cse 2018 essay paper

[Download] UPSC Mains-2018 Essay Paper, Including Topicwise last 26 YEARS Essay Question Papers (1993-2018)

Instructions, section-a: 125 marks, section-b: 125 marks, analysis of essay-2018 paper.

• 1) India: Democracy, administration, Society, culture
• 2) Economy, Development
• 3) Education
• 4) Quote based, Philosophy, Ethics
• 5) Women empowerment
• 6) International issues, Internal Security
• 7) Science-Technology
• On 28th September 2018 , UPSC conducted the Essay paper for the civil services mains examination. Total Marks : 250 marks, Time duration : 3 hours.
• The essay must be written in the medium authorized in the admission certificate which must be stated clearly on the cover of this question-cum-answer (QCA) booklet in the space provided.
• No marks will be given for answers written in medium other than authorized one.
• Word limit, as specified, should be adhered to.
• Any page or portion of the page left blank, must be struck off clearly.

Write any one of the following essay in 1000-1200 words (125 marks)

• Alternative technologies for a climate change resilient India. जलवायु परिवर्तन के प्रति सुनम्य भारत हेतु वैकल्पिक तकनीके.
• A good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge. एक अच्छा जीवन प्रेम से प्रेरित तथा ज्ञान से संचालित होता है.
• Poverty anywhere is a threat to prosperity everywhere. कही पर गरीबी, हर जगह की समृद्धि के लिए खतरा है.
• Management of Indian border dispute is a complex task. भारत के सीमा विवादों का प्रबंधन – एक जटिल कार्य.
• Customary morality cannot be a guide to modem file. रूढिगत नैतिकता आधुनिक जीवन का मार्गदर्शक नहीं हो सकती है.
• ‘The past’ is a permanent dimension of human consciousness and values. ‘अतीत’ मानवीय चेतना तथा मूल्यों का एक स्थायी आयाम है.
• A people that values its privileges above its principles loses both जो समाज अपने सिद्धांतो के ऊपर अपने विशेशाधिकारो को महत्त्व देता है, वह दोनों से हाथ धो बेठता है.
• Reality does not conform to the ideal, but confirms it. यथार्थ आदर्श के अनुरूप नहीं होता है, बल्कि उसकी पुष्टि करता है.

Which essay did you attempt or would have attempted? Share your major keypoints in the comments section!

Do you see any other patterns or connections with current affairs? Do share in the comments section!

Essay-list: Topic wise last 26 years (1993-2018)

Each year, along with essay paper, I also upload topicwise compilation of all essays asked since 1993. However, this time, I’ve further refined the internal classification of the topics. Here it goes:

1 India: Democracy, administration, Society, culture

1.1 india since independence.

• Is the Colonial mentality hindering India’s Success? -2013
• In the context of Gandhiji’s views on the matter, explore, on an evolutionary scale, the terms ‘Swadhinata’, ‘Swaraj’ and ‘Dharmarajya’. Critically comment on their contemporary relevance to Indian democracy -2012
• Dreams which should not let India sleep. -2015
• Why should we be proud of being Indians? -2000
• Whither Indian democracy? -1995
• How far has democracy in India delivered the goods? -2003
• What we have not learnt during fifty years of independence. -1997
• What have we gained from our democratic set-up? -2001
• My vision of India in 2001 a.d. -1993

1.2 Federalism, Decentralization

• Impact of the new economic measures on fiscal ties between the union and states in India. -2017
• Water disputes between States in federal India. -2016
• Cooperative federalism : Myth or reality. -2016
• Creation of smaller states and the consequent administrative, economic and developmental implication -2011
• Evaluation of panchayati raj system in India from the point of view of eradication of power to people. -2007
• Water resources should be under the control of the central government. -2004
• The language problem in India: its past, present and prospects. -1998

1.3 Administration

• How should a civil servant conduct himself? -2003
• Politics without ethics is a disaster. -1995
• The VIP cult is a bane of Indian democracy -1996
• Need for transparency in public administration -1996
• The country’s need for a better disaster management system. -2000
• Politics, bureaucracy and business – fatal triangle. -1994

1.4 Judiciary

• We may brave human laws but cannot resist natural laws. -2017
• Justice must reach the poor -2005
• Judicial activism and Indian democracy. -2004
• Judicial activism. -1997

