Science
Down To Earth
'India a laboratory for seismologists'
India is no stranger to earthquakes. In recent memory, Latur and Bhuj districts in Maharashtra and Gujarat witnessed devastating tremors in 2003 and 2001 respectively. Such quakes leave clues that can aid preparations for future events, say seismologists KUSALA RAJENDRAN, professor, Indian Institute of Science, and CP RAJENDRAN, adjunct professor, National Institute of Advanced Studies. The Rumbling Earth-The Story of Indian Earthquakes, captures their work on historical as well as recent quakes. In an interview with ROHINI KRISHNAMURTHY, they discuss the science of earthquakes, why the Himalayas are due for a huge event and why prediction remains a challenge. Excerpts:
9 min |
January 31, 2025
Down To Earth
Capturing Siang
As India pushes for a mega-dam on the Siang river to counter China's upstream projects, the Adi tribal community of Arunachal Pradesh fears losing ancestral land
4 min |
January 31, 2025
Down To Earth
An extraordinary crusade against neglected diseases
Former US President Jimmy Carter's decades-long campaign to rid Africa of a painful parasitic disease is unmatched
4 min |
January 31, 2025
Down To Earth
MAKE OR BREAK MOMENT
Much has been done to improve regulatory environment for scaling up clean energy. But hiccups remain
9 min |
January 31, 2025
Down To Earth
Lifting a curse
How Gangabai Rajput helped her water-scarce village in Madhya Pradesh let go of superstition and revive an ancient waterbody
2 min |
January 31, 2025
Down To Earth
CLIMATE SHAPES SPECIES
Gradual changes in a population that lives in a region with environmental shifts give rise to new species
3 min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
LEAFY GOODNESS
Leaves of the bottle gourd can be a healthy green addition to the plate
3 min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
'Story of human origin is still not figured out or over'
Fifty years ago, the discovery of a partial skeleton amid the barren desert landscape of northern Ethiopia transformed our understanding of where humans came from, and how we developed into Homo sapiens. \"Lucy\" was first spotted on November 24, 1974, by the American paleoanthropologist Donald Johanson and his student assistant Tom Gray. Named after the Beatles' Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, a popular song in the their team's camp at the time, it was immediately clear she was a female, because of her small adult size, and that she had walked upright, unlike chimpanzees. Lucy was also very old-at almost 3.2 million years, she was anointed as the then-earliest known (distant) ancestor of modern humans. Over the following decades, rather fittingly given her name, she became a \"paleo-rock star\", going on a US tour from 2006 following a deal with the Ethiopian authorities.
7 min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
Deadly discharge
Residents of an industrial cluster blame effluent and sewage treatment plants for discharging poorly treated water that contaminates the area, causes skin diseases
4 min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
US drug regulator faces Trump heat
FAILED REPUBLICAN presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is making more news now than during his doomed attempt to get the party nomination for president. Ramaswamy's decision to throw in the towel and back Donald Trump after his campaign went nowhere showed acumen, the kind he is famous for in the investment world.
4 min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
Distorted picture
India's groundwater recovery may be misleading, as new assessment methods inflate annual recharge figures and discontinue on-ground verification
2 min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
A MAKE OR BREAK YEAR
Expect some stiff targets, radical policy measures and rapid innovations as polycrisis reaches a crescendo this year
10+ min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
Commons in crisis
A landmark 2011 Supreme Court ruling to protect shared resources deepens struggles for India's marginalised communities
5 min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
Europe faces Russian natural gas supply cuts
UKRAINE'S PRIME Minister Denys Shmyhal said on December 16, 2024, that its gas transit agreement with Russia will expire on January 1, 2025, and will not be renewed. The agreement was to allow transit of natural gas to Europe amid the RussiaUkraine conflict.
1 min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
Preserving a voice
Non-profit in Madhya Pradesh documents Korku language, makes education accessible for the tribal community
2 min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
BISHNOIS V DELHIITES: TWO DIFFERENT MINDSETS
FILM STAR Salman Khan's arrest in Jodhpur for killing a chinkara, an endangered animal, and Sahib Singh Verma's resignation as chief minister of Delhi are both developments that hold a message for environmentalists and all those engaged in environmental management.
3 min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
CLIMATE SHAPES SPECIES
Gradual changes in a population that lives ina region with environmental shifts give rise to new species
4 min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
Scope for redemption
Two recent reports underline the need for different strategies for a more sustainable world
4 min |
January 16, 2025
Down To Earth
In leading role again
MOVIES AND WEB SERIES ARE ONCE AGAIN BEING SET IN RUSTIC BACKGROUNDS, INDICATING A RECONNECT BETWEEN CINEMA AND THE COUNTRYSIDE
5 min |
December 16, 2024
Down To Earth
One Nation One Subscription comes at a huge cost
As top US universities scrap big deals with top scientific publishers, India’s ONOS scheme seems flawed and outdated
4 min |
December 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Return of Rambhog
Bid to revive and sell the aromatic indigenous paddy variety has led to substantial profits for farmers in Uttar Pradesh's Terai region
4 min |
December 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Scarred by mining
Natural springs of Kashmir drying up due to illegal riverbed mining
5 min |
December 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Human-to-human spread a mutation away
CANADA IN mid-November confirmed its first human case of avian influenza, with a teenager in the British Columbia being hospitalised after contracting the H5N1 virus that causes the disease. The patient developed a severe form of the disease, also called bird flu, and had respiratory issues. There was no known cause of transmission.
1 min |
December 16, 2024
Down To Earth
True rehabilitation
Residents of Madhya Pradesh's Kakdi village take relocation as an opportunity to undertake afforestation, develop sustainable practices
2 min |
December 16, 2024
Down To Earth
INESCAPABLE THREAT
Chemical pollution is the most underrated and underreported risk of the 21st century that threatens all species and regions
10+ min |
December 16, 2024
Down To Earth
THAT NIGHT, 40 YEARS AGO
Bhopal gas disaster is a tragedy that people continue to face
8 min |
December 16, 2024
Down To Earth
A JOKE, INDEED
A CONFERENCE OF IRRESPONSIBLE PARTIES THAT CREATED AN OPTICAL ILLUSION TO THE REALITY OF A NEW CLIMATE
10+ min |
December 01, 2024
Down To Earth
THINGS FALL APART
THE WORLD HAS MADE PROGRESS IN MITIGATING EMISSIONS AND ADAPTING TO CLIMATE IMPACTS. BUT THE PROGRESS REMAINS GROSSLY INADEQUATE
4 min |
December 01, 2024
Down To Earth
VAPOUR ACTION
MOISTURE IS A SILENT FORCE THAT AMPLIFIES GLOBAL WARMING. YET SCIENTISTS UNDERSTAND LITTLE ABOUT THIS GREENHOUSE GAS AND HOW IT INFLUENCES WEATHER SYSTEMS
8 min |
December 01, 2024
Down To Earth
OPEN AND SHUT CASE
2024 WITNESSED A RECORD NUMBER OF ATTRIBUTION STUDIES THAT SHOW CLIMATE CHANGE AS THE KEY FACTOR BEHIND EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS
3 min |