Missions to the outer space always bring a sense of excitement in the scientific community and hope to find answers to one haunting question - do aliens exist? The Cassini-Huygens mission, launched to orbit Saturn and study its moon - Titan, is no different. Although it has not yet found a convincing answer to the question, it has revealed various facets about the majestic planet, its spectacular rings and the splendid moons. And of course, the possibility of finding life based on many earth-like conditions in the atmosphere of one of Saturn’s moons. Come September, the glorious journey of this spacecraft comes to an end after two eventful decades. Here is a wishing Cassini-Huygens a long goodbye.
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Malaria, the biggest killer of all time, has a long association with humans. As we develop new strategies to combat the fatal disease, the parasite causing the disease gets stronger than ever. In this seemingly never-ending tussle, who ultimately wins the battle? The judgement, it seems, is not an easy one! On World Malaria Day, here is a brief insight into the details of this deadly disease.
Most methods that farmers follow today to control pests and save their crop are mostly reactive, which is done ‘after’ the damage has started. In addition, these methods either destroy other crops, or cause harm to animals that feed on them, or pollute the soil or air. Researchers have now found a ‘green’ and ‘clean’ way to detect crop pests before they start the damage. They have built a highly sensitive sensor that detects pheromones or chemicals released by insects for mating, which signal the presence of pests and thus prompt the farmers to take remedial measures.
India’s film industry is the world’s largest with about 1000 films produced each year. As we know, not all of them make in into the list of “blockbusters” and some fail miserably. While choosing the right script, director, actors and music make an impact, a new research shows that timing the release of the movie is equally important. Using the concept of complex systems, the researchers have found that circumstances at the time of the release of a movie could make or break its revenues.
Technology has revolutionized almost every aspect of our lives - from healthcare to doing business. The field of meteorology is not far behind. In a recent study, scientists have leveraged the computing power of a new series of processors from Intel, to improve existing climate models and simulations. The new models, the researchers claim, have better accuracy and increased speeds and also free up meteorologists from the hassles of computer science.
Researchers at the Center for Nanoscience and Engineering (CeNSE) at IISc, in collaboration with Iowa State University and Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, have developed a novel device that can simultaneously measure the electrical and mechanical properties of a cell. Using a technique called Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS), they have suc
Today is World Bicycle Day, a day celebrated to commemorate the joy of cycling. In a country like Netherlands, almost every person owns a cycle, and 99.1% are cyclists! But a city like Bengaluru -- almost thrice as big and with 12 times more population -- loses hands down to Amsterdam, in citizens choosing to cycle. Why is that so? And what can be done to make people here fall in love with their bikes? The Research Matters team caught up with Prof. Ashish Verma, an Associate Professor at the Department of Civil Engineering, at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru.
Forests are home to a wide variety of plants and animals. But what decides the distribution of this rich flora and fauna? How do some species of trees end up in selected pockets of the forest? In a recent study, scientists have examined this connectedness in patchy shola forests of the Western Ghats and have given some insights into what dictates tree distributions in such patchy forests and what connects these patches. This study, the researchers say, provides key details on the micro and macro ecology of the forests.
What is the price of development? It is a tricky question to answer, especially for a country that is growing at its fastest pace with ambitious goals. But who actually pays this price and how? A recent study has tried to answer this touchy question in the context of small-scale hydropower projects that are increasing their presence in one of the ecologically sensitive area - the Western Ghats and points out how local communities are losing this one-sided game.
Can insects help us decipher how molecules behave? Yes, say scientists from Department of Chemistry of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, IIT Kanpur, IIT Guwahati and Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Kolkata. In a recent study, they have described how the concept of ‘swarm intelligence’ can be used to determine the most stable configuration of a molecule and its electronic structure. With this knowledge as base, scientists can design molecules such as drugs, vaccines and polymers with targeted properties.