1.5 Poverty, Social Justice

• The focus of health care is increasingly getting skewed towards the ‘haves’ of our society. -2009
• Food security for sustainable national development -2005
• Reservation, politics and empowerment. -1999

1.6 Indian Society, Culture and Values

• A people that values its privileges above its principles loses both. -2018
• Indian culture today: a myth or a reality? -2000
• Modernism and our traditional socio-ethical values. -2000
• The composite culture of India. -1998
• The Indian society at the crossroads. -1994
• From traditional Indian philanthropy to the gates-buffet model-a natural progression or a paradigm shift? -2010
• New cults and godmen: a threat to traditional religion -1996

1.7 Media, TV & Cinema

• Responsibility of media in a democracy. -2002
• Role of media in good governance -2008
• Does Indian cinema shape our popular culture or merely reflect it? -2011
• How has satellite television brought about cultural change in Indian mindsets? -2007
• Is sting operation an invasion on privacy? -2014
• Mass media and cultural invasion. -1999
• The misinterpretation and misuse of freedom in India. -1998

2 Economy, Development

2.1 growth vs development.

• Poverty anywhere is a threat to prosperity everywhere. -2018
• Digital economy: A leveller or a source of economic inequality. -2016
• Innovation is the key determinant of economic growth and social welfare. -2016
• Near jobless growth in India: An anomaly or an outcome of economic reforms. -2016
• Crisis faced in India – moral or economic. -2015
• Was it the policy paralysis or the paralysis of implementation which slowed the growth of our country? -2014
• GDP (Gross Domestic Product) along with GDH (Gross Domestic Happiness) would be the right indices for judging the wellbeing of a country-2013
• Can capitalism bring inclusive growth? -2015
• Resource management in the Indian context. -1999
• Economic growth without distributive justice is bound to breed violence. -1993

2.2 Environment vs Development

• Alternative technologies for a climate change resilient India. -2018
• Should a moratorium be imposed on all fresh mining in tribal areas of the country? -2010
• Urbanisation and its hazards -2008
• Protection of ecology and environment is essential for sustained economic development. -2006
• Urbanization is a blessing in disguise. -1997
• Ecological considerations need not hamper development. -1993
• Globalization would finish small-scale industries in India. -2006
• Multinational corporations – saviours or saboteurs -1994
• Special economic zone: boon or bane -2008
• Is the criticism that the ‘Public-Private-Partnership’ (PPP) model for development is more of a bane than a boon in the Indian context, justified ?-2012

2.4 Sectors of Economy

• Farming has lost the ability to be a source of subsistence for majority of farmers in India. -2017
• BPO boom in India. -2007
• Tourism: Can this be the next big thing for India? -2014
• Are our traditional handicrafts doomed to a slow death? -2009

3 Education

3.1 values in education.

• Destiny of a nation is shaped in its classrooms. -2017
• Education without values, as useful as it is, seems rather to make a man more clever devil-2015
• Independent thinking should be encouraged right form the childhood. -2007
• Are the standardized tests good measure of academic ability or progress? -2014
• Irrelevance of the classroom. -2001
• Is the growing level of competition good for the youth? -2014
• Literacy is growing very fast, but there is no corresponding growth in education. -1996
• Is an egalitarian society possible by educating the masses ? -2008
• What is real education? -2005

3.2 Scheme implementation

• “Education for all” campaign in India: myth or reality. -2006
• Restructuring of Indian education system. -1995

3.3 Higher education

• Privatization of higher education in India. -2002
• Credit – based higher education system – status , opportunities and challenges -2011

4 Quote based, Philosophy, Ethics

4.1 character, honesty, ethics.

• Customary morality cannot be a guide to modem file. -2018
• Need brings greed, if greed increases it spoils breed. -2016
• Character of an institution is reflected in its leader. -2015
• With greater power comes greater responsibility. -2014
• Words are sharper than the two-edged sword. -2014
• Attitude makes, habit makes character and character makes a man. -2007
• He would reigns within himself and folds his passions and desires and fears is more than a king. -1993

4.2 Knowledge

• ‘The past’ is a permanent dimension of human consciousness and values. -2018
• A good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge. -2018
• There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so. -2003
• Disinterested intellectual curiosity is the lifeblood of civilisation. -1995

