India can do it!
Against the background of the H5N1 pandemic in birds and an epidemic among cattle in the US, the Government of Victoria, in Australia, published a statement on May 21 that the province had recorded th…
The party-spirited cricket World Cup
Sharda Ugra's essay and the BCCI-BJP combine's presumption of zero resistance at the ICC Cricket World Cup…
The billionaire's solution to climate change
An eye-opening profile of Marc Benioff's 1t.org initiative, the flawed research paper that inspired it, the harmful practices it's made room for, and what all this says of his wealth…
The "coherent water" scam is back
On May 7, I received a press release touting a product called "coherent water" made by a company named Analemma Water India. According to the document, "coherent water" is based on…
Infinity in 15 kilograms
While space is hard, there are also different kinds of hardness. For example, on April 15, ISRO issued a press release saying it had successfully tested nozzles made of a carbon-carbon composite that…
Justice delayed but a ton of bricks await
From 'SC declines Ramdev, Patanjali apology; expresses concern over FMCGs taking gullible consumers ‘up and down the garden path’', The Hindu, April 10, 2024: The Supreme Court has refused to…
Feel the pain
Emotional decision making is in many contexts undesirable – but sometimes it definitely needs to be part of the picture, insofar as our emotions hold a mirror to our morals. When machines make decisio…
Cheers for everyone but the bustard
Behold, the legerdemain of spinning bad news into good: Setting aside the meaningless headline, we have a lede (and the rest of the article, for that matter) that claims the Supreme Court of India &q…
It's the little things
'What Muslim Women Face Every Day at Work', The Wire, April 4, 2024: [Nisha] Shah, who prays five times a day, says such Islamophobia at the workplace – amongst highly educated Indian youth –…
End of the line
The folks at The Wire have laid The Wire Science to rest, I've learnt. The site hasn't published any (original) articles since February 2 and its last tweet was on February 16, 2024. At the t…
The foundation of shit
I've been a commissioning editor in Indian science, health, and environment journalism for a little under a decade. I've learnt many lessons in this time but one in particular still surprises…
A new tradition
This screenshot is from ESPN Cricinfo's live commentary for the Chennai Super Kings versus Gujarat Titans IPL match on March 26, 2024. Super Kings captain Ruturaj Gaikwad got out caught behind off…