Read more: https://researchmatters.in/news/urban-growth-and-peri-urban-agriculture%E2%80%93-insight-nagpur

Can proper urban planning lead to sustainable #development? A case study of Nagpur, India

Read more: https://researchmatters.in/news/wiping-fossil-fuels-could-save-36-million-lives

Wiping Off Fossil Fuels Could Save 3.6 Million Lives

Today we look at some rather interesting news bits from the previous week. First off, a newly discovered bacteria that has a penchant for devouring pollutants, then the scary rise in tobacco use across Asia, a way to save lives with help from victims of road accidents through organ donation, a really cool app that lets you use your smartphone as a hearing aid and lastly a little dietary advice!

Links:
Can bacteria clean up our filthy mess? http://ow.ly/vZRc30op8ZF
Asia’s tobacco epidemic on the rise, says study http://ow.ly/14qP30op901
Drivers and donors: How can the most probable victims of road accidents decrease the organ donation gap? http://ow.ly/j7WV30op90m
Hearing out the deaf: IISc researchers design a smartphone-based therapy and hearing aid http://ow.ly/5WZH30op90L
Watch what you eat: 1 in 5 deaths due to poor diet, reveals study http://ow.ly/fmU230op90U

For more science-based stories, podcasts and news, log on to www.researchmatters.in

Research Bytes: Good bacteria, Asia's tobacco epidemic, drivers to organ donors and more

We talk about the science behind the recently released first-ever photograph of a black hole and then health care in India. Let’s look at India's fight against malnutrition, how pneumonia is affecting India’s children and how we could prevent misdiagnosing blood pressure. To end, we’ll discuss some findings that could help develop rural India.

Snapped! Here is the first photograph of a black hole: https://researchmatters.in/news/snapped-here-first-photograph-black-hole
What Is a Black Hole? https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/k-4/stories/nasa-knows/what-is-a-black-hole-k4.html
Astronomers Capture First Image of a Black Hole: https://eventhorizontelescope.org/
Scientists Reveal the First Picture of a  Black Hole: https://www.wired.com/story/scientists-reveal-the-first-picture-of-a-black-hole/
How scientists took the first picture of a black hole: https://www.sciencenews.org/article/event-horizon-telescope-black-hole-picture

The highs and lows of India’s child nutrition program: https://researchmatters.in/news/highs-and-lows-india%E2%80%99s-child-nutrition-program

Half of the kids with pneumonia lack adequate care in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, finds study: https://researchmatters.in/news/half-kids-pneumonia-lack-adequate-care-bihar-and-uttar-pradesh-finds-study

Third time's the charm when it comes to measuring your blood pressure: https://researchmatters.in/news/third-times-charm-when-it-comes-measuring-your-blood-pressure

Making India’s villages self-sufficient: https://researchmatters.in/news/making-india%E2%80%99s-villages-self-sufficient

Research Bytes - The first photograph of a black hole, India's fight against malnutrition and more

Let’s talk about the way a pesky mosquito bites us to figure out how we can make injections less painful, look at a new drug that uses our cells defenses to kick cancer to the curb, then turn our heads to climate change and our water woes. First, how global warming might be affecting our economy, whether rural water can help quench our cities thirst and finally how the Indian Meteorological Department predicted ‘near normal’ monsoon rains for 2019.

Vibrations for Painless Injections: https://researchmatters.in/news/vibrations-painless-injections

New drug pits cell’s biocidal system against cervical cancer:
https://researchmatters.in/news/new-drug-pits-cell%E2%80%99s-biocidal-system-against-cervical-cancer

World’s inequality increased by global warming, reports study:
https://researchmatters.in/news/world%E2%80%99s-inequality-increased-global-warming-reports-study

What will our climate look like in 2050? http://sciencenordic.com/what-will-our-climate-look-2050

Quenching cities' thirst with rural water: https://researchmatters.in/news/quenching-cities-thirst-rural-water

Here is how the IMD predicted ‘near normal’ monsoon rains for 2019: https://researchmatters.in/news/here-how-imd-predicted-%E2%80%98near-normal%E2%80%99-monsoon-rains-2019

NASA looks at Tropical Storm Fani's rainfall rates: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2019-04/nsfc-nla042919.php

Long Period Average: The IMD yardstick for determining rainfall: https://www.civilsdaily.com/news/long-period-average-the-imd-yardstick-for-determining-rainfall/

El Niño: https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/el-nino/

Research Bytes: Less painful injections, fighting Cancer, India's water woes and more

Orb-weaving jumping Spiders, Snow leopards, and Tigers from Russia and India, made the headlines last week. As did the impact that climate change has on the lives of Indian fishermen and a fertiliser made out of biomolecules that is much safer to use than our chemical fertilisers. Let's talk about all this on this week's episode of Research Bytes

Research Bytes: Orb-weaving Jumping Spiders, Stressed Tigers, Elusive Snow Leopards and more

Did you hear about the neutron star and black hole merger that scientists have observed for the very first time? Well they used gravitational waves to detect it! What about dark matter? Ever wondered why it’s "dark"? Let’s talk about these interesting physics questions. Then we’ll drift on to the Sundarbans. Whose land is that anyways? And finally we’ll catch up with India’s rivers. Too many are drying up, way too soon!