4.3 Compassion

• Joy is the simplest form of gratitude. -2017
• Compassion is the basic of all morality of the world -1993
• Lending hands to someone is better than giving a dole. -2015
• Be the change you want to see in others (Gandhi)-2013

4.4 Truth and reality

• Reality does not conform to the ideal, but confirms it. -2018
• Truth is lived, not taught -1996
• When money speaks, the truth is silent. -1995
• Search for truth can only be a spiritual problem. -2002

4.5 Youth, Discipline

• Discipline means success, anarchy means ruin -2008
• Youth is a blunder, manhood a struggle, old age a regret -1994
• If youth knew, if age could. -2002
• Youth culture today. -1999
• Fifty Golds in Olympics: Can this be a reality for India? -2014

4.6 Towards excellence

• Quick but steady wins the race. -2015
• Useless life is an early death. -1994
• Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds. -1995
• The paths of glory lead but to the grave. -2002
• The pursuit of excellence. -2001

5 Women empowerment

5.1 @national politics.

• Greater political power alone will not improve women’s plight. -1997
• Women’s reservation bill would usher in empowerment for women in India. -2006
• The new emerging women power: the ground realities. -1995

5.2 @World / Quote type

• If women ruled the world -2005
• The hand that rocks the cradle -2005

5.3 Empowerment overall

• Fulfilment of ‘new woman’ in India is a myth. -2017
• If development is not engendered, it is endangered. -2016
• Whither women’s emancipation? -2004
• Empowerment alone cannot help our women. -2001
• Women empowerment: challenges and prospects. -1999

5.4 Compared to men

• Woman is god’s best creation. -1998
• Men have failed: let women take over. -1993
• Managing work and home – is the Indian working woman getting a fair deal ?-2012

6 International issues, Internal Security

6.1 globalization.

• Geography may remain the same ; history need not. -2010
• Modernisation and westernisation are not identical concepts. -1994
• ‘globalization’ vs. ‘nationalism’ -2009
• National identity and patriotism -2008
• Globalizations and its impact on Indian culture. -2004
• The masks of new imperialism. -2003
• As civilization advances culture declines. -2003
• The implications of globalization for India. -2000
• My vision of an ideal world order. -2001
• India’s contribution to world wisdom. -1998
• The world of the twenty-first century. -1998
• Preparedness of our society for India’s global leadership role. -2010

6.2 International Org./ Bilateral

• Has the Non-Alignment Movement (NAM) lost its relevance in a multipolar world ? -2017
• Restructuring of UNO reflect present realities -1996
• The global order: political and economic -1993
• India’s role in promoting ASEAN co-operation. -2004
• Importance of Indo-US nuclear agreement -2006

6.3 Security

• Management of Indian border dispute is a complex task. -2018
• In the Indian context , both human intelligence and technical intelligence are crucial in combating terrorism -2011
• Are we a ‘soft’ state ? -2009
• Good fences make good neighbours -2009
• Is autonomy the best answer to combat balkanization? -2007
• Terrorism and world peace -2005
• True religion cannot be misused. -1997

7 Science-Technology

7.1 science and religion.

• Spirituality and scientific temper. -2003
• Science and Mysticism : Are they compatible ?-2012

7.2 Science and Education

• Modern technological education and human values. -2002
• Value-based science and education. -1999
• The march of science and the erosion of human values. -2001

7.3 Computer and internet

• ‘Social media’ is inherently a selfish medium. -2017
• Cyberspace and Internet : Blessing or curse to the human civilization in the long run -2016
• Increasing computerization would lead to the creation of a dehumanized society. -2006
• The cyberworld: its charms and challenges. -2000
• Computer: the harbinger of silent revolution. -1993

7.4 Sci-Tech: others

• Technology cannot replace manpower. -2015
• Science and technology is the panacea for the growth and security of the nation-2013
• The modern doctor and his patients. -1997
• The lure of space. -2004

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28 comments.

Sir.. How to tackle these philosophical qoutes im essay paper.. If not having the same as optional ?

Brother you can use Knowledge of philosophical thinkers and leaders from GS-4 like Plato, Aristotle, Kant etc and add some current issues to correlate your bookish knowledge with practical issues to develop an answer relevant to the topic. Also ensure that you do not deviate from the topic as it will only waste your time and energy without fetching any extra marks.

