Science realises its complete potential when it is applied for the betterment of our lives. As a testimony to this, a group of researchers from the Indian Institute of Science have developed innovative technologies that benefit milk producers and silk growers. Their innovations, which recently won the prestigious Gandhian Young Technological Innovation award, uses nanotechnology to detect melamine, an adulterant, in milk and image processing techniques to detect the quality of silk.
The study from IISc found a previously unidentified yeast-like symbiont inside the lac insect Kerria lacca, which gives the insect its distinctive red colour and, may also provide other nutrients in return for shelter.