Volcanic eruptions drove dinosaurs to extinction HOW did the dinosaurs disappear from the face of this earth? One school of thought blames it on volcanic eruptions from the Deccan Traps of India. Another insists on an asteroid that hit the earth aeons ago. One of the longest running debates in scientific history, freshly found evidence has fuelled it anew. The Chicxulub crater

Pacific white shrimp is susceptible to viral diseases an outbreak of white spot disease wiped out 40-60 per cent of Kerala

Recognition of title subject to final orders THE High Court of Andhra Pradesh on May 1 gave permission to the state government to issue pattas (title deeds) against forestland to 114,000 tribals and forest dwellers who depend on forests for livelihood. They had filed claims under the Forest Rights Act over the past two years but the state was not issuing pattas because a petition in the

View image New facts discovered about the kala azar parasite kala azar (leishmaniasis) is difficult to treat. Inaccurate diagnosis saw this disease take its toll on 33,000 Indians in 2008. An occurrence more of the poverty-stricken countries, very little research exists on Leishmania

Study the cow to understand the human system better, 80 per cent of their genes are similar so far all the talk was about how closely humans resemble chimpanzees. Since humans are descendants of the apes, the large amount of research that went into establishing the fact followed quite naturally. As a result, other probable kins had to remain in the shadows. Not anymore though. A

Tamil Nadu forest department plans to weed out algae manually A RED alga grown commercially for its starch extract in the Gulf of Mannar, off Tamil Nadu, is said to be choking the coral reef in the protected area. There is no conclusive finding whether the corals are threatened, but the state forest department is not taking chances. It has decided to weed them manually.

To lives of elusive giant octopuses and squids seafarers

Algae grown to trap CO2 become feed for organisms THE Indo-German experiment to induce algal bloom in the South Atlantic Ocean has been ruined by tiny marine organisms called zooplanktons. They ate half the algae grown by spraying a swathe of the ocean surface with iron dust. The ocean fertilization experiment called Lohafex was carried out by scientists from the Alfred Wegener

Aphids know how to fool their enemies, the wasps a battlefield strewn with corpses may be the safest place to avoid detection by the enemy. Neither would the enemy expect to find too many survivors amongst the dead ones nor would it want to waste time and energy looking. This behaviour is also exhibited by aphids, and wasps that parasitize them. Researchers from France found that

Common cold may soon have a cure a couple of sneezes, cough, a running nose and a persistent headache for a few days