You don’t need to write the essay with the knowledge of your optional subject. Every topic, whether philosophical or issue-specific, needs to be written from a general point of view- what you think about the topic in question – should be written. Also, multiple dimensions and implications of the topic needs to be addressed – political, social, economic, cultural, environmental, international, etc. This is how you get marks. Not by writing some sophisticated language, or quoting too many thinkers or philosophers (a few can be mentioned but in a general manner). You will get marks by being yourself!

1. There is undercurrent Trend of International Relations Like NAM, Border Disputes Management (Doklam and others and initiatives like connecting North east India with Thailand through Myanmar). 2. Technology was again in question but this time it was not fear of technology rather use of Technology (alternative technologies for a climate change resilient India)

One of the essay in Part-B was a tweet by President Donald Trump

A people that values its privileges above its principles loses both

Section B ne hila ke rkh diya sirr

very good facility

I want to subscribe the mrunal.

Ans of alternative technologies for climate change resilient india

Hindi medium student available are mains and prelims test series pls help and how much charges.

M jst checking…I hope it will b helpful!

Do u have topic wise sorted question papers of mains ( Gs-1,Gs-2,Gs-3,Gs-4) upto 2018.

is this site is not available in hindi?

Was looking for such compilation of precious papers

I want material

Iwant to all the notes for upsc preparation

I want all notes for upsc mains

I wants notes gs ,easy ,

Thank you so much

Very useful sir…… A lot of thank such guidence….. ????

I want this type of notes

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Download : UPSC MAINS ESSAY 2018 Question Paper

ForumIAS announcing GS Foundation Program for UPSC CSE 2025-26 from 27th May. Click Here for more information.

Download the Essay Paper Here

Click here for GS Paper 1 | GS Paper 2 | GS Paper 3 | GS Paper 4 | Optionals

UPSC MAINS 2018 ESSAY Question PAPER – CLICK HERE

ESSAY PAPER: UPSC Civil Services Mains Examination – 2018

SECTION – A

Q.1) alternative technologies for a climate change resilient India

Q.2) A good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge

Q.3) Poverty anywhere is a threat to prosperity everywhere

Q.4) Management of Indian border disputes – a complex task

SECTION – B

Q.1) Customary morality cannot be a guide to modern life

Q.2) “The past’ is a permanent dimension of human consciousness and values

Q.3) A people that values its privileges above its principles loses both

Q.4) Reality does not conform to the ideal, but confirms it

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Applicants appearing for the UPSC IAS 2021 mains can download the UPSC CSE 2018 essay question paper pdf here.

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UPSC Previous Year Papers: 2018

UPSC Mains 2019 Paper Discussions:

Significance of UPSC Previous Year Paper

Understanding exam pattern : By going through the previous year's papers, aspirants can understand the exam pattern, question format, and the distribution of marks for different topics. This knowledge helps them tailor their preparation strategy accordingly.

Identifying important topics : Analyzing previous year papers helps candidates identify the recurring themes and important topics that have been frequently asked in the exam. It allows them to prioritize their study areas and focus on high-yield topics.

Practicing time management : Solving previous year papers under timed conditions simulates the actual exam environment and helps aspirants practice time management. This is crucial as the UPSC CSE is known for its lengthy papers and requires candidates to answer a large number of questions in a limited time.

Assessing readiness and performance : Attempting previous year papers allows candidates to assess their preparation level and performance. It helps them identify their strengths and weaknesses, enabling them to work on areas that need improvement.

Enhancing problem-solving skills : The UPSC questions often require critical thinking and analytical skills to answer. Regular practice with previous year papers hones the problem-solving abilities of aspirants and prepares them for the challenging questions in the actual exam.

Gaining familiarity with question types : Going through past papers exposes candidates to a variety of question types, including objective, subjective, and case-study based questions. This familiarity can boost their confidence and reduce anxiety during the actual exam.

Learning from mistakes : Attempting previous year papers allows candidates to learn from their mistakes and avoid repeating them in the actual exam. It is an essential part of the learning process and helps in continuous improvement.

Staying updated with current trends : By analyzing recent UPSC papers, candidates can stay updated with the current trends in the examination, such as the focus on specific topics, changing question patterns, and evolving demands of the syllabus.

Revision and reinforcement : Revisiting previous year papers aids in reinforcing the concepts and information studied during preparation. It helps candidates consolidate their learning and retain the knowledge better.

