Representative illustration. A traditional temporary pacemaker requires invasive open heart or endovascular surgical methods to both implant and remove. | Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto Scientists at Northwestern University in the US have engineered a pacemaker smaller than a grain of rice. The makers of the device say it can be implanted in a non-invasive procedure…
India is poised to achieve a significant milestone in its space exploration journey as Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla of the Indian Air Force is set to become the first Indian astronaut to visit the International Space Station (ISS). Scheduled for May 2025, this mission will mark India’s return to human spaceflight after a gap of…
Obesity medicine: In a significant breakthrough, scientists are developing a cream to reduce body weight, DailyMail.com reported. The latest discovery in obesity medicine will be available in less invasive creams and patches, known as transdermal drug delivery systems. The new technology could be leveraged to help millions of people uneasy about needles benefit from these…
Undocking of the two satellites on March 13, 2025. The first docking took place on January 16, 2025. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully executed the second docking of the two satellites, which are part of the Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX) mission. On April 21, Union Minister of…
Using solar energy may be better for the environment than burning through fossil fuels, but the process still isnât exactly perfect. Making silicon-based solar panels is energetically expensive and we still donât know what to do with the silicon once the panels are done being used. There is a cheaper way to make solar panels,…
Theoretical physicist and teacher A.P. Balachandran, known for his work in understanding the physics of fundamental particles, passed away on April 18 in Coimbatore. He was the Joel Dorman Steele emeritus professor at Syracuse University and an internationally recognised theoretical physicist. After completing his bachelorâs degree at the Madras Christian College, he received his Ph.D…
Thereâs a harmless addiction that many people share: knuckle-cracking. That âpopâ, better than the one from squeezing bubble wrap, results from the synovial fluid between your joints releasing a small bubble of nitrogen when you twist or compress your fingers or toes. Itâs also a reminder of the centrality of nitrogen to life. The fifth-most…
For NASA’s oldest serving astronaut Don Pettit, his 70th birthday was not about spending quietly with family and friends, cutting a cake, blowing out candles or any other traditional feat. Instead, Don Pettit turned 70 in space, while hurtling towards the Earth in a spacecraft as he wrapped up a mission aboard the International Space…
An artistâs concept shows what exoplanet K2-18 b could look like based on science data. | Photo Credit: REUTERS The story so far: On April 16, an international research team uploaded a paper in which it reported that the distant exoplanet K2-18b may be habitable. The claim was met with cautious excitement by astronomers. While…
Two independent clinical trials demonstrate the safety of stem cell therapies for Parkinsonâs disease. The papers, published in Nature, investigate the use of cells derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells and human embryonic stem cells, respectively. Parkinsonâs disease is a neurodegenerative disease characterised by the progressive loss of neurons that produce dopamine, a neurotransmitter. Cell therapy, specifically replenishing dopamine-producing neurons (dopaminergic) in the…
