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Since it was founded nearly two decades ago, 23andMe has grown into one of the largest biotechnology companies in the world. Millions of people have used its simple genetic testing service, which involves ordering a saliva test, spitting into a tube, and sending it back to the company for a detailed DNA analysis. But now…
Read More “If 23andMe goes bust, what happens to its DNA database?” »
National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bengaluru. | Photo Credit: file photo A new study from the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS) has shed light on how three-dimensional (3D) environments influence bacterial growth and survival. By creating 3D models that mimic natural settings like mucus and soil, researchers discovered that the shape of bacteria plays…
Read More “Study reveals how 3D environments affect bacterial growth and survival” »
At the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, Kolkata, synthetic biologist Sangram Bagh has a major and somewhat unusual goal: to build intelligent bacteria. Despite being single-celled, bacteria are very sensitive and responsive to their environments. Organisms that are generally called intelligent — including dolphins, chimpanzees, octopuses, crows, and humans — are on the other hand…
Read More “Team at Kolkata institute engineers bacteria to solve maths problems” »
Clouds are pictured over the residential buildings in Beirut’s southern suburbs, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Baabda, Lebanon, November 11, 2024. | Photo Credit: Reuters Clouds form when water vapor – an invisible gas in the atmosphere – sticks to tiny floating particles, such as dust, and turns into…
Read More “Microplastics promote cloud formation, with likely effects on weather and climate” »
Carbon offsets have become big business as more companies make promises to protect the climate but can’t meet the goals on their own. When a company buys carbon offsets, it pays a project elsewhere to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on its behalf – by planting trees, for example, or generating renewable energy. The idea is…
Read More “Companies’ appetite for cheap carbon offsets stokes fears of greenwashing” »
Nearly all birds with bright red, orange, and yellow feathers or bills use a group of pigments called carotenoids to produce their colours. | Photo Credit: Shutterstock Across the animal kingdom, birds are some of the most colourful creatures of all. But how did all the amazingly coloured different bird species arise? Nearly all birds…
Read More “Thanks to two special genes, a single atom can change the colour of a bird” »
This NASA Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys image, released on January 22, 2004, of Uranus reveals the planet’s faint rings and several of its satellites. | Photo Credit: AFP/NASA In 1781, German-born British astronomer William Herschel made Uranus the first planet discovered with the aid of a telescope. This frigid planet, our solar…
Read More “Scientists uncover a magnetic misunderstanding about Uranus” »
Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru. | Photo Credit: The Hindu A team of scientists at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has devised a way to break down ‘biofilm barriers’ to aid entry of drugs. The IISc said that most of the disease-causing bacteria secrete matrix-like layers around themselves called biofilms. These biofilms act as…
The event is expected to turn the spotlight on Chamarajanagar University, which was inaugurated in Chamarajanagar on March 28, 2023. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT The 18th Kannada Science Congress (Kannada Vijnana Sammelana) will be held in Chamarajanagar in December. The Chamarajanagar University, Swadeshi Vijnana Andolana, Karnataka and the Karnataka State Open University are jointly organising…
Read More “Chamarajanagar varsity to host Kannada Science Congress” »
Gluten is infamous for the allergic reaction it induces in some people. Representative image. | Photo Credit: Victor Rodríguez Iglesias/Unsplash Many cereal grains — but in particular barley, wheat, and rye — contain specific proteins that, when mixed with water and kneaded, create an elastic mass. This mass is called gluten. Two important types of…