Boosting confidence : Scoring well in previous year papers gives candidates a sense of confidence and motivation to perform well in the actual exam. It instills belief in their preparation and increases their chances of success.

GS SCORE brings you all GS UPSC previous year questions essential for the examination all in one place for free to help you save time and focus on the preparation rather than going on a paper-finding mission. The UPSC previous year questions have also been segregated year-wise to make it easy for IAS aspirants.

• UPSC IAS Prelims 2018 GS Paper 1 With Solution Download
• UPSC IAS Prelims 2018 Question Paper GS 2 (CSAT) Download
• UPSC IAS Mains 2018 Solved Paper (GS-1) Download
• UPSC IAS Mains 2018 Solved Paper (GS-2) Download
• UPSC IAS Mains 2018 Solved Paper (GS-3) Download
• UPSC IAS Mains 2018 Solved Paper (GS-4) Ethics Download
• UPSC IAS Mains 2018 ESSAY Solved Paper Download

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(Answer Key) UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2018

Exam Name:  Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination

Year:  2018

Click Here to Download Official General Studies Paper - I Answer Key

Click here to download official general studies paper - ii answer key.

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Mains – 2018: General Studies Paper – 2 UPSC Civil Services Mains Exam – 2018

Mains – 2018: general studies paper – 2, upsccivil services mains exam – 2018.

Download Mains – 2018 Essay paper Here

Download Mains – 2018 GS Paper -1 Here

• In the light of recent controversy regarding the use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM), what are the challenges before the Election Commission of India to ensure the trustworthiness of elections in India? (10)
• Whether National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) can enforce the implementation of constitutional reservation for the Scheduled Castes in the religious minority institutions? Examine. (10)
• Under what circumstances can the Financial Emergency be proclaimed by the President of India? What consequences follow when such a declaration remains in force? (10)
• Why do you think the committees are considered to be useful for parliamentary work? Discuss, in this context, the role of the Estimates Committee. (10)
• “The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has a very vital role to play.” Explain how this is reflected in the method and terms of his appointment as well as the range of powers he can exercise. (10)
• “Policy contradictions among various competing sectors and stakeholders have resulted in inadequate ‘protection and prevention of degradation to environment.” Comment with relevant illustrations.
• Appropriate local community level healthcare intervention is a prerequisite to achieve ‘Health for All’ in India. Explain.
• E-governance in not only about utilization of the power of new technology, but also much about critical importance of the ‘use value’ of information. Explain. (10)
• “India’s relations with Israel have, of late, acquired a depth and diversity, which cannot be rolled back.” Discuss. (10 )
• A number of outside powers have entrenched themselves in Central Asia, which is a zone of interest to India. Discuss the implications, in this context, of India’s joining the Ashgabat Agreement, 2018. (10)
• Whether the Supreme Court Judgement (July 2018) can settle the political tussle between the Lt. Governor and elected government of Delhi? Examine. (15)
• How far do you agree with the view that tribunals curtail the jurisdiction of ordinary courts? In view of the above, discuss the constitutional validity and competency of the tribunals in India. (15)
• Indian and USA are two large democracies. Examine the basic tenets on which the two political systems are based.
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Title: generation and human-expert evaluation of interesting research ideas using knowledge graphs and large language models.

Abstract: Advanced artificial intelligence (AI) systems with access to millions of research papers could inspire new research ideas that may not be conceived by humans alone. However, how interesting are these AI-generated ideas, and how can we improve their quality? Here, we introduce SciMuse, a system that uses an evolving knowledge graph built from more than 58 million scientific papers to generate personalized research ideas via an interface to GPT-4. We conducted a large-scale human evaluation with over 100 research group leaders from the Max Planck Society, who ranked more than 4,000 personalized research ideas based on their level of interest. This evaluation allows us to understand the relationships between scientific interest and the core properties of the knowledge graph. We find that data-efficient machine learning can predict research interest with high precision, allowing us to optimize the interest-level of generated research ideas. This work represents a step towards an artificial scientific muse that could catalyze unforeseen collaborations and suggest interesting avenues for scientists.

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Essay Paper UPSC 2021 (Mains): Question Paper and Analysis

Last updated on January 8, 2022 by Alex Andrews George

UPSC conducted the  Essay Paper , as part of the Civil Services Main Exam 2021 on 07-01-2022.

