Insects surrounded by their resin seen attached on their host plant. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement In a new study, researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have unravelled the mystery behind how the lac insect produces laccaic acid that is used to make lac pigment. The lac pigment is a prized commodity used … Read more
A sailor’s experiment In 1747, Scottish naval surgeon James Lind conducted what is now considered the world’s first controlled clinical trial aboard HMS Salisbury. Scurvy, a deadly disease causing bleeding gums and fatigue, was devastating for sailors. Unaware of vitamins, at that stage, Lind divided 12 affected sailors into six pairs, each receiving a different … Read more
DRDO and the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT-Delhi) successfully demonstrated Quantum Entanglement-based free-space Quantum Secure Communication over a 1 km range, marking a major breakthrough in quantum cybersecurity and secure communications, on June 16, 2025. | Photo Credit: X/@SpokespersonMoD via PTI Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)-Industry-Academia Centre of Excellence (DIA-CoE) at IIT Delhi … Read more
An artist’s concept of the NISAR satellite in earth orbit. The radar antenna reflector is deployed on top. | Photo Credit: NASA Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is a way to make sharp pictures even when it’s dark or cloudy. Instead of using visible light like a regular camera, SAR systems send out microwave pulses and … Read more
The region called Arabia sits at the heart of the earth’s driest deserts, stretching from the Sahara in the west to India’s Thar Desert in the east. It holds the distinction of being the largest biogeographical barrier on the planet. Over millennia, the arid conditions of the Saharo-Arabian Desert are expected to have prevented hominins … Read more
With the launch of Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla’s mission to the International Space Station (ISS) scheduled for June 19, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is coordinating with Axiom Space to refresh time-sensitive experimental specimens. | Photo Credit: Reuters With the launch of Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla’s mission to the International … Read more
A pod of sperm whales. | Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons When archaeologists were digging a new library site at Valencina de la Concepción in southwest Spain in 2018, they uncovered an unusual item: half of a large sperm-whale tooth lying in a 4,000-year-old pit. Because nothing like it had ever been reported from Copper-Age Iberia, … Read more
Successful test trials of rocket launch systems were conducted in Kushinagar, Uttar Pradesh, as part of the preparations for a student competition in model rocketry scheduled to be held in October this year. The launch trials were conducted on Saturday and Sunday (June 14 and 15, 2025) by the Astronautical Society of India in association … Read more
More than four years since the COVID-19 pandemic began, the disease remains a global health concern — not because of new surges but because of what persists. Long COVID, or technically post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC), refers to symptoms that continue for weeks or months after the initial illness clears. These include fatigue, breathing … Read more
Sarcopenia affects millions of people and contributes to frailty, slow recovery, and hospital readmissions in older adults. | Photo Credit: Alan Calvert/Unsplash As we age, it gets harder to recover from a fall, injury or even a tough workout because the body’s muscle-repair system starts to falter. Muscle stem cells (MuSCs), the in-house repair crew, … Read more