People who lived and died thousands of years ago have left behind their skeletal remains as a legacy. In recent years, scientists have isolated and sequenced the DNA from more and more of these remains. A team of researchers led by scientists at the Harvard Medical School in the U.S. has compared 15,836 ancient DNA...
Category: Science & Tech
How scientists are using ‘DNA maps’ to expose pangolin trafficking hubs
Pangolins are one of the world’s most trafficked mammals even as their existence is threatened by shrinking habitats. So to protect them, conservationists are keen to know where they are being poached. The problem is that it is notoriously difficult to trace a bag of scales seized from a smuggler in an airport back to...
India still short on expertise, tools to manage fungal health burden
For almost 25 summers, Sunita (name changed) gets a severe ‘sweat rash’ on her neck in the hot and humid weather of Mumbai. The rash turns black, looks almost burnt, and stays that way until the monsoons arrive. Then, as if miraculously, the dead skin is shed and her neck looks just fine all over...
Barn swallows in Manipur may have shed migratory trait
GUWAHATI Descendants of migratory barn swallows may have gradually stopped making long journeys and settled permanently in Manipur’s Imphal Valley, a new study suggests. The finding, published in the Journal of Wildlife Science, also says that these fork-tailed birds may represent a mixed population shaped by ancient movements and interbreeding between their different groups over thousands of years. The authors...
Science Snapshots: May 17, 2026
Older dawn of horse-riding could have changed Eurasia Scientists have challenged the claim that horse riding began after 2100 BC. They have reported archaeological evidence showing humans rode horses at least 1,000 years prior after analysing three early horse populations in Eurasia. Those at the Botai site indicated horse use by 3500 BC; skeletons of...
India’s first satellite-tagged Ganges soft-shell turtle released in Kaziranga
India’s first satellite-tagged Ganges soft-shell turtle, an endangered species, was released in the 1,302 sq. km Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve in Assam on Friday (May 15, 2026). The release of the freshwater reptile coincided with the observation of Endangered Species Day. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma termed the event a major step...
Sperm whale ‘clicks’ have complex patterns similar to human speech
Sperm whales communicate using short sequences of clicks known as codas, which they exchange while coordinating within their groups. Scientists have long classified these sequences using the number of clicks and the timing between them. A study published on April 15 in Proceedings of the Royal Society B has however reported that there’s more to...
Scientists dig up Southeast Asia’s largest dinosaur in Thailand
Along a meandering river in a warm and arid region that is now Thailand roughly 113 million years ago, a plant-eating behemoth almost 90 feet (27 meters) long browsed on the treetops without much fear of predators due to its sheer size. This was Nagatitan chaiyaphumensis, the largest-known dinosaur from Southeast Asia. Researchers have unearthed...
A checklist for students aspiring to be researchers
Every individual aspires for a life of personal dignity, economic security and social acceptance. And, these depend on their professional skills and personal aptitude. In any human endeavour, success occurs when one’s hobby is synonymous with one’s profession, buttressed by their attitude. A career in science is perhaps more demanding, more exacting, and possibly more...
Nicobarese oppose proposal for three wildlife sanctuaries
Even as the Calcutta High Court is set to hear challenges to the Centre’s Great Nicobar Island (GNI) project over allegations that the Forest Rights Act was violated while obtaining locals’ consent for it, the tribal council in Nicobar has now flagged further violations of the law in the government’s notification of three wildlife sanctuaries...
