by Pavan Kaushik –  Fixed. Immobile. Stationary. The first thing that occurs to one when she looks at a plant. But plants are not passive entities merely subject to environmental forces, nor are they ‘automata’-like organisms based only on reflexes and optimized solely for accumulation of photosynthate. Plants respond sensitively to environmental stimuli by movement and changes in morphology.  Plants communicate…

By Sebastian Sturm. Bread isn’t just bread. Bread is much more! Bread is one of the most important foods of humankind. Bread is culture. Bread is an essential part of human history and a driver of division of labour in early human societies. For the starving, it is the difference between life and death. For others, it is a way…

by Jagath – This weekend me and a few friends decided to get something fancy for dinner. We decided to dine at a well-known sushi restaurant in the city. My experience with sushi has been very limited. Actually, my experience with seafood in general has been very limited because I grew up vegetarian (which I still identify as, shhh…). So…

by Neha Sriram – As a child I was exposed very early to the idea of autism. My mother used to volunteer at special schools, and sometimes she used to take me along to play with the children there. As I grew up, these memories have stayed with me and developed into a curiosity for neuroscience. Last year, I decided to…

by Srinivas Rao – Last month, I had the opportunity to visit one of the Northeast states of India. Northeast India comprises of eight states – the ‘Seven Sister’ states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Sikkim. North East states are always a paradise on Earth, famous for their rich biodiversity, traditions, and unique culture. It was…

by Geetha GT – Mothers are caring, altruistic, sacrificing and were the ones who supported us to become the productive grown-ups we are today. In any case, did you realize that many insects have these qualities? A portion of these insects are fairly wonderful and their mothering senses are amazing. Here are a couple of the unbelievable moms of the…

by Hinal Kharva – Taking a break is really important in this busy life; I have heard that all the time.  Many of us just live with that same work schedule within a laboratory and might forget about life outside.  In my last visit to the University of Florida, I mostly remained busy with a tight experiment schedule plus a lack…

by Santosh Rajus – A heartfelt plea in his Mother tongue for those who cannot speak for themselves. உன் பாதங்கள் வெகு தூரம் செல்லும்,  உன் காதுகளை மீறி எந்த சத்தம் செல்லும, நீ காட்டில் நடந்து வரும் ஓசை என் நெஞ்சை குளிர் அடைக்க செய்யும், மனிதன் ஒரு கோழை , உன் காட்டை அழித்து விட்டு, உன் பெருமையையும் பறித்து விட்டான், நீ தனியாக உன் காட்டிற்கு போராடினாய், உன் தோழர்கள்  உன் கண்…

transcribed by Gauri Gharpure – A fly’s perspective on the recent fieldwork in Sikkim where we tested our artificial flower models to check pollinators’ responses and preferences. Somewhere in Sikkim, Sometime in May 2019 “It was a usual day – the sun rose and I began to get ready for my daily tasks. It had been really cold in the…

We recently worked with Thomas Pausz and artists at Srishti School of Design in Bangalore to deconstruct the flower cues important to pollinators and understand their preferences across climates and environments. Our work together was selected as an exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London showing until October 20, 2019 called “FOOD: Bigger than the Plate”! You can…