Science
Down To Earth
AI can see you
Asophisticated and frightening face-recognition algorithm being employed by technology firms could be the end of privacy as we know it
4 min |
March 01, 2024
Down To Earth
TROUBLED TEAK
Farmers need to be sensitised about right planting materials and cultivation techniques to benefit from high-value teak plantations
6 min |
March 01, 2024
Down To Earth
Follow the Chinese way on high tech
Making universities the hub of innovation and churning out scientists adept in frontier technology has put China at the top
4 min |
March 01, 2024
Down To Earth
Stronger resolve
In the face of climate change, countries make a slew of commitments to ensure conservation of migratory species
2 min |
March 01, 2024
Down To Earth
MIND YOUR THOUGHTS
Technologies with potential to read one’s thoughts have grown tremendously in recent years driven largely by artificial intelligence, a develooment that raises ethical and privacy issues
5 min |
March 01, 2024
Down To Earth
Winter Without Snow
Record-low snowfall in the Himalayas is evidence that climate change is speeding up
3 min |
February 16, 2024
Down To Earth
UNDERRATED GREEN
Kohlrabi is a healthy but little used member of the cabbage family
3 min |
February 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Historical hindsight
An encyclopaedic work capturing the breathless changes in Assam’s recent history as well as its struggle for identity and modernity
6 min |
February 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Making jugaad a global success
Frugal innovation is the new concept that companies are adopting to take technology to developing countries
4 min |
February 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Whose debt is it
Many African nations are defaulting on payment of loans they have utilised for funding climate-resilient infrastructure
3 min |
February 16, 2024
Down To Earth
RACE TO REHABILITATE
Every sixth urban Indian lives in slums. With housing-for-all being a key national target, states across the country have taken steps to redevelop slums.
8 min |
February 16, 2024
Down To Earth
At the cost of welfare
The Interim Budget 2024-25 took a cautious approach to reduce fiscal deficit. This prioritisation led to inadequate allocations for key sectors
2 min |
February 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Forced to vanish
The world has its first clear evidence on migratory species facing heightened levels of extinction risk due to human-led pressures
4 min |
February 16, 2024
Down To Earth
That Lonely Feeling
WHO has recognised loneliness as a public health crisis and is trying to devise a way to measure the condition that affects a quarter of the world population
10 min |
January 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Worthy alternative
A new field experiment shows that fertiliser derived from faecal sludge can improve crop yields
3 min |
January 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Narkya and the plunder of biodiversity
Dilution of biological conservation rules and lax enforcement of forest laws are giving free rein to the drug industry and trade
4 min |
January 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Pencil in this shortage
India's 'pencil village' faces uncertain future due to raw material crises
3 min |
January 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Fight for land
From stricter land laws to revising domicile rules, Uttarakhand residents demand government action to stop the sale of agricultural land to outsiders
3 min |
January 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Madagascar faces year's first cyclone
THE FIRST cyclone of 2024 made landfall near Morombe in Madagascar on January 1, affecting around 16,100 people.
1 min |
January 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Paddy warriors
A couple in Karnataka is preserving rare native paddy varieties through cultivation
2 min |
January 16, 2024
Down To Earth
SOUR SURPRISE
Fermentation can help make uniquely tangy healthy dishes while also reducing food waste at home
3 min |
January 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Twist in the (fairy)tale
How might fairy tales read if written in today's times? When Fairyland Lost Its Magic is an attempt at that-a retelling of eponymous fables with climate change factored in on every page.
4 min |
January 16, 2024
Down To Earth
UNTAPPED POTENTIAL
India's two-decade journey with Geographical Indication tags has shown limited outcome and there is an urgent need to simplify the registration processes to ensure that the protection mechanism helps producer communities
5 min |
January 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Forced evolution
Plants shift towards self-pollination as they see disruption in interactions with insects due to changes in climate
5 min |
January 16, 2024
Down To Earth
SILENT FAMINE
For the past 50 years, the country has introduced high-yielding rice and wheat varieties at breakneck speed to achieve food security. A study led by scientists with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has for the first time looked at the food value of these modern-bred grains, and delivers some dire warnings: the food grains that we eat have lost food value; instead they are accumulating toxins. Worse, by 2040, the grains will become so \"impoverished\" that they would worsen the country's growing burden of non-communicable diseases.
10+ min |
January 16, 2024
Down To Earth
Misplaced focus
The fictional series based on the Bhopal gas disaster falls miserably short in its attempt to be a riveting survival drama
3 min |
December 16, 2023
Down To Earth
Patents zoom, but where is the innovation?
India is among the top patent filers globally, but it has yet to make its mark in any breakthrough technologies
4 min |
December 16, 2023
Down To Earth
Saved by sponge
As oceans warm up, women in Zanzibar switch from seaweed to climate-resilient sponge farming to stay afloat
4 min |
December 16, 2023
Down To Earth
Conquest of lantana
A decade-long initiative in Madhya Pradesh to reclaim land overrun by lantana helps residents restart agriculture and restore native biodiversity
5 min |
December 16, 2023
Down To Earth
Highs and lows
As COP28 enters its final week, Parties have operationalised historic loss and damage fund and agreed to the health impacts of climate change, but have failed to reach a consensus on key issues of climate finance, adaptation goal and global stocktake
5 min |