VOLUME
47 NUMBER 1 JANUARY 2010
Total visitors:2466 since 19-02-2010
COVER STORY
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UNRAVELLING THE HUMAN GENOME: AN INDIAN
BREAKTHROUGH
SUKANYA DATTA
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8 |
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FEATURE ARTICLES PAINFUL POLIO
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19 |
COMMUNICATING
SCIENCE THROUGH SCIENCE BLOGS
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29
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LOOK OUT FOR THE ANNULAR SOLAR ECLIPSE
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46
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SHORT FEATURE
IMAGINARY
–PLAYMATES
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52
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Ecosystem Services
SHIVANI JADEJA
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45
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FICTION
THE LOST RACE
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36
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DEPARTMENTS
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REACTIONS
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6
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EDITORIAL
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7
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SPECTRUM
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16
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CARTOONS
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26
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40 |
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43 |
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50 |
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54 |
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NATURAL HAZARDS
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56 |
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58 |
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60 |
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62 |
Scientists at the
Indian Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB), CSIR have
successfully mapped the first complete and entirely Indian genome. The
breakthrough holds potential to usher in the era of affordable and predictive
healthcare.
WITH the first sequencing of the entire genome of a
human being,
This un-named Indian male is from Jharkhand and is
in his early fifties, is 167 cm tall and weighs a modest 52 kg. But then, this
is only the beginning. Rajesh S. Gokhale, Director,
IGIB has expressed the desire to sequence ten other Indian genomes shortly.
PAINFUL POLIO
P. CHEENA CHAWLA
Our fight
against polio ― a vaccine-preventable infectious disease ― is at
its peak. Ensuring complete immunization of every child is the key to oust the
deadly polio virus from our planet.
Children are beautiful gifts of Nature. Sheer neglect of hygiene in the early days of life can play havoc in the infant body, letting germs of a wide variety make home in the tiny organs playing a dangerous game of life and death. The aftermath of an infectious childhood illness is most appalling if survival is at the cost of living with a crippled body for whole life. This exactly happens when the deadly virus, known to cause polio, strikes!
One of the most dreaded childhood diseases, polio
mostly strikes children under five years of age. What saddens most is that
despite the availability of time-tested vaccines and global efforts in full
swing to eradicate this disease, polio still incapacitates innocent, young
lives in a few parts of the world that includes
Vol. 47,
January 2010, pp 29-33
COMMUNICATING SCIENCE THROUGH SCIENCE BLOGS
A new era
in science communication has begun through the creation of science blogs. Hop
on to the bandwagon before you get left out and make a mark for yourself.
THE Internet has dramatically changed the very
nature of dissemination of scientific knowledge to the common public over the
past few years. Online journals like PubMed Central
(http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/) and PloSBiology
(http://www.plosbiology.org/home.action) have now become as respected as any
print journal in the concerned fields. Moreover, now researchers do not send
requests for paper reprints any more, as they can easily log on to their online
libraries and download the required material.
Many search engines now bring to one's fingertips almost everything published
in science practically as soon as it is published online. Google search engine
is increasingly and appreciably allowing people not affiliated with big
universities to find literature online. There is a growing trend of more and
more journals coming up with their online editions. In this backdrop of a very
varied and vast scenario of scientific activities on the Internet, the advent
of science blogs heralds a new era in science communication.
What is a Science Blog?
There are as many definitions as there
are science blogs. But in general, science blogs could be defined in two ways:
by topic matter and by authority of the author. A science blog is one that
always, often, or at least sometimes covers science as a topic or one that is
written by a person with some expertise in science like a practicing scientist,
a science student, or a science journalist.
SHISHIR DESHMUKH
The
annular solar eclipse on 15 January 2010 will be the biggest eclipse of its
kind in this century. Obscuring a large section of the Sun for more than 11
minutes, the Moon’s reversed shadow will run from Africa to
ECLIPSES are one of the
most spectacular astronomical events that mesmerize people. Every year about
three to four eclipses occur. For a particular area the frequency of occurrence
of a total solar eclipse is 375 years and for annular eclipse it is 226 years.
