EVOLVING BRAIN: IMPACT OF INCOME INEQUALITY
Income inequality is an undeniable reality in India and in most other parts of the world Research studies seek to understand how income levels may be correlated with differences in the structure of the human brain. The brain evolves constantly over a person’s lifespan This happens as a response to the brain’s external environment—which is […]
RIDING ON DATA FOR MOBILITY
The digital revolution has made interactions between humans and machines, and among citizens, governments and businesses, seamless and efficient Data usage in transport sector An efficient transportation system would help ease congestion, reduce travel time and cost, and provide greater convenience. Data from multiple sources such as CCTV cameras, automatic traffic counters, map services, and transportation service […]
MAPPING LIFE: GENOME INDIA PROJECT
Details: The Genome India Project, a collaboration of 20 institutions including the Indian Institute of Science and some IITs, will enable new efficiencies in medicine, agriculture and the life sciences. Uses would be in personalised medicine, anticipating diseases and modulating treatment according to the genome of patients. If propensities to disease can be mapped to […]
TEST OF GREEN BUILDINGS LIE IN OPTIMISING RESOURCE AND ENERGY USE
‘Green’ and ‘Sustainable construction’ have evolved from a fringe movement to achieving mainstream status The ‘Green’ industry has turned the ideology from being ‘a way of life’ to a mere marketing tool There is no doubt that buildings contribute to over 40 per cent of all carbon emissions in the world and therefore, must be […]
FOR A DATA FIREWALL
Why in news? The report by a German cybersecurity firm that medical details of millions of Indian patients were leaked and are freely available on the Internet is worrying. The firm listed 1.02 million studies of Indian patients and 121 million medical images, including CT Scans, MRIs and even photos of the patients, as being available Such […]
PURIFYING WATER: ON DRAFT NOTIFICATION ON RO SYSTEMS
The Environment Ministry’s draft notification to regulate the use of membrane-based water purification systems primarily concerns the manufacturers of reverse osmosis (RO) water filters but effectively bars domestic users from installing RO systems The association of water filter manufacturers challenged this order and the litigation led to this pan-India notification, where the intent is to conserve water […]
NO ROOM FOR PANIC
Why in news? The Emergency Committee convened by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on January 30 has declared the novel coronavirus outbreak in China as a ‘public health emergency of international concern’, a development that comes after its meeting for the second time in just a week More about the virus? The virus, that has been infecting […]
1ST CASE OF COVID INFLAMMATORY SYNDROME IN TN
Why in news? An eight-year-old boy from Chennai has become India’s first case of acute illness because of hyper-inflammatory syndrome associated with the coronavirus disease. This syndrome describes inflammation in the entire body, including vital organs, which leads to multiorgan failure and shock. There have also been reports of similar cases from the U.S. and […]
POTENTIAL OXFORD VACCINE FAILS TO PREVENT CORONAVIRUS
Why in news? A high-profile potential vaccine for COVID-19 being tested by researchers at Oxford University failed to protect vaccinated monkeys from being infected by the nCoV-2 virus. On a positive side, the test animals appeared to be protected from pneumonia. Details The vaccine candidate: ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 – is a weakened form a common cold […]
NATIONAL MIGRANT INFORMATION SYSTEM (NMIS)
Why in news? In order to capture the information regarding movement of migrants and facilitate the smooth movement of stranded persons across States, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has developed an online Dashboard – National Migrant Information System (NMIS). Details The online portal NMIS would maintain a central repository on migrant workers and help in […]