There were 8 Essay topics, out of which candidates were asked to write on two topics in 3 hours.

Candidates were supposed to answer about 1000 words for each essay (about 10-12 pages).

Table of Contents

Essay Paper UPSC 2021 Instructions

• Total Marks: 250 marks, Time duration: 3 hours.
• The essay must be written in the medium authorized in the admission certificate which must be stated clearly on the cover of this question-cum-answer (QCA) booklet in the space provided.
• No marks will be given for answers written in the medium other than the authorized one.
• Word limit, as specified, should be adhered to.
• Any page or portion of the page left blank, must be struck off clearly.

Essay Question Paper – UPSC Civil Services Main Exam (Written) 2021

Write  two  essays, choosing  one  topic from each of the following Sections A and B, in about 1000-1200 words each:

1. The process of self-discovery has now been technologically outsourced.

2. Your perception of me is a reflection of you; my reaction to you is an awareness of me.

3. Philosophy of wantlessness is Utopian, while materialism is a chimera.

4. The real is rational and the rational is real.

5. Hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.

6. What is research, but a blind date with knowledge!

7. History repeats itself, first as a tragedy, second as a farce.

8. There are better practices to “best practices”.

Most of the essays topics this year were philosophical and open to the interpretation of the candidates. However, considering the philosophical base of the questions, most candidates found the questions tricky. It was not easy to write 1000 words on each topic within the time constraints.

UPSC has ensured that the essay topics were much different from the GS questions.

A philosophical theme is clearly evident in most of the essay topics in Section A as well as Section B. This was the case in 2020 as well. However, this year it became much more prominent. It is a clue about what UPSC expects from the essay paper.

Rather than asking candidates to write on topics most aspirants are familiar or trained with, UPSC is now evaluating the essay writing skills of aspirants by providing them with abstract or philosophical topics.

The reason for such a shift in the pattern should be the change in the focus of the Commission.

All the 8 topics presented this year will test spontaneous thinking, comprehension, writing skills, and time-management of aspirants.

Repeated questions from previous years

The importance of the previous year UPSC questions cannot be stressed more.

Just like prelims, in mains too many questions came directly repeated from previous year question papers. Also, there were themes you often see in many essay books.

One such question was Hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.

Thinkers, Philosophers, and their Quotes

Let’s analyse the source of some of the question topics.

Your perception of me is a reflection of you; my reaction to you is an awareness of me.

This essay topic was a quote going rounds on the internet. The quote is attributed to “Coach Bobbi” [Bobbi Chegwyn] on Facebook.

Philosophy of wantlessness is Utopian, while materialism is a chimera.

This essay topic was connected with J.K. Mehta’s Theory of Wantlessness!

This has also connections with Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy.

The real is rational and the rational is real.

This is a quote by Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel .

As per Hegel, something can be real, yet it may not exist. Also, something may not be real, it may still exist. For Hegel, reality does not mean existence.

Among philosophers, Hegel is one whose thought is extremely difficult to understand. Often to understand Hegel’s thoughts, we need to grasp his ideas, not in isolation but together with his dialogue with other philosophers, in particular, Aristotle and Kant.

The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.

“The Hand That Rocks the Cradle Is the Hand That Rules the World” is a poem by William Ross Wallace that praises motherhood as the preeminent force for change in the world. The poem was first published in 1865 under the title “ What Rules the World “.

What is research, but a blind date with knowledge!

This is a quote by Will Harvey . Will Harvey (born 1967) is an American software developer and Silicon Valley entrepreneur.

History repeats itself, first as a tragedy, second as a farce.

It was Karl Marx who said that history repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce.

First, it’s a tragedy because it shouldn’t have happened. Then it’s a farce (joke) because we didn’t learn from our mistakes the first time around. This is Marx’s version of dark humour.

What should aspirants preparing for next year do for an essay paper?

First of all, you should take the essay paper seriously.

Unless properly trained, it is not easy to write 10-12 pages on an abstract or philosophical topic.

You need to polish your comprehension and analytical skills.

Read different kinds of essays – particularly philosophical essays.

Give stress to the thoughts of philosophers like Immanuel Kant, Thomas Aquinas, John Locke, Friedrich Niche, Karl Marx etc. Start writing essays on famous quotes.