Scientists observe the first ever merger of a neutron star and a black hole: https://researchmatters.in/news/scientists-observe-first-ever-merger-neutron-star-and-black-hole

Uncovering what’s ‘dark’ about Dark Energy: https://researchmatters.in/news/uncovering-what%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%98dark%E2%80%99-about-dark-energy

Researchers identify key genes that help rice adapt to water scarcity: https://researchmatters.in/news/researchers-identify-key-genes-help-rice-adapt-water-scarcity

Whose ‘right’ is it in the Sundarbans? https://researchmatters.in/news/whose-%E2%80%98right%E2%80%99-it-sundarbans

India’s river catchments are drying up, too many too soon: https://researchmatters.in/news/india%E2%80%99s-river-catchments-are-drying-too-many-too-soon

Research Bytes: Neutron Stars, Blackholes, Dark Matter and more

May has been a busy month for scientists here in India! With the discovery of 2 new species of diatoms and 3 new species of snake. Let’s talk about what this has to tell us about the unexplored regions of India. Then we’ll discuss the tiny fig wasp and look at how extremely important it is to the giant fig tree.

What are Diatoms? https://diatoms.org/what-are-diatoms
Two species of diatoms discovered in Sikkim https://researchmatters.in/news/two-species-diatoms-discovered-sikkim

Word on the Vine: New species of vine snake discovered in India https://researchmatters.in/news/word-vine-new-species-vine-snake-discovered-india

After 70 long years, a new species of pitviper emerges from Arunachal Pradesh https://researchmatters.in/news/after-70-long-years-new-species-pitviper-emerges-arunachal-pradesh

A new genus and species of natricine snake from northeast India https://www.mapress.com/j/zt/article/view/zootaxa.4603.2.2

How mighty are the fig wasps? https://researchmatters.in/news/how-mighty-are-fig-wasps

Research Bytes: 3 New Snake Species,2 New Diatoms Species & A Love-story for Fig Wasps and Fig Trees

Today, the 5th of June, marks the World Environment Day. Since 1974. this day has been observed to encourage worldwide awareness and action to protect our environment. A theme is picked to highlight a pressing concern for our environment and this year, it's “beating air pollution”. 

In India, the state of air quality is grim and most cities have hazardous pollutant levels. Statistics show that India has 14 of the 15 most polluted cities in the world! But all’s not lost yet, provided we act NOW.

What are some of the reasons behind the deteriorating air quality and what can we, as citizens, do? The Research Matters team spoke to three scientists that actively exploring these aspects. In this conversation, Professor S. K. Satheesh, Professor A R Ravishankara and Professor Navakanta Bhat share their thoughts about what motivated them to research the cause of air pollution.

World Environment Day Special On Beating Air Pollution

A couple of firsts for India, the first e-mode Gallium-Nitride power transistor, and the world’s first web-based tool to identify wheat varieties. Let’s also talk about the wonders of artificial intelligence and machine learning. Want some spoilers for the ‘surprise’ element in election results? Look no further than social media! Want to know which is the best policy to protect a forest? Machine learning is the answer! And would you like to make a pesticide that kills only a specific pest? You can use machine learning for that too. Well, maybe you and I can’t do these things, but we can take a look at how these super smart scientists did it!

IISc Develops India’s first e-mode Gallium-Nitride Power Transistor https://researchmatters.in/news/iisc-develops-india%E2%80%99s-first-e-mode-gallium-nitride-power-transistor

What is a Semiconductor? https://www.tel.com/museum/exhibition/principle/semiconductor.html

How Semiconductors Work https://electronics.howstuffworks.com/diode.htm

ICAR scientists develop the world’s first web-based tool to identify wheat varieties https://researchmatters.in/news/icar-scientists-develop-world%E2%80%99s-first-web-based-tool-identify-wheat-varieties

Lessons from Pepsico’s farmer Lawsuit http://www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/2019/jun/08/lessons-from-pepsicos-farmer-lawsuit-1987474.html

Social Networks: Spoilers to the ‘surprise’ element in election results?   https://researchmatters.in/news/social-networks-spoilers-%E2%80%98surprise%E2%80%99-element-election-results

Here’s how machine learning could help in choosing the best policy for forest management https://researchmatters.in/news/here%E2%80%99s-how-machine-learning-could-help-choosing-best-policy-forest-management

The art of crafting insect-specific pesticides using machine learning https://researchmatters.in/news/art-crafting-insect-specific-pesticides-using-machine-learning

Research Bytes : A Gallium-Nitride Transistor, The Mysteries of Machine Learning and More

Recent & latest research based news stories & highlights in science, engineering, technology & humanities from India.