In a recent announcement made by the Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore, 23 scientists from across the country have been elected as Fellows of the Academy. The list contains nine scientists from Bengaluru, with five from the Indian Institute of Science, two from TIFR Centre for Applicable Mathematics and one each from National Institute of Mental Health & Neurosciences (NIMHANS) and Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR).

The new year is here and we are still revelling in the spirits of 2018! One of our significant initiatives of 2018 was communicating science in regional languages so that the compelling science stories reach far and wide, breaking language barriers. After our debut with Kannada, we scored big with Hindi, Marathi and Assamese. The year 2019 holds more promise and we are all excited about it! Here we present a selected list of stories that were our top ‘local flavours’.

As we bid adieu to 2018 and welcome 2019, here is a snapshot of India’s year in science. From remarkable satellite launches, scientific breakthroughs and a cocktail of controversies, the year that went by was eventful for various reasons. Here is an attempt to travel down the memory line, reflecting on what we saw and what we could learn. While this is not an extensive list and in no way ranked, it is an attempt to highlight India’s year in science.

The year 2018 was marked by exciting discoveries and inventions in the field of medical sciences, life sciences, archeology, physical sciences, and planetary sciences. While some are headline-hitting, most are crucial in cementing our understanding of various tenets in these areas. As we come close to bidding goodbye to 2018, here is a sneak-peek into the trendsetters in science in this year, in no particular order.

You asked it and here we have! Wondering what was popular on Research Matters in 2018? Following are our top-ten stories that gained traction by readers like you. Thank you for your support and hope to see it continue in the years to come.

As the curtain falls on 2018, here is a tribute to those great Indian scientists and innovators who died in the year. These eminent people contributed to various fields of science and helped put India in the frontiers of global scientific advancements. This is in no way an exhaustive list, but it is an effort to bring to the fore the achievers who have left an indelible mark behind. 

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay) have developed a new life-saving device that can detect heart attacks early on using a smartphone. The innovative sensor, conceptualised by students Debasmita Mondal and Sourabh Agrawal, and guided by Prof. Soumyo Mukherji, won the recently presented 2018 Gandhian Young Technological Innovation award recently.

Scientists from IIT Delhi have developed a platform to detect bacterial growth using fluorescent carbon nanoparticles.

In a recent study, researchers from Velammal Engineering College, Chennai and the Indian Institute of Technology Madras have proposed a novel way to send patient’s health information as codes to retain the privacy. 

Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, develop a highly effective solution for recovering green sand in small and medium foundries.