The Star Wars dynasty
The latest 'Star Wars' movie, The Rise of Skywalker, is worth a watch if you're a committed fan interested in staying up to date with the franchise. Otherwise, all you're missing is a…
Poor Sanskrit
'BJP MP Says Speaking Sanskrit Beats Diabetes, Boosts Nervous System', The Wire, December 13, 2019: In a debate in the Lok Sabha on December 12 about the Sanskrit University Bill, Ganesh Sing…
The molecule that was also a wave
According to the principles of quantum mechanics, you're a wave – just like light is both a particle and a wave. It's just that your wavelength is so small that your wave nature doesn't ma…
A why of how we wear what we wear
There are many major industries operating around the world commonly perceived to be big drivers of climate change. Plastic, steel and concrete manufacturing come immediately to mind – but fashion does…
The gaudy-hued beast
When you wake up in the morning to news of four people who allegedly raped a woman having been shot to death by the police, it's hard not to ask yourself what kind of country this is. It's eve…
A windier world
A new paper in Nature Climate Change reports a reversal in "terrestrial stilling" since 2010 – i.e. global wind speeds, thought to be in decline thanks to deforestation and real estate devel…
The circumstances in which scientists are science journos
On September 6, 2019, two researchers from Israel uploaded a preprint to the bioRxiv preprint server entitled 'Can scientists fill the science journalism void? Online public engagement with two sc…
The imperfection of strontium titanate
When you squeeze some crystals, you distort their lattice of atoms just enough to separate a pair of charged particles and that in turn gives rise to a voltage. Such materials are called piezoelectric…
Starlink and astronomy
SpaceX's Starlink constellation is currently a network of 120+ satellites and which, in the next decade, will expand to 10,000+ to provide low-cost internet from space around the world. Astronomer…
The press office
A press-officer friend recently asked me for pointers on how he could help journalists cover the research institute he now works at better. My response follows: 1. Avoid the traditional press releas…
Two things
First As a professional science journalist, I've accrued a long list of 'contacts' in India and abroad, so whenever I discuss my career prospects with friends, I'm often told that I&#…
Does Kangana have to look like J.J. to portray J.J.?
The poster for a new biographical feature about former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa is out, featuring Kangana Ranaut: At first glance, it's not evident that the woman in the picture…