Saturn is the second largest planet in our solar system. With a colourful ring system surrounding the planet, it is highly attractive. Only brief observations, using telescopes, Pioneer-11, Voyager-1 and Voyager-2 in situ recorders have been made. Comparatively impressive details of Saturn have already been obtained. A space mission named Cassini-Huygens is on its way to explore Saturn's biggest moon, Titan, which is slightly smaller than our earth.
The communication by Singh et al. on single nucleotide polymorphisms among the Jarawas of the Andaman Islands appears to be a purely academic endeavour. The evident outcome of the study is the discovery of polymorphism in two genes. The authors have not elaborated on the significance of the discovery for the Jarawa populations investigated. It is also difficult to comprehend how any population genetics-based epidemiological study could be undertaken without information on the parent-offspring relationships in the samples.
The multi-disciplinary study of histopathology and toxicology of Bhopal gas tragedy resolved several issues. First, the progression of severe pulmonary oedema to chronic fibrosis was confirmed experimentally, following a single exposure to MIC. Analysis of the residue in Tank 610 revealed over 21 chemicals.
Discovery and validation of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the human genome is an active area of interest, because of their usefulness in evolutionary and disease-association studies. The researchers have resequenced 70 chromosomes from the Jarawa, a Negrito tribal group inhabiting the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago for a = 10 kb genomic region spanning two genes.
Flood hazard in a basin depends upon the hydrological response of the upstream basin area. The upstream basin area may produce different amounts of run-off for a given rainfall based on its hydrologic response. The present communication shows the importance of drainage network characteristics in understanding the hydrologic response of a basin. The study is carried out through Geomorphic Instantaneous Unit Hydrograph analysis, wherein Horton's morphometric ratios were used to define the drainage network. A floodprone river basin in north Bihar plains has been selected as a study area.
Majority of rural households in India use only kerosene for lighting. Most of the lamps are hurricane-type, which produce very poor light intensity of about 60
Extreme climate events such as aridity, drought, flood, cyclone and stormy rainfall are expected to leave an impact on human society. They are also expected to generate widespread response to adapt and mitigate the sufferings associated with these extremes.
The Indo-Gangetic plains are drained by several fan and interfan rivers fringing the margin of the outer Himalaya. These fan and interfan river systems are distinctly different from each other in terms of hydrology and sediment transport and generate typical
Majuli, a river island within the two arms of the mighty Brahmaputra river, is a site having extreme historical and cultural importance, and warrants immediate exposure to the scientific community. The island faces an acute erosion problem as no permanent anti-erosion measures based on proper geohydrological models have been adopted so far. The land area of the island, as evidenced from the IRS satellite imagery of 1998, is 577.65 km2 compared to 1245 km2 according to available historical records. The available data indicate an erosion rate of 1.9 km2 / yr for the period of 1920–98.
