The Madras Hedgehog
For the longest time, I thought hedgehogs were simply critters from British children's books. But three different species of hedgehogs -- living, breathing mammals -- inhabit the Indian subcontinent alone. Of these, we know…
VRx — Virtual Therapeutics
Imagine an itch that cannot be scratched or, if you can, pain in a missing limb. It is a maddening sensation and for some amputees, the feeling is very real. Called Phantom Limb Pain, the…
Dr. Satchin Panda
Eat, Sleep, and Move Right
Our obsession with digital screens is depriving us of sleep and hurting our health. Study after study shows that we are staying up till late, glued to our gadgets, which in turn leads to another…
pic credit: Pratham Books
Anna Mani, Indian weather scientist
Anna Mani, student of CV Raman, made independent India self-reliant in measuring aspects of the weather, and helped lay the ground for harnessing solar and wind power as alternative sources of energy.
pic credit: MIT
Making ketchup glide & pesticides stick
Drops of water bead up or roll right off the leaves of the lotus, making for that metaphysical metaphor – live like a lotus in the water. But the leaves of plants such as wheat,…
Dilip Kumar, Improbable Tamil Anthologist
Dilip Kumar, Booksellers and Exporters, was the name of the Tamil literary bookstore he ran in Mylapore, Chennai. For over a quarter century, till 2016, research scholars and avid readers dropped in here to discuss…