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Daily Quiz: On ISRO’s PSLV rocket Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle | Photo credits: ISRO START THE QUIZ 1 / 6 | The liquid-fuelled second stage of the PSLV rocket uses the Vikas engine, which is based on the French Viking engine. In 1974, rather than pay cash, ISRO acquired this technology from France in exchange…
Although a spinning fan changes continuously, we don’t perceive its blades’ every intermediate position perfectly. | Photo Credit: Delaney Van/Unsplash A: This is an illusion caused by the way our eyes and brains sample motion in discrete snapshots and the fact that fans have identical blades. Although a spinning fan changes continuously, we don’t perceive…
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The story so far: Futuristic space and marine biotechnology research focuses on using underexplored environments, such as the deep oceans and outer space, to develop new biological knowledge, materials, and manufacturing processes. Marine biotechnology involves studying microorganisms, algae, and other marine life to discover bioactive compounds, enzymes, biomaterials, food ingredients, and biostimulants. These organisms have…
Read More “What is futuristic marine and space biotechnology? | Explained” »
Imagine you’re a detective looking for proof of something extraordinary. You find what looks like the perfect clue, a smoking gun that seems to prove your theory. But what if that clue could be explained by something more ordinary? Many physicists around the world are trying to create and identify special materials with unusual electronic…
Read More “Scientists urged to rethink ‘smoking gun’ signals in topological physics” »
Back to school | Photo Credit: Si-Gal A school bus approaches, and even from far away, its bright yellow coat catches your eye, gleaming in the sunlight. There’s a reason you rarely see school buses in red, blue, or green. And it’s all yellow In the VIBGYOR spectrum, yellow falls in the mid-to-long wavelength range…
Bar headed goose (Anser indicus) in a V formation. | Photo Credit: K.V.S. Giri The V-formation we have all seen growing up is commonly seen in migratory birds like cranes, pelicans, and ducks. It consists of a bird leader up front and the others trailing behind. Each one keeps a precise position relative to the…
Read More “Sky Teamwork: Why do birds fly in V formation?” »
A new study has found that genes related to heart function, the nervous system, and the senses of vision and smell became overactive during spaceflight. Representative image of a NASA astronaut working outside the International Space Station. | Photo Credit: NASA As humans prepare for longer missions to the moon and eventually Mars, scientists need…
Read More “Scientists find spaceflight affects immune genes, deforms the brain” »
Q: This ‘infographic’ from an 18th century work explains the famous rule of ________, by which heralds may be designed. Fill in the blank. A: Tincture Q: The half or edge of the flag nearest to the flagpole is called the hoist. In vexillography, this is considered to be the leading edge. The fly is…
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, right, with Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair. File | Photo Credit: ANI Space is for everybody, and space is going to epitomise what deep tech is going to be, said Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, Indian Air Force Group Captain who is one of the astronauts selected for India’s first crewed spaceflight mission, Gaganyaan. He was speaking at the third edition of Deep Science Forum, a…
Why does the idea of eating insects provoke discomfort, even before taste or nutrition enters the conversation? At an edible insects stall during a food mela at the Science Gallery, Bengaluru, this question surfaced repeatedly as visitors negotiated curiosity, disgust and the boundaries of what they considered “normal” food. Many assumed they were encountering a…
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