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Below I am posting notes of 13th September 2020 from The Hindu, PIB, Indian Express etc…hope they might give you some insights regarding notes making.Source: Telegram Channel: Prelims Specific Notes for IAS (these are key words to be used in the search bar of the Telegram App).Prelims Specific Analysis: 13th September 2020The Hindu, PIB, IE and OthersIndexIndices/Committees/Reports/Organisations1. Global Economic Freedom Index 2020 (livemint)2. Shanghai Cooperation Organisation | A counter-coalition of Eurasian powers (TH, pg 12)Geography, Environment and Biodiversity3. Ecological Threat Register (DTE)Schemes/Policies/Initiatives/Social Issues4. Bharat Craft Portal (livemint)5. Integrated Road Accident Database Project (iRAD) (PIB)International Relations6. India’s Logistics Agreements (TH, pg 7)7. Open trading border posts between India and China (TH, pg 1)Science and Technology; Defence8. Indian Brain Template (PIB)9. Methane Hydrate Deposits (PIB)10. Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV) (TH, pg 11)11. Some of the ground-breaking inventions and innovators who have made the hand-held fast, versatile computers possible (TH, pg 11)Economy12. Singapore Convention on Mediation comes into force (TH, pg 9)Art, Culture and History13. National School of Drama (PIB)Indices/Committees/Reports/OrganisationsGlobal Economic Freedom Index 2020 (livemint)Context: India’s rank in the Global Economic Freedom Index 2020 dropped 26 spots from 79 to 105 among 162 countries and territories, according to the Economic Freedom of the World: 2020 Annual Report released recently.AnalysisThe report, prepared by Canada’s Fraser Institute, was released in India in collaboration with New Delhi-based think tank Centre For Civil Society.The report measures the ‘economic freedom’, or the ability of individuals to make their own economic decisions in a country, by analysing policies and institutions of these countries.It does so by looking at indicators like regulations, the freedom to trade internationally, size of government, property rights, government spending and taxation.In India, the report was co-published by Delhi-based Centre for Civil Society.According to the 2020 report, India performed worse in terms of size of government, regulations and the freedom to trade internationally.China ranked worse than India overall and was positioned at 124 on the index.The ranking is based on 2018 data, newer restrictions on international trade, tightening of the credit market due to NPAs and the impact of Covid-19 on debt and deficits were not reflected in India’s score.Hong Kong and Singapore retain the top two positions.Shanghai Cooperation Organisation | A counter-coalition of Eurasian powers (TH, pg 12)The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is a permanent intergovernmental organisation.The SCO grew out of the Shanghai Five grouping — of Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan — which was set up in 1996 to resolve boundary disputes between China and each of the four other members.It admitted Uzbekistan in 2001, re-christened itself the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and broadened its agenda to include political, economic and security cooperation.In June 2017 in Astana (the capital city of Kazakhstan), India and Pakistan became full members of the Organization.The admission of India and Pakistan has expanded the geographical, demographic and economic profile of the SCO, which now has about half the world’s population and a quarter of its GDP.The SCO has four observer States: Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran and Mongolia.The SCO has six dialogue partners: Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, Turkey, and Sri Lanka.The Heads of State Council (HSC) is the supreme decision-making body in the SCO which meets once a year.The organisation has two permanent bodies — the SCO Secretariat based in Beijing and the Executive Committee of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) based in Tashkent.The SCO Secretary-General and the Director of the Executive Committee of the SCO RATS are appointed by the Council of Heads of State for a term of three years.The SCO's official languages are Russian and Chinese.Shanghai Cooperation Organization sometimes also referred as ‘Eastern NATO’.The SCO's main goals are as follows:strengthening mutual trust and neighbourliness among the member states;promoting their effective cooperation in politics, trade, the economy, research, technology and culture, as well as in education, energy, transport, tourism, environmental protection, and other areas;making joint efforts to maintain and ensure peace, security and stability in the region; andmoving towards the establishment of a democratic, fair and rational new international political and economic order.Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) of the SCO – It coordinates cooperation for security and stability, through intelligence-sharing on criminal and terrorist activities.India will host the meeting of Council of Heads of Government in 2020.U.S. and Europe called it the “Anti-NATO” for proposing military cooperation.In 2005, the Astana declaration called for SCO countries to work on a “joint SCO response to situations that threaten peace, security and stability in the region”.Geography, Environment and BiodiversityEcological Threat Register (DTE)The Ecological Threat Register (ETR) covers around 157 independent states and territories.Produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP), the ETR measures ecological threats that countries are currently facing and provides projections to 2050.The ETR is unique in that it combines measures of resilience with the most comprehensive ecological data available to shed light on the countries least likely to cope with extreme ecological shocks, now and into the future.The IEP's Positive Peace framework is used to identify areas where resilience is unlikely to be strong enough to adapt or cope with these future shocks.The ETR clusters threats into two major domains: resource scarcity and natural disasters.The resource scarcity domain includes food insecurity, water scarcity and high population growth.The natural disaster domain measures the threat of floods, droughts, cyclones, sea level rise and rising temperatures.The ETR identifies three clusters of ecological hotspots, which are particularly susceptible to collapse:The Sahel-Horn belt of Africa, from Mauritania to Somalia;The Southern African belt, from Angola to Madagascar;The Middle East and Central Asian belt, from Syria to Pakistan.Within these hotspots the most fragile countries will include Iran, Mozambique, Madagascar, Pakistan and Kenya.Schemes/Policies/Initiatives/Social IssuesBharat Craft Portal (livemint)More than a year after being announced, the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME)’s proposal to create an online e-marketplace similar to Amazon, which would be open to all consumers, is yet to take off due to lack of a business plan, the unavailability of a technology partner, and shortage of funds.Officially set to be the government’s first foray into the private sector, initial estimates had eyed ~10 trillion worth of revenue from the project over a period of 2-3 years. But subsequent studies have shown the real figures may be substantially lower.While the primary mandate remains an e-marketplace for showcasing products by tribal, rural, and small businesses, market surveys showed buyer interest may remain muted for such products.Instead, online primary consumer activity remains focused on brands and bargain hunting, key attributes that products on the platform may not have.Integrated Road Accident Database Project (iRAD) (PIB)The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways is in the process of implementing ‘Integrated Road Accident Database Project (iRAD)’ which will be applicable across the country.In the first instance, it has been decided to implement the proposal in six States, viz. Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.The development and implementation of iRAD has been entrusted to lIT Madras and National Informatics Centre Services Inc.This project is proposed on IT based system for capturing the spot accident data using mobile app configured for this purpose.This data can then be utilized for various purposes like finding the causes of the accidents and remedial measures to improve the road infrastructure, to record the accidents data for the use of police, health services and other concerned departments.International RelationsIndia’s Logistics Agreements (TH, pg 7)Context: After concluding a logistics support agreement with Japan in September 2020, India is now working on three such agreements with Russia, the U.K. and Vietnam.AnalysisIndia now has military logistics agreements with all Quad countries, Australia, Japan and the U.S., significantly improving interoperability as they also operate several common military platforms.India has been signing MLSAs with countries primarily eyeing deeper maritime cooperation which is important considering China's rapid military expansionism in the Indo-Pacific, Indian Ocean and South China Sea.India has already signed such agreements with a few countries beginning with the U.S.India signed the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Understanding (LEMOA) with the U.S. in August 2016 after decade-long negotiations.After India signed the foundational agreement Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA) with the U.S., it got access to encrypted communication systems for seamless communication.As part of this, in March 2019 the Navy and U.S. Navy signed a loan agreement and installed two Pacific fleet provided CENTRIXS (Combined Enterprise Regional Information Exchange System) kits at the Indian Navy headquarters.Since then, it has concluded several such agreements with Australia, France, Oman, the Philippines and Singapore and gained access to the Sabang port in Indonesia.In June 2020, India and Australia signed the long pending Mutual Logistics Support (MLSA), elevated their partnership to Comprehensive Strategic partnership, and also announced a joint declaration on a shared vision for maritime cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.The logistics pact with Japan, Reciprocal Provision of Supplies and Services between armed forces, was signed in September. India and Japan have already signed an implementing arrangement for deeper cooperation between the Navy and the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force (JMSDF).Logistics AgreementsLogistics agreements are administrative arrangements facilitating access to military facilities for exchange of fuel and provisions on mutual agreement, simplifying logistical support and increasing operational turnaround of the military away from India.The biggest beneficiary of the logistics pacts has been the Navy which interacts and exercises the most with foreign navies.When operating on the high seas, exercises or during humanitarian assistance missions fuel, food and other needs can be exchanged and settled through the established modalities later.Open trading border posts between India and China (TH, pg 1)India-China standoff casts a shadow on Nathu La border trade.While the pandemic stalled business this year, the 200 traders from Sikkim fear LAC tensions may affect their work next year too.Nathu La is one of the three open trading border posts between India and China; the other two being Shipkila in Himachal Pradesh and Lipulekh (or Lipulech) in Uttarakhand.Science and Technology; DefenceIndian Brain Template (PIB)Context: An Indian brain template for five distinct age groups as well as a brain atlas to help accurate assessment of psychiatric illnesses and conduct neuro-surgical operations have been developed by neuroscientists at the Bengaluru-based National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS).AnalysisThe neuroscientists studied over 500 brain scans of Indian patients to develop five sets of templates and a brain atlas for five age groups covering late childhood to late adulthood (six to 60 years).The significance of this study is that neuroscientists need not be dependent upon the current universal standard of using the Montreal Neurological Index (MNI) template.The MNI was developed by averaging Caucasian brains. Over a period of time, neuroscientists discovered that Caucasian brains are different from Asian brains.Scientists from across the world have been pointing out that there are significant variations in the location of key brain regions and the density of neurons in various brain areas between racial types.Drawing from this, several countries, including China, South Korea and Canada, have brain templates of their population.The project is funded by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the Newton Grant from the Medical Research Council (MRC), UK.What is a Brain Template?Database of brain images from Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), when compiled together, results in the so-called Brain Template (BT).Methane Hydrate Deposits (PIB)Context: Scientists have said that the massive methane hydrate deposits of biogenic origin in the Krishna-Godavari (KG) basin and near the coast of Andaman and Mahanadi make it necessary to study the associated methanogenic community.Even the lowest estimate of methane present in the methane hydrates in KG Basin is twice that of all fossil fuel reserves available worldwide.AnalysisMethane hydrate deposits are believed to be a larger hydrocarbon resource than all of the world's oil, natural gas and coal resources combined.The current challenge is to inventory this resource and find safe, economical ways to develop it.What is Methane Hydrate?Methane hydrate is a crystalline solid that consists of a methane molecule surrounded by a cage of interlocking water molecules.Methane hydrate is an "ice" that only occurs naturally in subsurface deposits where temperature and pressure conditions are favorable for its formation.Most methane hydrate deposits also contain small amounts of other hydrocarbon hydrates.These include propane hydrate and ethane hydrate.Where are the Methane Hydrate Deposits?Four Earth environments have the temperature and pressure conditions suitable for the formation and stability of methane hydrate. These are:sediment and sedimentary rock units below Arctic permafrost;sedimentary deposits along continental margins;deep-water sediments of inland lakes and seas; and,under Antarctic ice.With the exception of the Antarctic deposits, methane hydrate accumulations