Also, be prepared to write essays touching other areas like society, polity, economy, or technology. UPSC is known for surprises.

Remember that there is nothing like a constant trend with respect to UPSC questions.

What you get by analysing the previous year question papers are clues. And only those are what you need from UPSC questions!

Aim IAS, IPS, or IFS?

About Alex Andrews George

Alex Andrews George is a mentor, author, and social entrepreneur. Alex is the founder of ClearIAS and one of the expert Civil Service Exam Trainers in India.

He is the author of many best-seller books like 'Important Judgments that transformed India' and 'Important Acts that transformed India'.

A trusted mentor and pioneer in online training , Alex's guidance, strategies, study-materials, and mock-exams have helped many aspirants to become IAS, IPS, and IFS officers.

Reader Interactions

January 8, 2022 at 11:36 am

Upsc has chosen right path to evaluate person.one person read, listen ,rember and write in exam.He qualify exam.He is just like computer.worthy less people selected by upsc every year.They are not thinker.so our country is intellectually insolvent.civil services requires thinker to. progess country and welfare of common man.These types of question evaluate intellectual for the welfare of human being.

January 9, 2022 at 1:44 pm

You are putting the quality of a leader and a literate society in such a person who just has to follow his supremes.He/She must be a good analyst. That’s it!!!

June 13, 2022 at 12:41 pm

in the bureaucracy – there is no space for logical thinking.

once you clear the exams and get appointed – you have to follow the “protocol’ or “procedures” – its difficult to be analytical and innovative – bcos the system demands obedience and adherence to the protocol. If you follow the protocol – and even if lot of people are severely affected – you wont be taken to task. But if you are innovative – and even if ONE person gets affected – you will be punished.

January 8, 2022 at 4:02 pm

Yeah!I’ve passed upsc .

January 25, 2022 at 2:21 pm

I have written Essay on three topics..how may I share?

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UNC Computer Science presents 14 papers at ICLR 2024

May 24, 2024

Top row, left to right: Mohit Bansal, Snigdha Chaturvedi, Tianlong Chen; Bottom row, left to right: Marc Niethammer, Roni Sengupta, Huaxiu Yao

UNC Computer Science personnel had 14 papers accepted by the 2024 International Conference on Learning Representations (ICLR). Five of the papers were selected for spotlight posters at the conference. The submissions came from six different research groups.

ICLR is a machine learning conference held annually since 2013. Accepted publications from UNC CS personnel covered topics ranging from large language models and large vision-language models to shape representation in computer vision, to generalizability and fairness in machine learning. Submissions came from research groups led by Professor Mohit Bansal, Assistant Professor Snigdha Chaturvedi, incoming Assistant Professor Tianlong Chen, Professor Marc Niethammer, Assistant Professor Roni Sengupta, and Assistant Professor Huaxiu Yao.

A roundup of the 14 publications can be found below, with brief descriptions of each paper selected for spotlight at the conference.

Papers selected for spotlight:

UNC CS personnel are bolded, and asterisks indicate equal contribution as lead-authors.

“Can Sensitive Information Be Deleted From LLMs? Objectives for Defending Against Extraction Attacks” Vaidehi Ramesh Patil* , Peter Hase* , Mohit Bansal

Studying extraction attacks on large language models, researchers found that sensitive information used to train a model could be extracted from the model’s output with carefully tailored questions. Even after developing some mitigation strategies, the team found that extraction attacks could still occasionally be successful.

”Enhancing Group Fairness in Online Settings Using Oblique Decision Forests” Somnath Basu Roy Chowdhury , Nicholas Monath, Ahmad Beirami, Rahul Kidambi, Kumar Dubey, Amr Ahmed, Snigdha Chaturvedi

This collaboration between Google Research and UNC CS developed Aranyani, which utilizes an ensemble of oblique decision trees to help machine learning systems make fair decisions in online settings where data arrives one instance at a time.

”Improving Domain Generalization with Domain Relations” Huaxiu Yao*, Xinyu Yang*, Xinyi Pan, Shengchao Liu, Pang Wei Koh, Chelsea Finn

Machine learning models can underperform when applied to a domain that differs from that of its training data. This new approach, D3G, learns a set of functions that are specific to the domain it is trained on, then reweights during the test stage based on how similar a new domain is to the training domain.

