Here are some of the science snippets that I have contributed to the weekly column at Deccan Herald, bylined under "Research Matters"

Deccan Herald •

A gas that kills can save lives too

Carbon monoxide, a gas devoid of taste, colour or odour, has a bad rap: It’s often deemed a killer, thanks to its lethal effects. Although most carbon monoxide is generated on Earth due to the partial burning of fossil fuels like coal, the gas is present in trace quantities in our atmosphere and beyond. It is the second-most common molecule with two atoms in the Universe, constituting about 10% of all carbon sources. Since the invention of fire, humans have known the noxious effects of carbon mo
Deccan Herald •

A rocky world beyond ours

The universe is an interesting medley of diverse objects. There are giant, heavy black holes and galaxy superclusters, and then there are infinitesimally tiny, invisible quarks and electrons that make up most matter. Objects like stars radiate energy while planets and moons rely on it to become a world of their own—just like our Earth. Even within our solar system, not all planets are created equal—the four closest to the Sun, with iron and rocks on their surfaces, are rocky planets while the o
Deccan Herald •

The enigma of the lightning

Monsoon is at our doorstep. It’s the season of roaring skies and lightning strikes. Lightning is the giant spark of electricity in the sky unleashed due to the dynamics between the clouds, air and ground. Scientists believe that this electricity is a result of a massive build of charges in the clouds when tiny hail particles, called graupel, bounce off small ice particles as they are pushed upwards by air. When the high charge build-up breaks the insulation capacity of air, it is released as a b
Deccan Herald •

The knight who sheds his armour

In nature, there are many knights with armours. The pangolin’s keratinous overlapping scales, the turtle’s bony shell, and the armadillo’s bony plates and keratinous scutes are all examples of animals evolving means to escape from predators. The fish scale gecko, found in Madagascar’s forests, also has scales but with a critical difference. Instead of using the scales to deter its predator when danger strikes, it opts to lose it. The predator, who possibly dreamt of a yummy dinner, is left with
Deccan Herald •

The snooze that saves energy

Life has evolved many remarkable ways to survive despite hostile conditions. One of them is for organisms to go into a near-death-like state, called daily torpor. During this phase, the body’s temperature drops significantly, body functions slow down, and the organism is motionless and unresponsive. Warm-blooded animals, which regulate their body temperatures, spend large amounts of energy maintaining it. Any dip or rise may turn out fatal in most cases. However, during frigid temperatures, food
Deccan Herald •

Unassailable bee glue

Honeybees are incredible insects — as pollinators, they help grow a third of our crops, have rich social lives, build architecturally marvellous hives, fill them up with yummy honey and exude fragrant beeswax. What we don’t know enough about is bee glue, or propolis — a resinous mixture the worker bees make from the resin they collect from different parts of plants. When mixed with beeswax, pollen, essential oils and other organic compounds, it turns into a dark-brown-coloured wax-like substanc
Deccan Herald •

The fish that tweets

“Ouch! That hurt!”— that’s what one would say when struck by 800 V of electricity for a few seconds. But when this jolt comes from the electric eel, the disgust soon turns into wonder because this South American native is the world’s strongest bioelectricity generator! Electrophorus electricus is not really an eel but belongs to the knifefish family, and is closely related to carp and catfish. At about six feet long and weighing around 20 kg, most of the electric eel’s body has been specifically
Deccan Herald •

Most freshwater is underground

The United Nations observed World Water Day this month to raise awareness about the two billion people who have no access to safe water. This year, the theme was ‘Groundwater: Making the invisible visible’. Here are some amazing facts about the invisible lifeline flowing under our feet: Groundwater is the water found underground in the cracks and crannies of soil, sand and rocks called aquifers. About 90% of the Earth’s available freshwater is groundwater. Groundwater feeds springs, rivers, la
Deccan Herald •

Harm caused by 'forever chemicals'