are not very deep below Earth's surface.In most situations the methane hydrate is within a few hundred meters of the sediment surface.How are Methane Hydrates produced?Methane gas is primarily formed by microorganisms (methanogens) that live in the deep sediment layers and slowly convert organic substances to methane.These organic materials are the remains of plankton that lived in the ocean long ago, sank to the ocean floor, and were finally incorporated into the sediments.Methane hydrate is formed when hydrogen-bonded water and methane gas come into contact at high pressures and low temperatures in oceans.But with increasing depth into the thick sediment layers on the sea floor, the temperatures begin to rise again because of the proximity to the Earth’s interior. In sediment depths greater than about 1 kilometre the temperatures rise to over 30 degrees Celsius, so that no methane hydrates can be deposited.This, however, is where the methane formation is especially vigorous.First, small methane gas bubbles are produced deep within the sediment.These then rise and are transformed to methane hydrates in the cooler pore waters near the sea floor.So, the methane is formed in the deep warm sediment horizons and is converted and consolidated as methane hydrate in the cold upper sediment layers.No methane hydrates are found in marginal seas and shelf areas because the pressure at the sea floor is not sufficient to stabilize the hydrates.At the bottom of the expansive ocean basins, on the other hand, where the pressure is great enough, scarcely any hydrates are found because there is insufficient organic matter embedded in the deep-sea sediments.The reason for this is that in the open sea the water is comparatively nutrient poor, so that little biomass is produced to sink to the sea floor.Methane hydrates therefore occur mainly near the continental margins at water depths between 350 and 5000 metres.For one reason, enough organic material is deposited in the sediments there, and for another, the temperature and pressure conditions are favourable for methane to be converted to methane hydrates.Greenhouse gas formationAt low temperatures the methane hydrates on the sea floor are stable, but if the water and the sea floor become warmer, then the hydrates can break down.Because microorganisms then oxidize the resulting methane gas to form the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2), methane hydrates have recently become a topic of intense discussion within the context of climate change.Methane, which itself acts as a strong greenhouse gas, does not escape directly out of the sea as methane because it is transformed into CO2.But the formation and release of carbon dioxide are considerable.An additional problem is that the oxygen in seawater is consumed through the formation of carbon dioxide.Many bacteria use methane to provide energy for their meta­bolism. Some bacteria break the methane down with the help of oxygen. This is called aerobic oxidation. Other bacteria do not need oxygen. This kind of oxidation is called anaerobic.Scientists therefore fear that large quantities of methane hydrate will melt there in the future, releasing increased amounts of CO2 into the ocean and the atmosphere. The oxygen content of the seawater will decrease accordingly.Furthermore, the CO2 released not only contributes to further global warming, it also leads to acidification of the oceans.Ocean acidification is the name given to the ongoing decrease in the pH and increase in acidity of the Earth's oceans, caused by the uptake of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere.Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV) (TH, pg 11)Context: The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) recently successfully flight tested the Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV) – an unmanned scramjet vehicle with a capability to travel at six times the speed of sound, making India the fourth country in the world after the US, China and Russia to develop such technology.AnalysisThe test was conducted using the Agni missile. A solid rocket motor of Agni missile was used to take to an altitude of 30 kilometers where the cruise vehicle separated from the launch vehicle and the air intake opened as planned.(Just for understanding!) On the D-day, a launch vehicle, which was derived from Agni 1 missile, rose from its launch pad in Odisha, carrying the HSTDV.The Agni 1 booster climbed to a height of 30 km in 12 seconds at a speed of Mach 5.6.When the launch vehicle reached an altitude of 30 km, the air intake ducts in the scramjet engine opened just before the launch vehicle separated smoothly.At 30 km altitude, the cruise vehicle’s nose cone split in two and fell off. Besides, the heat shield covering the cruiser was jettisoned. All these events took place in micro seconds.Air from the atmosphere was then rammed into the scramjet engine’s combustion chamber at a supersonic speed.The air mixed with the atomised fuel, the fuel was ignited and the scramjet engine revved into action.The HSTDV flew for the next 20 seconds at a hypersonic speed of Mach six and fell 40 km away in the Bay of Bengal. The mission was a success.Indigenous technologyThe centrepiece of the HSTDV was the indigenously developed air-breathing scramjet engine, which formed the HSTDV’s propulsion system. If the mission’s aim was to prove this scramjet engine in flight, it was achieved.In a scramjet engine, air from the atmosphere is rammed into the engine’s combustion chamber at a supersonic speed of more than Mach two.In the chamber, the air mixes with the fuel to ignite a supersonic combustion but the cruiser’s flight will be at a hypersonic speed of Mach six to seven. So, it is called supersonic combustion ramjet or Scramjet.ApplicationsThis successful test will pave the way for missiles that can travel at six times the speed of sound.Apart from being used as a vehicle for hypersonic and long-range cruise missiles, the HSTDV is a dual-use technology that will have multiple civilian applications, including the launch of small satellites at low cost.Mastering the air-breathing scramjet technology will lead to the development of hypersonic missiles, faster civilian air transportation and facilities for putting satellites into orbit at a low cost.The hypersonic vehicle and its scramjet engineThe scramjets are a variant of a category of jet engines called the air breathing engines.The ability of engines to handle airflows of speeds in multiples of speed of sound, gives it a capability of operating at those speeds.Hypersonic speeds are those which are five times or more than the speed of sound (Mach 5 or more).Hypersonic nuclear missilesHypersonic missiles travel at speeds faster than 3,800 miles per hour or 6,115 km per hour, much faster than other ballistic and cruise missiles.They can deliver conventional or nuclear payloads within minutes.They are highly manoeuvrable and do not follow a predictable arc as they travel.They are said to combine the speed of ballistic missiles with the manoeuvring capabilities of cruise missiles.The speed makes them hard to track compared to traditional missile tech.In March this year, the United States announced it had successfully tested an unarmed prototype of a hypersonic missile.Some of the ground-breaking inventions and