Category Archives: Science
India-based neutrino oblivion
In a conversation with science journalist Nandita Jayaraj, physicist and Nobel laureate Takaaki Kajita touched on the dismal anti-parallels between the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO) and the Japanese Kamioka and Super-Kamiokande observatories. The INO’s story should be familiar to readers … Continue reading
Posted in Analysis, Science
Tagged ASHA workers, Challakere science city, COVID-19 pandemic, Department of Atomic Energy, India-based Neutrino Observatory, Institute of Mathematical Sciences, Kamioka, Naba K Mondal, Nandita Jayaraj, Super-Kamiokande neutrino detector, Takaaki Kajita, The Hindu
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The problem with a new, rapid way to recycle textiles
Researchers from the University of Delaware have developed a chemical reaction that can break polyester in clothing down to a simpler compound that can be used to make more clothes. The reaction also spares cotton and nylon, allowing them to … Continue reading
Posted in Analysis, Science
Tagged carbon capture, climate justice, cotton, microwave-assisted glycolysis, polycotton, polyester, techno-economic assessment, textile recycling, textile waste
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Buildings affect winds
A 2022 trip to Dubai made me wonder how much research there was on the effects cities, especially those that are rapidly urbanising as well as are building taller, wider structures more closely packed together, had on the winds that … Continue reading
Posted in Scicomm, Science
Tagged Journal of Advances in Modelling Earth Systems, Shanghai, skyscrapers, urban heat island, Venturi effect, wind energy, wind speed
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You’re allowed to be interested in particle physics
This piece appeared in The Hindu today. I wrote the lead article, about why scientists are so interested in an elementary particle called the top quark. Long story short: the top quark is the heaviest elementary particle, and because all … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, Scicomm, Science
Tagged Higgs boson, mathematical physics, particle physics, Shreya Dasgupta, The Hindu, top quark
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The pitfalls of Somanath calling Aditya L1 a “protector”
In a WhatsApp group of which I’m a part, there’s a heated discussion going on around an article published by NDTV on June 10, entitled ‘Sun’s Fury May Fry Satellites, But India Has A Watchful Space Protector’. The article was … Continue reading
Posted in Scicomm, Science
Tagged Aditya L1, Indian Space Research Organisation, NDTV, S Somanath, scientific mission, solar storm, Somak Raychaudhury, space weather
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The BHU Covaxin study and ICMR bait
Earlier this month, a study by a team at Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in Varanasi concluded that fully 1% of Covaxin recipients may suffer severe adverse events. One percent is a large number because the multiplier (x in 1/100 * … Continue reading
Posted in Op-eds, Scicomm, Science
Tagged academic publishing, Banaras Hindu University, Bharat Biotech, Covaxin, Drug Safety, Indian Council of Medical Research, Priya Abraham, The Hindu, The Vaccine War
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India can do it!
Against the background of the H5N1 pandemic in birds and an epidemic among cattle in the US, the Government of Victoria, in Australia, published a statement on May 21 that the province had recorded the country’s first human H5N1 case. … Continue reading
Posted in Op-eds, Science
Tagged Australia, avian influenza, Government of Victoria, H5N1, infectious diseases, pathogen surveillance, Raima Sen, The Vaccine War
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The billionaire’s solution to climate change
An eye-opening profile of Marc Benioff’s 1t.org initiative, the flawed research paper that inspired it, the harmful practices it’s made room for, and what all this says of his wealth Continue reading
Posted in Scicomm, Science
Tagged 1t.org, afforestation, afforestration, Bloomberg, carbon credits, carbon sequestration, carbon trading, climate action, climate mitigation, Jane Goodall, Marc Benioff, Thomas Crowther
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Infinity in 15 kilograms
While space is hard, there are also different kinds of hardness. For example, on April 15, ISRO issued a press release saying it had successfully tested nozzles made of a carbon-carbon composite that would replace those made of Columbium alloy … Continue reading
Posted in Analysis, Science
Tagged carbon-carbon composite, Columbium alloy, Indian Space Research Organisation, ISRO, ISRO Propulsion Complex, PSLV, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre
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