What is the metaverse? 2 media and information experts explain
Sci-fi novelist Neal Stephenson coined the term in his 1992 novel “Snow Crash”
Viruses are both the villains and heroes of life as we know it
There is mounting evidence that the viruses that infect plants and animals are also a major source of genetic innovation in these organisms
Lucy in the sky: Things to know about NASA mission to Jupiter’s Trojans
NASA’s Lucy mission is going where no one else has before. It aims to look back into the origins of the solar system through Trojans
Fossil footprints prove humans populated the Americas thousands of years earlier than we thought
Until now, scientists believed humans only travelled south into the Americas when this ice barrier began to melt, at the earliest, 16,500 years ago
Twitter’s design stokes hostility and controversy. Here’s why, and how it might change
Twitter needs to reconsider the algorithms and metrics (such as likes and retweets) that enable the company to profit from co-ordinated …
Tokyo Olympics: Sports science the ‘ultimate winner’
Sports and sports science have been complementing each other for the last three decades when technology was given top priority to maintain …
Evolution and Science-fiction: Marriage of facts and fantasy
It is nearly impossible to consume a work of science-fiction that concerns itself with evolution without acknowledging Darwin’s role
Your phone and your brain - what we know so far
The evidence indicates that there’s still a lot of uncertainty about the long-term impacts of digital device use on cognition
Can DNA tests find our soulmate? We study sex and sexuality — and think the idea is ridiculous
There is no compelling evidence as to whether or not DNA matching can support a more fulfilling love life
Grand challenge for cancer research announced
The India Cancer Research Consortium will organize a challenge to develop cost effective and affordable approaches for screening, early diagnosis …
Physics Nobel awarded for Big Bang-related theory and exoplanet discovery
US scientist James Peebles and Swiss scientists Michael Mayor and Didier Queloz are recipients of the prize for 2019
CSIR announces the winners of Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar prize for 2019
The prize carries a cash component of Rs 5 lakh and is awarded for outstanding research, both fundamental applied
New ride sharing algorithm promises better deal for riders and drivers
Researchers at IIT-Delhi have developed an algorithm that can guide taxi drivers to take a route where they can find more commuters for sharing
MIT scientists built biggest-ever carbon nanotube computer chip
The carbon nanotubes can conduct electricity much faster, are 10 times more energy-efficient and could also be seen as a greener option compared …
New space telescope to create a 3D X-ray map of Universe
The Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma telescope aims to detect up to 3 mn supermassive black holes — many of which will be new to science — and …
US, Russia, China race to develop hypersonic weapons
Weapons that travel far faster than sound may be snazzy, but what about the defence against them
Space Race 2.0: Can astronauts survive the Mars mission?
A six-month stay in space induces physiological changes to the human body and a trip to Mars will be thrice that duration
Scientists synthesise cannabis like products in lab
The developed chemicals' commercial use is limited since it is difficult to procure sufficient quantities of marine sources for their isolation
Records of historical supernova found in Karnataka
Criticism of western scholars that great celestial events of supernovae had gone unnoticed in India is totally unfounded
Selenium nanoparticles may act like antibacterial agents
Scientists find that they can be more effective than antibiotics owing to their unique structure and properties
Researchers develop antimicrobial coating from agricultural waste
The researchers used lignin, a complex, woody biopolymer that is left over as stubble post-harvest
Boom boom boom — like a heartbeat: Scientists pick up mysterious fast radio bursts
Properties of the signal suggest that the source lives in a very turbulent environment inside its galaxy
Udhampur gets earthquake observatory
New seismological observatory will help further strengthen the region’s earthquake monitoring
Stockholm+50: Is science for just solutions
If science-policy interfaces are to deliver just and effective solutions to climate change, they must involve indigenous peoples and local communities
Scientists image mysterious rock zone 3,000 km beneath Earth’s surface
They found that the speed of earthquake waves travelling through the base of the structure could be 40 per cent slower than the surrounding regions