innovators who have made the hand-held fast, versatile computers possible (TH, pg 11)FORTRAN or Formula Translation: This translated the binary language (0 and 1) of digital computers into everyday language that can be understood and used by all.Integrated Circuits or ICs: Until they were invented, signals were amplified using vacuum tubes. Invention of transistors reduced the size, and power consumption of amplifiers. This caused a revolution in information technology, because using these could actually make a fully integrated complex electronic circuit on a single silicon chip.Relational Database Management System, or RDBMS: Earlier, these files were stored in magnetic tapes, then in floppy discs and now in CDs and pen drives.Local Area Networks (or LANs): A wireless broadcast system to interconnect computers.Ethernet: It allows multiple computers to share and exchange messages and files through cable connections.Public Key Cryptography: To open your phone or a computer, you need a passcode, which is secure and known only to you. And when a bank or a sender sends you a ‘confidential’ message, they too send a secure passcode (e.g., OTP). This aspect is what is known as an encryption system. This public key cryptography is one of the Innovations.Computer Graphics: These are built-in programs that not only allow you to take photographs, movies and send them using applications like WhatsApp, Facetime and such.EconomySingapore Convention on Mediation comes into force (TH, pg 9)Context: The Singapore Convention on Mediation came into force recently (September 2020) and will provide a more effective way for enforcing mediated settlements of corporate disputes involving businesses in India and other countries that are signatories to the Convention.AnalysisAlso known as the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation, this is also the first UN treaty to be named after Singapore.With the Convention in force, businesses seeking enforcement of a mediated settlement agreement across borders can do so by applying directly to the courts of countries that have signed and ratified the treaty, instead of having to enforce the settlement agreement as a contract in accordance with each country’s domestic process.The harmonised and simplified enforcement framework under the Convention translates to savings in time and legal costs, which is important for businesses in times of uncertainty, such as during the current COVID-19 pandemic.As on September 1, the Convention has 53 signatories, including India, China and the U.S.The Convention would boost India’s ‘ease of doing business’ credentials by enabling swift mediated settlements of corporate disputes.Art, Culture and HistoryNational School of Drama (PIB)The National School of Drama (NSD) is foremost theatre training institutions in the world.Established in 1959, the National School of Drama is the only one of its kind in India and is an autonomous organization, fully financed by the Ministry of Culture.One of the foremost theatre training institution in the world, NSD was incepted under the aegis of the Sangeet Natak Akademi and became an independent entity in 1975.National School of Drama had been declared as deemed university by University Grant Commission in 2005.However, National School of Drama has requested the government to declare it as institute of national importance and therefore status of deemed university was not accepted.It is one of the major organisations involved in preservation and propagation of the 13 Intangible cultural heritage (ICH) elements from India that have been inscribed till date on the UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.In 2019, NSD was ranked 14th among the best film schools in the world by CEOWORLD Magazine of the USA.

Hi, there is a newly formed facebook group ‘Anglosphere Federationists’.From the About section“This is a forum in which to explore and debate ideas regarding the mutual advantages in having the economically developed and predominantly English-speaking nations of the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand form a federation. This is also a space in which to discuss how such a federation may be achieved. Our six nations share common liberal democratic values, an historic and linguistic heritage, and similar Common Law legal systems. A federation of Anglosphere nations would enhance our strategic defence as well as reduce the regulatory costs and limitations on trade and migration between our countries. We live in uncertain times in which our institutions are proving to be sclerotic and in need of structural change and repair. They are not equipped to steer us through this age of automation, climate change, the rise of China and populist movements. For decades short-term economic gains have taken precedence over sustainable development and long-term defence strategy. We are now experiencing the costs associated with those decisions. Together we can build something strong and lasting, but if we remain divided our economic and defence prospects are potentially bleak. Let us begin a conversation to unite the Anglosphere.”From the Annoucements section“In this contribution I will not be discussing the significant personal, military, and economic benefits that would be brought about by an Anglosphere Federation. My one and only concern here is to demonstrate that it is possible to imagine an Anglosphere federal constitution that is deemed acceptable to many people in each of the 6 core anglosphere nations (the UK, US, Canada, Australia, Republic of Ireland and New Zealand). In time and with the right advocacy it may even be possible to convince a majority.…This political system I describe below fuses American separation of powers and checks and balances between branches of government with Australian electoral systems, the monarchy of the Commonwealth Realms and a bill of rights. It also includes new intergovernmental checks and balances as well as judicial selection and amendment procedures.…The US Constitution as a templateRather than drafting a constitution from scratch I use the US constitution as a template and then discuss the important differences between the US constitution and the political system I imagine. While there are problems with the current US political system, these are mainly related to:-the electoral and judicial selection procedures employed leading to gerrymandering, disproportional misrepresentation (facilitating a 2 party zero-sum adversarial politics), and an overconcentration of power at the federal level,-campaign finance laws (allowing powerful economic interests to buy elections),-short two-year House of Representatives term lengths (encouraging politicians to be short term oriented) and-the lack of an apolitical monarch to foster national unity.The basic skeletal framework of the US constitution is second to none.