However,
conditions conducive to the eclipse are not rare. The conjunction of sun, moon
and earth repeats after one synodic month (the
duration between two consecutive new moons). It is also called a lunation. The
position of the sun with respect to its node is very vital for the occurrence
of the eclipse. With detailed study of lunar motion and the gradual shift of
the nodes, it is found that eclipses can be repeated after one, five or six lunations. However, the positions of the sun, moon and
earth change during this span. Hence, even though the eclipse is repeated, the
immediately succeeding eclipse differs drastically from the earlier eclipse.
Let’s
consider the similarities and differences between the eclipses so repeated.
An
eclipse repeated after one lunation occurs at the same node of the moon’s
orbit. One of the eclipses occurring on consecutive new moons is always a
partial eclipse. One of these consecutive eclipses occurs at the south of the
ecliptic and the other one occurs at the north of the ecliptic. Further, the
consecutive solar eclipses are seen from different geographical areas.
Eclipses
repeated after five or six lunations occur at
different nodes and are seen from different geographical regions.
Vol. 47,
January 2010, pp 52-53
IF you want surprises tickling your senses then
start observing a child around you—especially a toddler. Children of this age
are at the point of their life were things they come across do
not require a logical explanation. They are free to involve the unknown and the
known aspects to there capacities of understanding, which is just learning to
blossom. For them making friends even with the non-living things around
them—their Barbie doll or their favorite GI Joe—is not illogical at all. This
is the age when you never complain, ‘I don’t have a friend’ because at this age
your thoughts and imaginations are completely unshackled.
Children of the age group of 2-6 years
have just begun their journey through life – they are trying to understand the
complications of reality and the fantasies of fairy tales—it’s an overlapping
phase. It is a part of the learning process for them—socializing,
communicating, gaining a conscious mind and exploring the creative part of
their minds. They tend to improvise their vocabulary and their power of
imagination slowly during this phase. And so, having
an imaginary playmate is fairly common among children of this age. Not that it
is something to worry. On the contrary, it is assumed to have a positive effect
on children's social and cognitive development.
Vol. 47, January 2010, pp 45
Moving through a beautiful forest brings back
memories of my school days when my classmates and I visited Jambughoda
Wildlife Sanctuary, in
The role of the tiny bees is
especially of great importance for the survival of trees and other plants.
Without these bees, our forests would not have existed the way they are now.
Many plants need bees to pollinate
their flowers. A plant makes beautiful and fragrant flowers to attract bees.
The flowers produce nectar, which is the reward for the bees that visit the
flowers. In the process of collecting nectar the bees pollinate the flowers.
Only after the flowers are pollinated the plant can form seeds.
Vol. 47, January 2010, pp 36-38
21st April 2032
It was raining. Rose Williams was sitting in her bedroom, the French windows showing the beautiful scene outside. However, nothing seemed good to her today; everything was so dull, so meaningless. She had just returned home after giving her mother a tearful farewell. Her mother, whom she loved so much, was dead; the thought stung her. Now she was orphaned, alone.
She looked outside the window, the raindrops falling, taking her pain away every second. She could think clearly now. She cursed the wounds on her mother’s body that had oozed so much blood after the car accident. She opened the window and a sudden gust of wind washed her face. Then out of the blue, like a thunderbolt striking a tree, the idea came to her mind. Even though she was just a 17-year-old teenager, she found her life’s aim that evening. As she heard the clouds roar, she decided that her life will now be dedicated to create a boon that won’t let a human being die helplessly, lying in a pool of his own blood.
Her ambition was promising but a lot
was to be learned. She was sure that her
mother’s little fortune would help her to fuel her dream. That was the easy part; at least she was
financially secure. Now, all she had to
do was to find the right people to guide her.