Table Of Content• Tara Chand ( Coordinator)
• Shabnam Johry • Tanushri Saxena • Renu Kathpalia
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General Science: For Civil Services Preliminary Examination—Paper I,
2e
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ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Dr Tara Chand
A former Dean of St Stephen’s College, University of Delhi, Dr Tara Chand
taught Physics in that college for over 36 years. He did his B.Sc (Hons),
M.Sc and Ph.D from the University of Delhi and his post-doctoral research at
the renowned Fermilab, Chicago, USA.
Dr Tara Chand has been the overall coordinator of McGraw Hill’s
bestselling manual General Studies: Paper I for Civil Services Preliminary
Examination since its inception in 1985. He has also contributed the Physics
portion in the manual. He closely follows the recent trends in the pattern of
the General Studies Paper.
Dr Shabnam Johry
D Shabnam Johry is an Associate Professor of Chemistry at St. Stephen’s
College, University of Delhi. She holds a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from
the University of Delhi. Dr Johry enjoys the honour of being the first lady
student of St. Stephen’s College to join the faculty of this esteemed
institution, and has a teaching experience of over 30 years in this college.
Dr Tanushri Saxena
D Tanushri Saxena is an Associate Professor of Zoology in Swami
Shraddhanand College of the University of Delhi where she has been
teaching for the past 20 years. She received her bachelor’s and master’s and
PhD degrees from the University of Delhi. She is a member of Indian Society
of General and Comparative Endocrinology and Asia and Oceania Society of
Comparative Endocrinology (Tokyo).
Dr Renu Kathpalia
Dr Renu Kathpalia is an Associate Professor in the Department of Botany,
Kirori Mal College, University of Delhi where she has been teaching for the
past 22 years. She did her M.Phil. and Ph.D from the University of Delhi.
PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION
T
he second, revised edition of General Science for Civil Services
Preliminary Examination Paper I has a total of nearly 260 new MCQs
distributed over the various sections. There are also solved questions related
to General Science from last years’ question papers (GS Paper I).
Each part has been dealt with by a subject expert related to the topic. The
text is carefully calibrated to meet the needs of the aspirants and the MCQs
are chosen after due thought.
It is hoped that this new edition will strengthen the fundamentals of
aspirants in various aspects of General Science and will ensure good scores in
the examination.
Our best wishes to the readers and we wish them all the best in their
endeavours!
T C
ARA HAND
S J
HABNAM OHRY
T S
ANUSHRI AXENA
R K
ENU ATHPALIA
PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION
S
cience is one of the important areas tested in the Civil Services
Preliminary Examination. This book has been written not only to help
aspirants acquire sound knowledge and understanding of general science, but
also to make this study stimulating, interesting and relevant. It presents
important and new developments in science in a way that makes it easier for
aspirants to understand.
Different parts of this book have been handled by the respective subject
expert so that each section is endowed with academic rigour. The new section
introduced in the syllabus, namely, ‘General Issue on Environmental
Ecology, Biodiversity and Climate Change’ has been comprehensively dealt
with by three authors who are experts on these subjects.
A section has been devoted to ‘New Technologies’, a topic which has
assumed importance in recent years.
This book presupposes only the knowledge of science typically attained in a
secondary school (tenth class) course. The text is concise and does not
contain any unnecessary details. A glossary of key terms is also included in
each section so that revision at a glance will be easy.
Each part is supplemented with multiple choice questions (MCQs) for
testing mastery of the concepts. These questions have been framed keeping in
mind the trend of application-oriented nature of questions being asked in the
examination. The pattern of MCQs followed in the question papers of the
years 2011 and 2012 has been adhered to in this book.
The unique feature of this book is that it deals with science involved in
everyday life. The aspirants will enjoy it because while preparing for their
examination they will become aware of the science behind various
phenomena occurring around them all the time. They will also be equipped
with information about the latest technologies.
The simple and student-friendly presentation will make this book a reliable
and trusted friend for aspirants preparing for the UPSC preliminary
examination and also various state service examinations. We hope they will
enjoy and benefit from the experience of learning general science as it is
presented in this book. Our best wishes are with them for success in their
endeavours.
T C
ARA HAND
S J
HABNAM OHRY
T S
ANUSHRI AXENA
R K
ENU ATHPALIA
ABOUT THE CIVIL SERVICES
EXAMINATION
The Civil Services examination comprises two successive stages:
(i) Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination (Objective Type) for the selection of candidates for Main
Examination; and
(ii) Civil Services (Main) Examination (Written and Interview) for the selection of candidates for the various
services and posts.
Scheme and subjects for the Preliminary and Main Examination.
A. Preliminary Examination
The Examination shall comprise two compulsory Papers of 200 marks each.
Note:
(i) Both the question papers will be of the objective type (multiple choice questions).
(ii) The question papers will be set both in Hindi and English. However, questions relating to English Language
Comprehension Skills of Class X level will be tested through passages from English language only without
providing Hindi translation thereof in the question paper.
B. Main Examination
The written examination will consist of the following papers:
Qualifying Papers:
Paper A: (One of the Indian Language to be selected by the candidate from the
Languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution). 300 Marks
Paper B: English 300 Marks
The papers on Indian Languages and English (Paper A and Paper B) will be
of Matriculation or equivalent standard and will be of qualifying nature. The
marks obtained in these papers will not be counted for ranking.
Papers to be counted for merit
Paper I: Essay 250 Marks
Paper II: General Studies–I 250 Marks
(Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and
Society)
Paper III: General Studies –II 250 Marks
