the Indian Ocean are also majorly impacting the southwest monsoon. The MHWs reduce monsoon rainfall over central India. This has an impact on Tropical rainforests, Tropical deciduous forests and also causes an expansion in desert areas.
Others –
- Economic Losses: Marine heat waves can cause economic losses through impacts on fisheries and aquaculture.
- MHWs can also harm regional tourism.
Conclusion
The frequency, severity, and regions under the influence of the marine heat waves are increasing year after year, it becomes extremely important to monitor this phenomenon and countries need to take appropriate actions to minimize its impact on marine and land ecosystems and to protect these ecosystems.
Q2. What do you understand by tectonic plates? How do they interact? Elaborate on the consequences of the India-Eurasian plate collision. 15M
INTRODUCTION
A tectonic plate is a large, massive, and irregular-shaped slab of solid rock usually containing both oceanic and continental parts. Hence they are also called lithospheric plates.
Body
The lithosphere, which is the rigid outermost shell of a planet (the crust and upper mantle), is broken up into tectonic plates. Tectonic plates are composed of oceanic lithosphere (Pacific Plate) and thicker continental lithosphere (Eurasian Plate), each topped by its own kind of crust.
The Earth’s lithosphere is composed of seven or eight major plates and many minor plates.
INTERACTION OF PLATE TECTONICS
The plates move on the asthenosphere throughout the Earth’s surface as solid blocks. These plates have been moving constantly throughout the history of Earth and have been still moving. For e.g: The Arctic Ridge has the slowest rate (less than 2.5 cm/yr)
The driving force behind plate tectonics is convection in the mantle. Hot material near the Earth’s core rises and colder mantle rock sinks. This cycle is repeated over and over to generate what scientists call a convection cell or convective flow.
Various plates interact in the following way,
- DIVERGENT BOUNDARIES:
- The plates move away from one another.
- A new crust is created, the site of seafloor spreading and rift valleys.
- E.g: Mid Atlantic Ridge where the American Plates are separated from the Eurasian and African Plates.
- CONVERGENT BOUNDARIES:
- One plate dives under the other.
- The crust is destroyed and often subduction zones are formed.
- Convergence can happen in three ways:
- Continent-Continent(Juan de Fuca oceanic plate is subducted beneath the North American continental plate.),
- Oceanic-Oceanic- Pacific plate subducts beneath the Philippine plate.
- Oceanic-Continental convergence- Nazca plate under the South American plate.
- TRANSFORM BOUNDARIES:
- Plates slide past each other.
- The crust is neither created nor destroyed, Faults are created.
- The site of sliding creates transform faults.
- E.g: Perpendicular zones to the mid-Atlantic ridge or crest.
- They result in Earthquakes.
Consequences of the India-Eurasian plate collision:
Indian plate collided with the Eurasian plate about 40-50 million years ago forming a convergent plate boundary. Leading to,
- Himalaya Formation: The subduction zone in the north of the Indian plate created these young fold mountain ranges.
- Arakan Mountains and the Java Trench Arc: were formed as an extension of the subduction zone in the eastern portion of the Indian plate.
- Oceanic Ridge in SW Pacific:was formed as the eastern boundary down south of the Indian plate. This is a spreading site.
- Kirthar Mountains: were formed in the northern Pakistan region, forming the western portions.
- Red Sea Rift extension: the western collision region joins the Red sea rift, an extension of the western portion.
- Antarctic Spreading Site: were formed, resulting in W-E extension ridges at the borders of the Indian and Antarctic plates.
- Deccan Traps: were formed due to lava outpour, about 60 million years ago. This resulted in the formation of the Deccan plateau.
- Indo-Gangetic Valley Formation: Tethys Sea disappeared due to a collision between the 2 plates. This resulted in the creation of a fertile Indo-Gangetic valley.
- Frequent earthquakes and landslides: due to the Indian Plate is currently moving north-east at five centimetres per year.
CONCLUSION: The overall plate tectonic theory together with the Seafloor spreading helped us understand the formation of continents and oceans across the world. This is significant in disaster management since it points out the sites of Earthquakes, volcanoes, and possible tsunamis.
Ethics:
Q3. How can social influence and persuasion change one’s attitude? Explain using suitable examples. 10M
Introduction
Social Influence generally looks at how Individual thoughts, actions, and feelings are influenced by social groups. Persuasion is a symbolic process in which communicators try to convince other people through the transmission of a message to change their attitudes or behaviors.
Body
“UjjwalaYojana’s Give it up campaign” is a persuasion tool utilized by the government. Seeing their close friends and family give up LPG subsidy if others get inspired then it’s social influence. Thus persuasion and social influence work in tandem to change one’s attitude.
Social influence and change in one’s attitude:
Social influence can take place through conformity, compliance, and obedience.
- Compliance: changes in an individual’s behavior that is the result of a direct request made to that individual.