…The Anglosphere Federation would initially consist of 90 states. These states would be divided among 15 regions:- England (Northumbria, Mercia, East Anglia, Kent, Essex, Sussex, Wessex & Dumnonia),- the Celtic States (the Scottish Highlands, the Scottish Lowlands, Wales, Ulster, Munster, Connacht & Leinster),- Australia (Capricornia [norther Queensland, north of the tropic of Capricorn], Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia, Arnhemland [currently the Northern Territory], Western Australia)-Cascadia (Victoria, Tasmania, New Zealand [the North Island] & New Munster [New Zealand’s South Island])- Western Canada (Alaska, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan & Alberta),- Quebec (Bas-Saint-Laurent [consisting of what are currently the administrative regions of Bas-Saint-Laurent, Gaspesie-Iles-de-la-Madeleine, and Chaudiere-Appalaches], Nord-du-Quebec [consisting of what are currently the administrative regions of Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Capitale-Nationale, Cote-Nord, and Nord-du-Quebec], Outaouais [consisting of what are currently the administrative regions of Outaouais and Abitibi-Temiscamingue], Montreal [consisting of what are currently the administrative regions of Mauricie, Montreal, Laval, Lanaudiere, and Laurentides], & Estrie [consisting of what are currently the administrative regions Estrie, Monteregie, and Centre-du-Quebec])- the Pacific (Washington, Oregon, Northern California [north of the 36th parallel], Southern California [South of the 36th parallel] & Hawaii),- the Mountain West (Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah & Nevada),- the Southwest (Arizona, New Mexico, Texas & Oklahoma),- the Midwest (North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri & Iowa),- the Great Lakes (Ontario, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana & Ohio),- New England (Newfoundland & Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island & Connecticut),- the Mid-Atlantic States (New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland & Delaware),- Appalachia (Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee & North Carolina),- the Deep South (South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana & Arkansas).…Below the state level there would be a single level of local government (like Australian local council areas).…The federal constitution would include the state and local systems of government (much like how the provincial and federal constitutions of Canada are contained in the single codified and entrenched Canadian constitutional document). Conformity to a single proportional electoral system for state elections is necessary given how central the state legislatures are in federal privy council and federal senate elections as well as federal supreme court and regional court selection procedures (discussed later in this post). Consequently, allowing each state to choose its own electoral regime would jeopardise the proportionality of the Senate and the ideological representativeness of supreme and regional justices. Furthermore, allowing each state to choose its own electoral systems for federal elections would create a perverse incentive to choose non-PR systems. Non-PR regimes produce exaggerated electoral swings. Therefore, parties and politicians would be encouraged to direct more attention and investment toward those states with non-PR systems so as to reap exaggerated electoral gains.…The Anglosphere federation would have a four-year election cycle:…Year 1- Federal House of Representative elections. Members of the HoR would be elected using Tasmania’s multi-member-district Hare-Clark system (a version of Single Transferable Vote employing the Droop Quota, Robson Rotation and the classical Gregory system of surplus redistribution) for four-year terms.- Federal Senate elections. Senators would be elected using a modified version of the Hare-Clark system (explained later) for 6-year terms. One third of Senators would be elected every 2 years.- Federal Privy Council elections. The Federal Privy Council would be elected using a modified version of the Alternative Vote system (explained later) for 4-year terms. 15 Privy Council candidates would be chosen by each candidate for Chancellor (a position like the US President). Voters would not elect the Chancellor directly. Instead, electors would choose among Privy Council Tickets. The 15 Privy Councillors of the successful ticket would then advise the Monarch as to whom they should swear in as Chancellor for the next 4-year term. Obviously, the councillors would advise the monarch to choose the candidate who placed them on the successful ticket. They will also advise the monarch whom they should appoint as Vice-Chancellor.…Year 2- Electors of each school district would elect 9 School District Board Members using the Hare-Clark system (thus the Droop Quota would be 10%) for 4-year terms.- Electors of each region would elect 5 Regional Commissioners using the Hare-Clark system (hence the Droop Quota would be 16.6r%) for 6-year terms every 2 years. Therefore, each regional commission would comprise 15 commissioners.…Year 3- Unicameral State Legislatures would be elected every 4 years using the Hare-Clark system.- State Privy Council elections. State Privy Councils would be elected using the Alternative Vote system for 4-year terms. 15 State Privy Council candidates would be chosen by each candidate for State Governor (a position like the Governors of US States). Voters would not elect the Governor directly. Instead, electors would choose among State Privy Council Tickets. The 15 State Privy Councillors of the successful ticket then advise the Monarch’s Viceroy to the state as to whom they should swear in as Governor for the next 4-year term. Obviously, the councillors would advise the Viceroy to choose the candidate who placed them on the successful ticket. They would also advice the Viceroy whom they should appoint to the position of Lieutenant Governor. Governors would advise the monarch whom they should appoint as Viceroy for their state. Viceregal terms would ordinarily last 5 years.- Federal Senate elections. Senators would be elected using a modified version of the Hare-Clark system (explained later) for 6-year terms. One third of Senators would be elected every 2 years.…Year 4- Electors of each local council area would elect 9 Local Councillors using the Hare-Clark system (thus the Droop Quota would be 10%) for 4-year terms.- Electors of each region would elect 5 Regional Commissioners using the Hare-Clark system (hence the Droop Quota would be 16.6r%) for 6-year terms every 2 years. Therefore, each regional commission would comprise 15 commissioners.…Size of State legislatures would depend on state populations:- Small states of less than 500,000 residents (according to the last census) would have state legislatures composed of 35 members (7 state legislative electoral districts each electing 5 members)- Medium states of between 500,000 and 1,500,000 residents (according to the last census) would have state legislatures composed of 75 members (15 state legislative electoral districts each electing 5 members)- Large states of between 1,500,000 and 5,000,000 residents (according to the last census) would have state legislatures composed of 150 members (25 state legislative electoral districts each electing 6 members)- Giant states of more than 5,000,000 residents (according to the last census) would have state legislatures composed of 350 members (50 state legislative electoral districts each electing 7 members)…The federation’s judicial hierarchy would be as follows:- A Federal Supreme Court- Regional Courts (one per region)- State High Courts (one per state)- District Courts- Magistrates Courts…State High Court Justice appointments would be nominated by state governors and confirmed by state legislatures.The number of justices on a State’s High Court would be dependent on that States population: small states 3 justices, medium states 5, large states 7 and giant states 9.