“Merge, Then Compress: Demystify Efficient SMoE with Hints from Its Routing Policy” Pingzhi Li , Zhenyu Zhang, Prateek Yadav , Yi-Lin Sung , Yu Cheng, Mohit Bansal , Tianlong Chen

SMoE (Sparsely activated Mixture-of-Experts) has shown promise to scale up the learning capacity of neural networks, though the approach suffers from being memory-inefficient and non-scalable. The new proposed method, MC-SMoE (Merge, then Compress SMoE), achieves up to 80% memory and a 20% reduction in floating-point operations per second, with virtually no loss in performance.

“NAISR: A 3D Neural Additive Model for Interpretable Shape Representation” Yining Jiao , Carlton Zdanski , Julia Kimbell , Andrew Prince , Cameron Worden , Samuel Kirse, Christopher Rutter, Benjamin Shields , William Dunn , Jisan Mahmud , Marc Niethammer

Working in the field of scientific shape discovery, this paper proposed a 3D Neural Additive Model for Interpretable Shape Representation (NAISR), which combines the benefits of deep implicit shape representations with an atlas deforming according to specified covariates (measurable variables with an effect on the dependent variable being tested), enabling the capture of shape population trends and for patient-specific predictions through shape transfer. NAISR analyzes the effect of individual variables on shapes, can transfer shapes to new variables for tasks like inferring anatomy development, and can provide shapes based on extrapolated variables.

Other accepted papers:

“Analyzing and Mitigating Object Hallucination in Large Vision-Language Models” Yiyang Zhou* , Chenhang Cui* , Jaehong Yoon , Linjun Zhang, Zhun Deng, Chelsea Finn, Mohit Bansal , Huaxiu Yao

“D2 Pruning: Message Passing for Balancing Diversity & Difficulty in Data Pruning” Adyasha Maharana , Prateek Yadav , Mohit Bansal

“Davidsonian Scene Graph: Improving Reliability in Fine-grained Evaluation for Text-to-Image Generation” Jaemin Cho , Yushi Hu, Jason Baldridge, Roopal Garg, Peter Anderson, Ranjay Krishna, Mohit Bansal , Jordi Pont-Tuset, Su Wang

“ECoFLaP: Efficient Coarse-to-Fine Layer-Wise Pruning for Vision-Language Models” Yi-Lin Sung , Jaehong Yoon , Mohit Bansal

“Fine-Tuning Language Models for Factuality” Katherine Tian*, Eric Mitchell*, Huaxiu Yao , Christopher Manning, Chelsea Finn

“Holistic Evaluation of Language Models” Jue Wang*, Lucia Zheng*, Nathan Kim*, Keshav Santhanam, Qian Huang, Ryan Chi, Percy Liang, William Wang, Yian Zhang, Yifan Mai, Tianyi Zhang, Yuta Koreeda, Eric Zelikman, Shibani Santurkar, Thomas Icard, Benjamin Newman, Rishi Bommasani, Laurel Orr, Surya Ganguli, Ce Zhang, Yuhui Zhang, Hongyu Ren, Neel Guha, Esin Durmus, Yuhuai Wu, Huaxiu Yao , Tatsunori Hashimoto, Peter Henderson, Vishrav Chaudhary, Dimitris Tsipras, Sang Michael Xie, Mert Yuksekgonul, Tony Lee, Michihiro Yasunaga, Faisal Ladhak, Mirac Suzgun, Frieda Rong, Christopher Re, Ananya Kumar, Binhang Yuan, Bobby Yan, Deepak Narayanan, Christian Cosgrove, Dilara Soylu, Drew Hudson, Diana Acosta-Navas, Niladri Chatterji, Omar Khattab, Christopher Manning, Xuechen Li

“Rephrase, Augment, Reason: Visual Grounding of Questions for Vision-Language Models” Archiki Prasad , Elias Stengel-Eskin , Mohit Bansal

“Sparse MoE with Language Guided Routing for Multilingual Machine Translation” Xinyu Zhao , Xuxi Chen, Yu Cheng, Tianlong Chen

“Universal Guidance for Diffusion Models” Arpit Bansal*, Hong-Min Chu*, Avi Schwarzschild, Roni Sengupta , Micah Goldblum, Jonas Geiping, Tom Goldstein