Explanation: Mesons are subatomic particles found in cosmic rays. They are unstable particles composed of one quark and one antiquark, making them part of the hadron family. Mesons are produced when high-energy cosmic rays from outer space collide with atoms in the Earth's atmosphere. These collisions generate a variety of secondary particles, including pions and kaons (types of mesons). Mesons have very short lifespans and quickly decay into other particles such as muons and neutrinos.

Explanation: Tuberculosis (TB) is not a viral disease; it is caused by a bacterium called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. In contrast, Polio, Swine flu, and Hepatitis are viral diseases caused by different types of viruses.

Explanation: Saliva, secreted by the salivary glands, begins the process of carbohydrate digestion in the mouth. It contains the enzyme salivary amylase (also known as ptyalin), which catalyzes the breakdown of starch (polysaccharide) into maltose (disaccharide). This is the first step in digestion, and it occurs while food is chewed and mixed with saliva before being swallowed.

Chemical Reaction:

Starch → (Salivary amylase) → Maltose

Thus, saliva plays an essential role in the digestion of carbohydrates, making the food slightly sweet when chewed for a longer time.

The CPU (Central Processing Unit) is known as the brain of the computer. It performs all major operations such as processing data, executing instructions, and controlling other components. The CPU consists of two main parts — the Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU) for calculations and the Control Unit (CU) for directing operations.

• ALU: Handles arithmetic and logic operations only.
• Memory: Stores data and instructions, but doesn’t process them.
• Control Unit: Directs the flow of data but works as part of the CPU.

Explanation: The scientific name of Vitamin C is Ascorbic Acid. It is a water-soluble vitamin essential for the growth, repair, and maintenance of body tissues. Vitamin C acts as a powerful antioxidant and helps in the synthesis of collagen, absorption of iron, and boosting the immune system. A deficiency of Vitamin C leads to the disease Scurvy, characterized by bleeding gums, weakness, and delayed wound healing. Natural sources include citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, amla, and guava.

Explanation: PARAM 8000 is India's first supercomputer, developed in 1991 by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) under the leadership of Dr. Vijay Bhatkar. It marked India’s entry into high-performance computing and was capable of 1 GigaFLOP (one billion calculations per second).

Explanation: Cerebral malaria is a severe neurological complication of malaria infection caused by Plasmodium falciparum. The parasite infects red blood cells, making them sticky and causing them to block small blood vessels in the brain. This leads to high fever, seizures, coma, and can be fatal if untreated. Transmission occurs through the bite of an infected female Anopheles mosquito.

Explanation: The intensity of sound is measured in decibels (dB). The decibel is a logarithmic unit that expresses the ratio of a sound’s intensity compared to a reference level (usually the faintest sound the human ear can detect, known as the threshold of hearing). The higher the decibel value, the louder the sound. For example, normal conversation is around 60 dB, traffic noise is about 80–90 dB, and sounds above 120 dB can cause pain or hearing damage.

Explanation: The pituitary gland is a small, pea-sized endocrine gland located at the base of the brain, just beneath the hypothalamus. It is often called the "master gland" because it secretes several hormones (like growth hormone, TSH, FSH, LH, and prolactin) that control other endocrine glands and various physiological processes.