…Regional Courts would be composed of 9 justices. When a seat on a regional court becomes vacant the state governors of that region would have a set amount of time to each nominate a replacement. State legislators of that region would then elect one of these nominations to become a regional court justice. The Alternative Vote would be the electoral system employed. Valid votes cast (under secret ballot conditions) would be weighted so that each state within that region has an equal say. For example, if state legislators of the region of New England were voting to fill a seat on their regional court and all 35 of P.E.I’s and all 350 of Massachusetts’s state legislators cast valid votes, then the votes cast by individual P.E.I state legislators would be weighted such they were worth 10 times the votes cast by individual Massachusetts state legislators. Regional Court Justices could be impeached by the House of Reps and tried and removed by the Senate in the same process as Supreme Court Justices.…Composition of the Federal Supreme CourtEach region would be represented by one Federal Supreme Court Justice. When there are vacancies to be filled on the Supreme Court bench the regions that have lost their representation would choose replacements using the exact same process as if they were selecting a replacement for a vacancy on their regional court.…Composition of the Federal House of RepresentativesThe number of members of the HoRs would be equal to 15 times the number of states. Therefore, initially the number of House members would be 1,350. These members would be distributed between states and territories (all territories combined would be considered a single state for the purposes of this distribution) as follows:- Step 1 – twice as many members as there are states would be taken from the overall number of members. The remaining members would be given the value of X.- Step 2 – X members would be distributed between states based on population, while guaranteeing each state at least one member.- Step 3 – Each state would be allocated an additional 2 members.These members would then be divided into multimember electoral districts within each state.- If a state is allocated between 3 and 7 members, the entire state would become a single HoRs electoral district.- If a state is allocated 8 members, the state would be divided into two equally sized electoral districts, each electing 4 members.- If a state is allocated 9 members, the state would be divided into two electoral districts, one electing 4 members the other electing 5.- If a state is allocated 10 or more members of the HoRs, the state would be divided into as few electoral districts as possible while adhering to the following caveats:- no district would be represented by more than 7 or fewer than 5 members, and- the difference in district magnitude between the largest and smallest districts within a state would not exceed 1 member (i.e. 5 and 7 membered federal HoRs districts could not exist within the same state for the same HoRs term).…Composition of the Federal SenateThe number of Senators would be equal to three times the number of states. Senate elections would take place every two years and one third of senate seats would be contested at each senate election. Senators would be elected from regions (each its own senate district) rather than states. The number of senators elected from each region at senate elections would be equal to the number of states in that region. Furthermore, the valid votes cast within each region for senate elections would be weighted to ensure each state within that region had equal voting power and that the aggregate voting power of valid votes cast by state legislators within each state would be equal to the aggregate power of the valid votes cast by regular electors within each state. All votes would be cast under secret ballot conditions, including those cast by state legislators.…Federal Privy Council electionsAs explained earlier the federal Chancellor (a position like the US President) would not be directly elected. Instead, each candidate for chancellor would assemble a privy council ticket composed of 15 of their most trusted supporters. Voters would choose between these privy council tickets using a modified version of the Alternative Vote (AV) method (in Australia AV is often referred to a Preferential Voting and, in the US, as Ranked Choice Voting). The privy council elected would then advise the monarch as to whom they should appoint as chancellor and vice-chancellor for the next fixed four-year term. If the Chancellor dies, resigns or is removed the Vice-Chancellor (a position like the US Vice-President) would ascend to Chancellor and the Privy Council would advise the monarch as to whom they should appoint to the position of Vice-Chancellor. The AV system employed to elect the privy council every four years would be modified such that the aggregate voting power of state legislators would be equal to the aggregate voting power of the regular electors within any state. That is, the value assigned to valid votes cast by state legislators would be determined by dividing the number of valid votes cast by regular electors in a state by the number of valid votes cast by that state’s state legislators. Both state legislators and regular electors would cast their votes under secret ballot conditions.…VacanciesNo by-elections (special-elections in the US) would be necessary under this system. Vacancies among positions elected using Hare-Clark (members of state legislatures, the federal HoRs, regional commissions, school boards and local councils) or a modified version of Hare-Clark (federal senators) would be filled by counting back the votes cast at the previous election in the same way as vacancies are currently filled among Hare-Clark elected legislative positions in Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory. Vacancies among state and federal privy councillors would be filled by royal appointment following advice from the relevant state governor or the Federal Chancellor.…Division of PowersThe division of powers would be based on American and/or Australian division of powers in which residual powers are reserved to the states (in Canada residual powers are currently reserved to the Federal govt). Local councils would have only those powers devolved to them by state governments. Regional commissions would have only powers devolved to them by the federal government and these would be strictly of an executive nature. That is, regional commissions would be barred from passing their own primary legislation.