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People who lived and died thousands of years ago have left behind their skeletal remains as a legacy. In recent years, scientists have isolated and sequenced the DNA from more and more of these remains. A team of researchers led by scientists at the Harvard Medical School in the U.S. has compared 15,836 ancient DNA…
Read More “Revealed: how humans evolved in the last 10,000 years alone” »
An endangered Indian pangolin at an unknown location in 2016. | Photo Credit: Ajit Huilgol (CC BY) Pangolins are one of the world’s most trafficked mammals even as their existence is threatened by shrinking habitats. So to protect them, conservationists are keen to know where they are being poached. The problem is that it is…
Read More “How scientists are using ‘DNA maps’ to expose pangolin trafficking hubs” »
For almost 25 summers, Sunita (name changed) gets a severe ‘sweat rash’ on her neck in the hot and humid weather of Mumbai. The rash turns black, looks almost burnt, and stays that way until the monsoons arrive. Then, as if miraculously, the dead skin is shed and her neck looks just fine all over…
Read More “India still short on expertise, tools to manage fungal health burden” »
The barn swallow (Hirundo rustica) is a widespread synanthrope that has expanded its range across continents. | Photo Credit: Special arrangement GUWAHATI Descendants of migratory barn swallows may have gradually stopped making long journeys and settled permanently in Manipur’s Imphal Valley, a new study suggests. The finding, published in the Journal of Wildlife Science, also says that these…
Read More “Barn swallows in Manipur may have shed migratory trait” »
Scientists have challenged the claim that horse riding began after 2100 BC. | Photo Credit: Sergiu Valena/Unslpash Older dawn of horse-riding could have changed Eurasia Scientists have challenged the claim that horse riding began after 2100 BC. They have reported archaeological evidence showing humans rode horses at least 1,000 years prior after analysing three early…
In a first in India, a satellite-tagged Ganges soft-shell turtle was released in the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve on the occasion of Endangered Species Day on Friday, May 15, 2026. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT India’s first satellite-tagged Ganges soft-shell turtle, an endangered species, was released in the 1,302 sq. km Kaziranga National…
Read More “India’s first satellite-tagged Ganges soft-shell turtle released in Kaziranga” »
Sperm whales communicate using short sequences of clicks known as codas, which they exchange while coordinating within their groups. Scientists have long classified these sequences using the number of clicks and the timing between them. A study published on April 15 in Proceedings of the Royal Society B has however reported that there’s more to…
Read More “Sperm whale ‘clicks’ have complex patterns similar to human speech” »
Along a meandering river in a warm and arid region that is now Thailand roughly 113 million years ago, a plant-eating behemoth almost 90 feet (27 meters) long browsed on the treetops without much fear of predators due to its sheer size. This was Nagatitan chaiyaphumensis, the largest-known dinosaur from Southeast Asia. Researchers have unearthed…
Read More “Scientists dig up Southeast Asia’s largest dinosaur in Thailand” »
Every individual aspires for a life of personal dignity, economic security and social acceptance. And, these depend on their professional skills and personal aptitude. In any human endeavour, success occurs when one’s hobby is synonymous with one’s profession, buttressed by their attitude. A career in science is perhaps more demanding, more exacting, and possibly more…
Read More “A checklist for students aspiring to be researchers” »
Even as the Calcutta High Court is set to hear challenges to the Centre’s Great Nicobar Island (GNI) project over allegations that the Forest Rights Act was violated while obtaining locals’ consent for it, the tribal council in Nicobar has now flagged further violations of the law in the government’s notification of three wildlife sanctuaries…
Read More “Nicobarese oppose proposal for three wildlife sanctuaries” »