Pursuing research is one of the aspirations of many young minds stepping out of their college. Unfortunately, for many, this aspiration remains largely a dream as costs of higher education are increasing day by day. But what makes higher education so expensive? In such scenarios, should students bear the cost of research? If not, then who should bear them and why? How can different beneficiaries of university research work to help students come out of the burden of education costs and serve society at large? In a conversation with the Research Matters team, the winner of 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics, and the current Vice Chancellor of the Australian National University, Prof. Brian Schmidt, shares his views on the topic of research funding.

While open defecation has well known health risks, toilets with sewage pits come with their own drawbacks. One of them is the contamination of ground water due to sewage leachate -- the water that seeps into the soil from the pit and has extremely toxic levels of nitrates, ammonium and organic carbon. These toxins are known to contaminate ground water making it unfit for drinking. Now scientists have designed a twin-pit toilet system that reduces the levels of nitrates, ammonium and organic carbon in the sewage water before it is being absorbed by the ground. This treated water, the researchers say, have low levels of toxins, making it safe and saving water bodies from contamination due to sewage.

In a city like Bangalore, public transport system has a huge responsibility of transporting millions everyday and is a necessity to decongest the cities roads and help the city take a step towards sustainable living and greener environment. BMTC, the city's public transport cooperation has introduced many fleets of buses catering to different areas and targeting different types of customers. A new study now evaluates the sustainability of BMTC's fleet of Volvo buses and suggests ways that could help the cooperation maximise its profit and run its services efficiently.

Isoprene is a naturally produced organic compound, produced by plants. It is a colourless volatile liquid produced by many plants and is the main component of natural rubber. Although the role of isoprene as a pollutant is yet to be confirmed, it has been shown that in the presence of high amounts of nitric oxides, isoprene can lead to the formation of lower atmosphere ozone, which is considered as a leading air pollutant in many countries.

India is no stranger to air pollution, with the capital, New Delhi, being identified as one of the most polluted cities in the world, several times. The harmful effects of this deteriorating air quality can be seen in the increasing number of patients with respiratory disorders. Now, a team of scientists have designed a novel gas sensor using MEMS technology that is compact, highly sensitive, consumes very little power and accurately detects gaseous pollutants like CO, CO₂, NO₂ & SO₂.

The race to space is heating up with the addition of private players around the world. With increasing competition to make space explorations affordable, there is a whole ecosystem of small and big companies trying to eye the possible revenues. One among them is the award winning start-up from Bangalore, incubated at IISc, called Bellatrix Aerospace. In a recent conversation with Research Matters, the company reveals its plans for the future and talks about its innovative solutions that aim to make space explorations cheaper than ever.

Escherichia coli, commonly called E. coli, is a bacteria that can be found in the gut of many warm blooded animals, including humans. Although many strains of the bacteria are harmless, a few strains of E. coli are pathogens that causes diseases like food poisoning, urinary tract infections and pneumonia. A little known fact however, is that E. coli is also responsible for infections of the eye leading to conditions like conjunctivitis and keratitis.

Lignin, like cellulose, is an insoluble fibre found in many fruits and vegetables including kiwi, ridge gourd, carrots, spinach and kale. In a recent study, scientists from the Vivekananda College of Pharmacy, Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and Poornaprajna Institute of Scientific Research (PPISR) have prepared lignin-rich nanoparticles from vegetables by treating their fibres with special enzymes thus making it ‘green’.

A new study at IISc looks to uncover the secret behind the development of drug resistance in TB causing bacteria by testing the efficacy of various commonly available antibiotics. The researchers have found that a combination of commonly available antibiotics along with Augmentin, fights the development of resistance among TB bacteria. This study might throw light on developing new class of drugs that can help contain the spread of deadly tuberculosis, claim the researchers.

The Education and Research Network or better known as the ERNET project was initiated in 1986 by the central government with the aim of connecting the different academic institutions across the country and introducing research in networking in the country. By 1992, ERNET had become the country’s first internet service provider. In January 2016 it was mutually decided to end the agreement between ERNET and IISc, thus bringing to an end a three-decade long effort in data networking.