…TaxesThe federal government would have the sole power to raise revenues from income, goods and services, land value, financial transaction and pigouvian taxes. However, state legislators would determine how much federal tax revenue would be distributed between state governments in untied grants each financial year. That is, before a given date, state legislators would each cast a ballot on which they had written a dollar figure they believe the federal government should provide state governments in untied grants during the next financial year. The median dollar amount among the votes cast by state legislators within a particular state would become that state’s preferred dollar amount. For the purposes of determining which state’s preferred amount would prevail, it would be deemed that each state casts a number of votes for their preferred dollar amount equal to the state’s number of federal House of Representatives members. The median dollar amount among the votes cast by states would be the amount that would ultimately prevail. This amount would be distributed between states (over the course of the financial year) based on the population of each state. These constitutional laws regarding tax revenue and allocation would be designed to prevent a race to the bottom while maintaining the autonomy of states through substantial untied grants.…The Constitutional Amendment procedureA successful constitutional amendment must:- first, be proposed in, and passed by a state legislature,- second, be supported by two thirds of the state legislatures within four years of being passed by the initial state legislature, and- third, be ratified at a referendum in which both a majority of valid votes are cast in favour of the proposed amendment and at least one third of the valid votes within each region are cast in favour of the proposed amendment.…Bill of RightsThe Constitutional Bill of Rights of the Anglosphere federation would be based on rights present in the English, American, Canadian and New Zealand bills/charters of rights and would include both negative and positive liberties, including a right to taxpayer funded universal healthcare.”

No. On the contrary we now know definitively that mutations are absolutely not random. The whole impossible idea of random damage being an improvement was a bad guess from some 80 years ago, made by people who had no clue about genetics yet. It was largely disproven within a decade, but the pervasive myth of “random copy errors” was taught in schools until 6 years ago due to a powerful group of dogmatically materialistic scientists.Almost immediately after the rise to power of the so-called “Modern Synthesis” of the 1930’s, Nobel Prize winner Barbara McClintock discovered transposition, a distinctly non-random form of genetic change. She made the groundbreaking discovery that when you put an organism under stress, it makes strategic genetic changes. Her discovery was so contrary to the Neo-Darwinian dogma that she was roundly rejected and scorned.Finally, many decades later, she was awarded the Nobel in 1983 when she could not be denied any longer. In her Nobel speech she noted that cells are smart and able to intentionally edit their genomes, as the Darwinian orthodoxy groaned.Barbara McClintock - WikipediaWe have known for many decades that cells communicate using both electrical signaling codes and through encoding carbonic molecules. When we think thoughts our neurons use both electrical encoding and molecular encoding to transmit the specific information from neuron to neuron, from synapse to synapse, in microseconds. Cells converse through chemotaxis, sending molecules back and forth. Our entire hormonal system of cytokines is comprised of encoded molecules.Microbial intelligence - Wikipediahttp://ankara.lti.cs.cmu.edu/11780/sites/default/files/BacterialLinguisticsandSocialIntelligence.pdfIn fact, that explains why biological molecules are so enormous as compared to non-biotic nature. Most natural molecules are about two or three atoms or maybe ten or twenty or even a very unstable 30-atom molecule on rare occasions. Our biological molecules are from hundreds to a trillion or more atoms per molecule. Our DNA alone is 200 billion atoms. And ALL of that extra atomic structure never seen in non-biotic nature is functionally encoded information.So the idea of intelligent cells encoding genetic information should never have been particularly surprising, yet the “random copy error” error persisted for generations, based on the (already known to be false) assumption that cells can’t encode messages.Even in Darwin’s time, before we knew about genetics, Louis Pasteur rejected Darwin in favor of Lamarck, saving millions of lives, much to Darwin’s dismay. Lamarck correctly determined that organisms adapt based on need, so Pasteur, Edward Jenner and others rejected Darwinian randomness and exposed patients to diseases intentionally. As crazy as it sounded to inject healthy people with doses of fatal diseases, the idea is that the organism (eventually tested on humans) would adapt immunity only after exposure to the disease - based on need, not randomness.Immunization - WikipediaOf course it worked. And now we know that the immunity is a complex genetic modification performed by our immune cells upon exposure to an antigen. If genetic edits by somatic cells were random, we would NEVER use vaccinations. Our T cells can easily encode specific immunity traits of a thousand bits of novel data quite quickly when exposed to a specific pathogen - while scientists watch. Although these are not usually inherited (the intelligent pathogens adapt too, so there is little point in inheritance), there should be no question that cells can write lengthy functional gene sequences when the need is present.Yet the myth of random mutations persisted. In the 1960’s, skeptical mathematicians question the feasibility of lengthy encoded data self-programming by random accident. Famous mathematician Murray Eden proposed a gathering of the world’s top mathematicians to discuss the matter in the first of many “Wistar” conferences.The unanimous conclusion of 400 of the most qualified mathematicians in the world was that Neo-Darwinistic “random” mutations was NOT tenable. Not even close.Mathematical Challenges to the Neo-Darwinian Interpretation of Evolution. A symposium, Philadelphia, April 1966. Paul S. Moorhead and Martin M. Kaplan, Eds. Wistar Institute Press, Philadelphia, 1967. xii + 140 pp., illus. Paper, $5. Wistar Institute Symposium Monograph No. 5Although in most branches of science, when the mathematicians tell you that the numbers refute your theory, you go back to the drawing board, this determination just made the Darwinians angrily reject math. The Darwinians present at Wistar complained that the math experts did not factor in the selection fallacy. Eden himself politely explained that any factoring in of mortality of any kind only worsens the numbers, and soon enough he demonstrated that fact as well. No death to any organism can have any positive effect on the likelihood of a survivor having an improved trait. Selection is a subtractive filter only - a foolish logic fallacy.Amazingly, Neo-Darwinism simply avoided all math and science and continued to misrepresent genetics. The Central Dogma took further blows with the discovery of epigenetics. Epigenetics are mechanisms that control the expression of genes, such as methylation silencing genes. Turns out that genes are far from the final say on who we are. Epigenetic controls are enormously important, especially in slight adjustments to existing genetic traits - a fact that diminishes the old slight gradual heritable changes ideas of Darwin.I’m not sure how Neo-Darwinism made it this far, but I believed it myself as a Biology major, so I am embarrassed at my own foolishness, but that is what I was