About Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome (HGPS):

• Progeria, also known as HGPS, is an extremely rare genetic disease that causes rapid aging in children.
• Progeria is extremely rare.
• What Causes Progeria?
  • A genetic mutation in the LMNA gene causes progeria. The LMNA gene is responsible for making a protein called lamin A.
  • Lamin A is an important part of the structural scaffolding that holds the nucleus of each cell in your body together.
  • A tiny mutation in the LMNA gene causes it to create an irregular form of the lamin A protein called progerin.
  • Progerin takes the place of the lamin A and makes the nuclei of your cells unstable, slowly damaging them.
  • This leads to the early death of every cell in your body, which causes the process of premature aging.
  • Almost all cases of progeria occur as a new, spontaneous mutation in the LMNA gene. This means there’s no biological family history of the disease.

• Newborns with the disorder appear to be healthy at birth but usually start to show signs of premature aging during their first one to two years of life.
• Their growth rate slows and they don’t gain weight as expected.
• This condition does not affect intellectual development or the development of motor skills such as sitting, standing, and walking.
• However, their rapid aging causes distinct physical characteristics, including:
  • Hair loss (baldness).
  • Prominent eyes.
  • Aged, wrinkled skin.
  • A thin, beaked nose.
  • Disproportionately small face compared to head size.
  • Loss of fat under the skin.
• Progeria is always fatal. The average age of death is 14.5 years, although some adults with progeria will live into their early 20s.
• Death most often occurs as a result of complications of severe atherosclerosis.
  • Atherosclerosis occurs when plaque builds up within the walls of your arteries. This makes them less elastic and, therefore, stiffer.
  • This condition greatly increases the chances of having a heart attack or stroke at a young age.

About Force Majeure:

• The concept of force majeure refers to an extraordinary event rendering the legal obligations between two or more contractually bound parties impossible to fulfill.
• The phrase comes from French and literally means “superior force’’.
• It is related to the concept of an act of God, an event for which no party can be held accountable. This type of event must be entirely beyond the parties’ reasonable control.
• As a precautionary measure against breach of contract, many commercial agreements contain force majeure contract clauses enumerating a list of major events that could result in non-performance of contractual duties.
• Force majeure does not encompass events that are predictable, preventable, or controllable, or that result from the negligence or malfeasance of one or more parties.
• Force majeure incidents typically include wars, natural disasters (e.g., earthquakes), terrorist attacks, epidemics, and civil unrest, such as riots.
• When a force majeure clause is triggered, any party affected by the event must notify the other party or parties to the contract.
  • The affected parties will describe the start date and circumstances of the incident and cite the specific section in the contract that allows them to declare a force majeure incident.
  • The contracting parties must also prove their reasonable efforts to mitigate the circumstances that have rendered the fulfillment of their duties impracticable.
  • Such events may result in the parties delaying their obligations for a period of time, revising the contract terms, or agreeing on the contract’s cancellation.
• The application of force majeure can vary across legal systems, with some jurisdictions requiring a more stringent definition than others.
• In India, the doctrine of force majeure is governed by section 56 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872.
  • It provides that a contract becomes void if an act to be performed under the contract becomes impossible after the contract is made, or, by reason of some event, which the promisor could not prevent, the act to be performed becomes unlawful.
• Force majeure conflicts with the concept of “pacta sunt servanda,” a principle in international law that agreements must be kept and not wriggled out of.

About Petroglyphs:

• Petroglyphs (also known as rock engravings) are symbolic images sculpted or engraved on the surface of rocks by removing material from its surface layer with instruments of superior hardness.
• The techniques used to create these images include pecking, incising, abrading, sculpting, polishing, drilling, and scratching.
• These processes remove part of the rock and therefore are different from images simply painted or drawn on rock, which are called petrographs.
• The word ‘’petroglyph’’ is derived from two Greek words, ‘’petros’’ meaning "stone," and ‘’glyphein’’ meaning "to carve."
• Petroglyphs took two primary forms, as images either appear as scratches or deeper visible indentations on rock.
• Petroglyphs are typically associated with prehistoric populations and can be found on every continent throughout the world, except Antarctica.
• However, they are especially concentrated in Africa, South America, North America (mainly in the southwestern United States), Siberia, Australia, and Europe (Scandinavia, Spanish Galicia, Ireland and Italy).
• Example of Petroglyph Site in India: Edakkal Caves in Wayanad, Kerala.
• Significance of Petroglyphs:
  • They are among the earliest forms of art to have existed and are therefore considered the foundation of art.
  • Ancient peoples also used petroglyphs as a form of communication or writing.
  • For example, some petroglyphs clearly indicated the borders between tribal lands, and others were astronomical markers and maps.
  • Additionally, some petroglyphs served as musical instruments and were known as "rock gongs.”

About Sejjil Missile:

• It is a two-stage, solid-fuel medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM) developed by Iran.
• Because of its high-altitude manoeuvring ability, it has been nicknamed the "dancing missile", a reference to its capability to evade missile defence systems.
• The weapon is also known by several other names, including Sajjil, Ashoura, and Ashura.
• Features:
  • Its solid-fuel design offers a strategic advantage, allowing it to be prepared and launched more quickly than older liquid-fuel systems like the Shahab series.
  • It has an estimated range of about 2,000 kilometres and a payload capacity of roughly 700 kilograms.
  • It is designed to carry both conventional explosive payloads and nuclear warheads.