Have you heard of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFOS)? Even if you haven’t, you would have certainly used products containing them. Worse, you may have unknowingly even ingested a few micrograms because they are ubiquitous. First discovered in the 1940s and named ‘Teflon’, PFOS now contain many fluorinated chemicals that are resistant to water, heat and oil. Thus this ‘miracle of modern chemistry’ has since been used in hundreds of everyday products — from fast food packaging to non-sti
Deccan Herald •

Viruses can do good

As we reel under a viral pandemic that has already killed almost 6 million people, it is hard to imagine how viruses could benefit humanity. These microscopic pathogens have a bad reputation for causing infectious, near-fatal diseases like rabies, measles, smallpox, HIV-AIDS, and Covid-19. But, humans have turned some of the 9,000 known virus species into our helpers using gene editing. A virus infects our cells by hijacking their DNA. Instead of creating copies of the cell, the virus ends up r
Deccan Herald •

Oceans have heatwaves too

Come summer, heat waves resulting from a changing climate hit the headlines across the world. While their ramifications on land are visible, we often don’t hear much about heatwaves in the oceans. Marine heatwaves occur when sea surface temperatures are hotter than a threshold for more than five consecutive days. They are recorded in all of the world’s oceans, including the Southern Ocean near Antarctica. Many factors contribute to their occurrence, frequency and intensity—ocean currents, wind
Deccan Herald •

The world’s hardiest bacteria

A tiny bacteria, about the tenth of human hair, holds a place in The Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s toughest bacteria. It’s harmless to humans but loves living in the extremes. Deinococcus radiodurans, or the “terrible berry”, is a hardy bacteria that is a polyextremophile — an organism that can survive in harsh environments. It can tolerate an acute dose of ionising radiation, about 1,000 times more than what humans can. Deinococcus radiodurans was accidentally discovered in 195
Deccan Herald •

ORS: The salt that saved millions of lives

It’s not a vaccine; neither is it a drug. It does not taste bitter, nor is it expensive. Yet, oral rehydration salts (ORS) have saved millions of lives in the last few decades, thanks to science. The magic ingredient is a humble mixture of sugar and salt — a seemingly uncomplicated formula for such a valuable drug. Yet, it came to light after millions of lives were lost to deadly diseases like cholera. It is estimated that ORS has brought down the risk of death due to dehydration by 93% worldwid
Deccan Herald •

How a glowing jellyfish threw much light on cells

In the last few decades, our understanding of cells has seen a monumental change. We now know about the various processes that happen inside these cells and the diseases that bother them. Did you know much of it was possible because of a jellyfish and its glow? Crystal jelly, scientifically called Aequorea victoria, is a jellyfish species found on the coasts of the Pacific Ocean in North America. What’s unique about this colourless, transparent jellyfish is that it glows green when threatened o
Deccan Herald •

Zebrafish: Science’s beloved ‘model’ organism

In the shallow freshwater ponds across South Asia lives a small fish, just about three centimetres long. With striking blue stripes on its sides, it gets the name from an animal known for stripes—the zebra. Called the zebrafish, or Danio rerio in science, it has the looks needed to make it to the aquariums. Yet, it is a favourite among a different community who look beyond its beauty— the scientific community. For good reasons, this fish is at the pinnacle of a wide range of scientific studies—f
Deccan Herald •

The enigma behind Fairy Circles

In the arid grasslands of Namibia, hostile to most life forms, are thousands of circular patches of barren land surrounded by grass. For a long time, no one understood how these circles, each about two to 15 metres in diameter, formed. Hence, they were called ‘Fairy Circles’, attributing their creation to some supernatural powers. The nomadic tribes in the region revered them as footprints of the gods. The folklore also had it that these circles, unique to this region, were created by dragons! S
Deccan Herald •

Mysteries of the Deccan Traps

Have you observed that some hills on the Maharashtrian parts of the Western Ghats have a stair-like appearance? Trekking these rocky steps in the monsoon, amidst the lush-green landscape towards cloud-kissed summits, with tiny waterfalls trickling down, can refresh a tired soul. About 66 million years ago, this region was anything but serene! A massive volcanic explosion spewed hot magma from the earth’s interior for about 30,000 years without a break. At that time, this flowing magma covered al
Load More Articles