taught with no mention of alternative views. Still, the discovery of horizontal gene transfer should have put all ideas of random genetics to bed once and for all. Of course it didn't, but it should have. Here is how HGT works:Horizontal gene transfer - WikipediaCells in the presence of an antibiotic will develop a resistance against unthinkable odds, but that is when the non-randomness becomes even more clear. A bacterium with the needed trait will duplicate that specific lengthy stretch of information. Then it takes that exact duplicated genetic data and packages it as a plasmid into an EV (extracellular vesicle). It then transmits this EV to a cell emitting a distress signal (because it does not have the needed trait in its genome). The needy cell then takes in the EV, opens it and removes the circular-shaped contents. The recipient cell then reads the data and then inserts it into its genome, saving its life.I don't know how anyone could consider this a “random copy error” but lets also be clear about this: In most of these situations as I described it, there are thousands of bacteria that need the trait, so this exact same stretch of information is being duplicated, packaged, transmitted, opened and inserted thousands of times at once. We never see this happening with unneeded sequences.In other words, cells know EXACTLY what they are doing with their genomes. If you still doubt this, go back and read my description of HGT again. If you still wonder if cells have complete mastery over their genomes, read the following link. A biologist put a simple ciliate under so much stress that the organism tore its DNA up into literally 100,000 pieces. Then the ciliate put it back together again, with just a few needed upgrades, and with NO template to copy.https://bi.snu.ac.kr/Courses/g-ai04/Ref/Prescott.pdfSome scientists still thought mutations were random because they would bombard an organism with mutagens such as UV radiation, which causes unnatural damage. This damage is undoubtedly random, but man-made mutagens did not exist for most of evolutionary history. How any scientist ever thought they were learning anything about natural mutations with man-made damage is beyond me, but we have at least one responder to this question doing just that.Using mutagenic damage as a way to ascertain whether natural mutations are random or not is a bit like going into an art museum with a flame thrower, destroying the artwork and saying “See? Nothing to see here. We have proven that the supposedly creative ‘art’ is just random materials strewn about.”Mutagenic damage proves even further that natural mutations are not random. If you take 100 lab mice in a pristine environment control group and then take one male and one female mouse and irradiate them in heavy UV, you WILL get dysfunctional, weird traits in just the few hundred mutations in the experimental pair’s offspring. Meanwhile, thousands of total mutations in the offspring of the 100 control group mice have no genetic defects whatsoever. This alone should have told us that natural mutations are not random, as mutagens tell us what random looks like.In fact, we shouldn't even discuss good, bad or neutral mutations without clarifying the environment, because genetic edits are a cell’s intelligent stimulus-response to a changed environmental need. In a polluted pond or nuclear fallout zone, mutations are unusually dysfunctional. In a stable, healthy environment, mutations are “neutral” with the same few genetic loci changing back and forth within a static genomic range. In a stressful environment, predominantly beneficial mutations become the norm.The way to determine how organisms naturally adapt is NOT by subjecting them to man-made mutagens, but by putting them in stressful situations and seeing what they naturally do. In 1984, James Shapiro, the biologist who isolated the first gene, also performed the first known induced evolution experiment. An induced evolution experiment is when you change an organism’s environment and watch how it adapts.In 1988, biologist John Cairns performed an induced evolution experiment in which he put bacteria in a minimal nutrient environment with lactose available. The bacteria gained a Lac+ Operon for lactose digestion far more frequently than random happenstance could account for. He called this discovery “directed mutations” which caused quite a stir among the Darwinians that dominated at the time. (How DARE he imply that living organisms intentionally animate? Such heresy!) Soon other biologists, such as Susan Rosenberg, Barry Hall and Pat Foster were receiving grants to confirm or refute his findings, and he was confirmed.Adaptive Mutation: Has the Unicorn Landed?Soon everybody was doing was induced evolution experiments. Most of the results were epigenetic, but some, like Cairns’ eye-opener, were non-random genetic mutations. It turns out that, once you perform an induced evolution experiment and see how the organism responds, you can now accurately predict the exact mutations that will take place if you repeat the experiment. Mutations are not only NOT random, but they are highly PREDICTABLE.Although well over 99% of all possible mutations should be detrimental (if you consider damaging an unexpressed gene sequence a detriment), well over 99′99% of mutations are functional, and of the few that aren’t, well over 99.99% are repaired. The vast majority that still slip through the cracks are usually ignored by the cell, especially if the are heterozygous.In 2011, the aforementioned Shapiro wrote the book “Evolution: A View From the 21st Century”, which went sharply against outdated Neo-Darwinian nonsense and clearly stated that cells edit their genomes according to well-studied environmental monitoring systems. The genome, said Shapiro, is a Read/Write storage mechanism, not Read-Only.In 2012, the Human Genome Project destroyed the old ideas of alleged “junk DNA” when they found that the human genome is at least 80% functional - and with most cell types not yet tested - it is probably closer to 99 to 100% functional. Even in areas of the genome that are neither coding for proteins nor regulatory, there is coherent information that could be activated at any time, such as millions of bits of data that can be activated to fight certain cancers, if needed.Finally in 2013, the NGSS removed the word “random” from their section on mutations, to the cheers of scientists all over the world. Teachers were also instructed to stop saying that all mutations are “copy errors”.In retrospect, it seems amazing that any of us ever believed that mutations could be random without causing rapid extinction. Yet, most laypersons think that scientists consider them random. Nothing life does biochemically is random. So if genetic edits had turned out to be random, it would require some very difficult explanations.There are still some scientists who hold that some mutations are random, while others are not, but they say that we just haven't seen the random ones much “yet”, but this idea is failing fast among mainstream science. As the famous evolutionary biologist and Science Medal of Honor winner Lynn Margulis once stated:“I was taught over and over again that the accumulation of random mutations led to evolutionary change - led to new species. I believed it until I looked for evidence.”