The 22nd of May is celebrated around the world as International Day for Biodiversity -- a day to celebrate the existence of that little sparrow on the tree, the colourful caterpillar on the leaf, the gigantic Blue whale in the ocean and the majestic elephant in our forests. It is a day to appreciate that our planet is blessed with so many life forms and understand each one’s role in maintaining this ecosystem. A small imbalance in this ecosystem can spell doom for all of us. On this day, here is a brief look at how we have understood biodiversity throughout our history and some important takeaways in the process. 

It is a connected world that we all live in. Technology around is changing everything and making life ‘smarter’ and better for us. The new wave hitting all of us today is Big Data that is changing how we look at a piece of information and make decisions. How have our lives changed with Big Data being around? What are its impacts? What are some concerns? On World Telecommunication and Information Society Day, we look at how Big Data is making big impacts to our lives.

An education in science is a cherished dream for many. Unfortunately, it’s almost always limited to a few areas of study like engineering, medicine or dentistry. Thanks to the numerous avenues today, education in science has better career opportunities than ever, leaping beyond these traditional fields. So, what options does one have in the realm of science education? Here is a small effort to demystify the science education scene in the country.

Missions to the outer space always bring a sense of excitement in the scientific community and hope to find answers to one haunting question - do aliens exist? The Cassini-Huygens mission, launched to orbit Saturn and study its moon - Titan, is no different. Although it has not yet found a convincing answer to the question, it has revealed various facets about the majestic planet, its spectacular rings and the splendid moons. And of course, the possibility of finding life based on many earth-like conditions in the atmosphere of one of Saturn’s moons. Come September, the glorious journey of this spacecraft comes to an end after two eventful decades. Here is a wishing Cassini-Huygens a long goodbye.

Malaria, the biggest killer of all time, has a long association with humans. As we develop new strategies to combat the fatal disease, the parasite causing the disease gets stronger than ever. In this seemingly never-ending tussle, who ultimately wins the battle? The judgement, it seems, is not an easy one! On World Malaria Day, here is a brief insight into the details of this deadly disease. 

Today is World Bicycle Day, a day celebrated to commemorate the joy of cycling. In a country like Netherlands, almost every person owns a cycle, and 99.1% are cyclists! But a city like Bengaluru -- almost thrice as big  and with 12 times more population -- loses hands down to Amsterdam, in citizens choosing to cycle. Why is that so? And what can be done to make people here fall in love with their bikes? The Research Matters team caught up with Prof. Ashish Verma, an Associate Professor at the Department of Civil Engineering, at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru. 

Can insects help us decipher how molecules behave? Yes, say scientists from Department of Chemistry of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, IIT Kanpur, IIT Guwahati and Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Kolkata. In a recent study, they have described how the concept of ‘swarm intelligence’ can be used to determine the most stable configuration of a molecule and its electronic structure. With this knowledge as base, scientists can design molecules such as drugs, vaccines and polymers with targeted properties.

Science realises its complete potential when it is applied for the betterment of our lives. As a testimony to this, a group of researchers from the Indian Institute of Science have developed innovative technologies that benefit milk producers and silk growers. Their innovations, which recently won the prestigious Gandhian Young Technological Innovation award, uses nanotechnology to detect melamine, an adulterant, in milk and image processing techniques to detect the quality of silk.

This year’s World Health Day focuses on Depression, a serious mental health condition that can damage a person’s quality of life, productivity, relationships, and worse - make them suicidal. India is one of the countries with the largest number of depressed people. Here is all you need to know about depression and the severity of the disease in the Indian context. With social awareness and timely help, there is hope to bring some cheer on the face of people with this mental condition.

Tuberculosis or TB is a disease known to mankind since our existence on Earth. In spite of that, our fight against this deadly disease still continues. A major breakthrough in this fight is the identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacteria that causes TB, in the 19th century. World Tuberculosis Day is celebrated commemorating that significant day, when Robert Koch discovered this deadly bacteria that has now become stronger than ever, and standing tall against all odds in this fight. Will we ever succeed? Only time can tell.