Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla poses for a photo with a stunning panoramic view of Earth in the background, in the 7-window Cupola Module of International Space Station (ISS). | Photo Credit: ISRO Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, currently aboard the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the Axiom-4 mission, had a telephonic conversation … Read more
(This article is part of the Gender Agenda newsletter. To get the newsletter in your inbox every Sunday, subscribe here.) In India, we hold a place of reverence for those who study STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, maths). These drive people upwards, through social and financial hierarchies, sometimes enabling people to break through caste. We all … Read more
The greenhouse effect was discovered more than 150 years ago and the first scientific paper linking carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere with climate change was published in 1896. But it wasn’t until the 1950s that scientists could definitively detect the effect of human activities on the earth’s atmosphere. In 1956, United States scientist Charles … Read more
The ocean has always spoken — in waves, in currents, in silent rhythms beneath its vast surface. For centuries, sailors, scientists, and philosophers have tried to understand its patterns, often relying on observation and instinct. Today, a new listener has emerged: the computer. Armed with data from satellites, ocean sensors, and remote platforms, computers are … Read more
In India, we hold a place of reverence for those who study STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, maths). These drive people upwards, through social and financial hierarchies, sometimes enabling people to break through caste. We all know about the STEM gender gap: “Women [in South Asia] are severely underrepresented in the STEM workforce and only … Read more
Fabric coated with old skin oil becomes its own chemical plant. | Photo Credit: Daeva Miles/Unsplash Our daily habits, like how often we shower or change our clothes, depend on our environs and sometimes also on our energy levels. But obviously how dirty we are also affects our immediate environment. Atoms and molecules in the … Read more
A fearful mother On the morning of July 4, 1885, Joseph Meister, a nine-year-old boy from Alsace, France, was bitten by a dog. Not once or twice, but for a total of 14 times. The boy was bitten in his hands, legs, and thighs, and some of the wounds were so deep that Meister had … Read more
Before true cells existed on the earth, organic molecules floated freely in water. The first cell membrane created a compartment so that useful molecules like RNA and proteins could stay close enough to interact with each other, leading to more complex biological functions. However, an important question remains: how did the first protocells on early … Read more
After a day off, astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla and others from the Axiom-4 mission on Saturday (July 5, 2025) studied how bones react to microgravity conditions, an experiment that could lead to better treatment of osteoporosis on Earth. FIle | Photo Credit: ANI After a day off, astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla and others from the Axiom-4 mission … Read more