- Example: In the workplace, a person sees discrimination against women employees, he has a positive attitude towards women but still, he does not oppose this discrimination. Compliance over an extended period can change the attitude of a person towards women.
- Conformity: is defined as the change in beliefs, opinions, and behaviors as a result of our own perceptions about what other people believe or do.
- Example-When a person moves from village to city, he may change his dressing style to conform to the urban dressing sense, leaving footwear outside the temple, etc
- Obedience: refers to behavior due to the rules and order given by authoritative figures.
- Example – Patriarchy dictates that a wife should always obey her husband. Thus changing the attitudes of people in this regard. A 2022 report by Pew research centre shows that nearly 9 out of 10 Indians agree with this notion.
Persuasion and change in attitude:
Persuasion is one form of social influence on attitude. It can occur through appeals to reason or appeals to emotion.
- Appeals to reason:
- Under the Domestic Efficient Lighting Programme (DELP) government urges people to replace incandescent and CFL bulbs to use LED lights by providing LED bulbs at an affordable price.
- Initiatives like Beti Bachao Beti Padhao by making parents understand it is necessary to protect and educate a girl child.
- Appeals to emotion:
- Maharashtra ATS’s de radicalization programme involved confronting youths through their loved one’s which helped them to reform.
- Advertisement campaigns targeting people to quit smoking, represented as smoking affecting their daughter and the joy of a healthy family.
Conclusion
Social influence and persuasion are important communication tools that can be effectively used to reform people’s attitudes in a positive way.
Case study: 20M
Q1.) You are recently posted as a special district officer in a tribal region. You have received clear instructions from your seniors that your posting will be for a short term of 6 months and your job is to ensure the covid-19-related protocols. The region consists of largely illiterate tribal groups who live by their own tribal laws. They are not in favour of covid-related restrictions. They lack a clear understanding of covid and don’t follow social distancing norms. Their yearly fair is due in a month and they are keen on celebrating it. Few educated youths from the group approach you asking you not to allow the fair as they fear the spread of covid. In the past there have been few instances of police excesses on them and their trust is not in your favour. Any forceful implementation of covid rules would lead to permanent loss of ties.
In this situation,
- What are the options available to you? Discuss their merits and demerits.
- How can one persuade attitudinal changes in people in a short period of time as you know that your posting will be for 6 months?
Introduction
The above situation poses a conflict between strictness vs laxity, attitudinal changes vs resentment of rules, awareness vs customs, disaster management vs traditions, and dedication to service vs lack of tenure. Here, there is a need to secure the cooperation of the tribal groups in following covid rules cordially without them feeling resentment about authorities tramping their traditions.
- Options available for me include
Strict implementation of covid rules, without any considerations for tribal customs
Another way would be to allow the tribal fair to continue and relax the required covid-related norms.
Both of the above are not suitable for the above situation. Therefore, the other option would be to
- Increase awareness about Corona Virus and its potential hazards to human health and the need for social distancing and covid related measures.
- Holding a meeting with the tribal leaders about the possibilities of postponing the annual fair or celebrating it individually at one’s house.
Thus there is a need to persuade the tribal groups and educate them about the virus.
Despite the demerits, appealing to one’s conscience and strengthening individual responsibility is a better option.
- Attitudes are views, beliefs, or evaluations of people about a particular object. These attitudes can be influenced through persuasion. Persuasion is a targeted appeal toward an individual by appealing to his reason or emotion.
To persuade someone to change his attitude in a short period requires four elements – Efficient persuader, target group, effective message, and medium. In short, who says, what, to whom through what means.
Efficient persuader: People tend to listen to the advice tendered by their close ones. Those we surround our self have the power to change our attitudes.Here, the educated youth from the tribal groups can be used to influence larger groups. They have the trust factor and can explain in vivid language.
Target group: We should know whom we are targeting. Our target should be specific. Here the target is to appeal to the conscience of the tribal groups; it’s not to target them as an individual. It is important to map the people we are targeting and target the more sympathetic ones first.
Effective message: The message should appeal emotionally and logically and target specific values and interests. Here, For eg: The message should be associated with bonding within the tribal groups and how the spread of Covid can affect their bonding with themselves and with nature. It can also involve a moderate appeal to fear. Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri’s slogan Jai Jawan Jai Kisan reverberates even today through the length and breadth of the country.
Effective medium:As tribals are mostly illiterate, modern media such as tv ,radio, and smartphones with audio and video messages can be effective. Door-to-door campaigns following social distancing norms can also be implemented. Traditional healers within the tribal society can be persuaded first and can be influenced to persuade others.
Villagers in the east Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh built their own quarantine huts made from eco-friendly Tokapatta and bamboo. This shows the awareness among the villagers. They can be persuaded in a short period, “Persuasion can go through obstacles that force cannot”
