Research Matters

Researchers at the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata; University of Otago, New Zealand; Fred Hutchinson Cancer  Research Centre, USA and National Institute of Biomedical Genomics, West Bengal, explain how altered levels of biological molecules, like lncRNA and miRNA, can lead to the development of oral cancer. 

It is hard to live without a good night’s sleep. However, 22% of the people in industrialised countries do that regularly, when they work in shifts, including those during the night. Working in different shifts disrupts the body’s circadian rhythm—a natural process in our body that regulates the sleep-wake cycle.

Researchers from Savitribai Phule Pune University have identified two strains of fungi, Aspergillus terreus and Aspergillus sydowii, which can degrade polythene under laboratory conditions.

Melting of glaciers in the Himalayas doubled in the last four decades, reveals spy satellite data

Researchers from two Bengaluru-based institutes—the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), have studied the distribution and the impact of protected marine areas on Bumphead parrotfish (Bolbometopon muricatum) in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. After months of data collection by scuba diving and capturing underwater photographs of the seafloor, their findings have now been published in the journal Oryx.

Researchers from IIT Bombay and Pennsylvania State University, USA, propose improvements to refine 3D printing using heat. The proposed model can provide accurate processing scenarios for different alloys without trial and error.

A team of the local Idu Mishmi people led by Dr Sahil Nijhawan from ZSL and UCL, placed cameras in the jungles of Dibang Valley, Arunachal Pradesh to understand the distribution of medium and large-sized mammals. Among the images, they found many pictures of differently coloured, medium sized cats—all of which were Asiatic golden cats. The study also marks the first discovery of the tightly-rosetted morph of the golden cats in the world.

Jack: That, my dear Algy, is the whole truth pure and simple.
Algernon: The truth is rarely pure and never simple.
—  Oscar Wilde in The Importance of Being Earnest

In a series of articles, Research Matters tries to explain the commonly accepted process of scientific methodology, the interpretation of scientific studies and the obvious pitfalls. It is hoped that this series will help lay public in analysing any understanding published scientific studies for what they are, instead of believing just because ‘scientists say so’. This article is the first in the series.

Bengaluru, once called the ‘garden city’, has today traded its greenery for the grey tones of cement. The mushrooming buildings have not only changed the city for its human inhabitants but also for animals that once called this land home. Like us, these animals try to adapt to a new and ever-changing world by learning the tricks and trades necessary to thrive. Now, a study by researchers from IISc has discovered that lizards in the city’s suburbs are street smart, and learn faster than their rural brethren, to stay safe.

The monsoon is here; humming with the pouring rain are the croaks of frogs, for it is the season of love for most of them. But not for Micryletta aishani, the newest of the frogs discovered from the state of Assam. Unlike most frogs that breed during the monsoon, this elusive frog breeds before the onset of monsoon and then goes into hiding for the rest of the year. The discovery is the result of six years of extensive fieldwork in the northeastern states of India by a team of researchers from the University of Delhi, Wildlife Institute of India, Indonesian Institute of Sciences and the University of Texas at Arlington, USA.