REMEMBER the last time when your phone rang and the image in the nearby TV started shaking? Such a disturbance, which can also affect an airplane’s equipment when mid-air, is called electromagnetic interference. These disturbances can occur anywhere in the electromagnetic spectrum; the most common range of concern is 10⁴ Hz to 10⁸Hz.

HERBICIDES atrazine and metolachlor, commonly used to remove weeds and pests from crop fields were until now labelled nonvolatile. It was thought that most environmental risk from these pesticides comes from surface runoff—water from rain, snowmelt and other sources that flows over the land surface.

AN animal’s ability to acclimatise to urban surroundings is believed to depend on its brain size. Evolutionary biologists have for the first time provided evidence of it.

A MEGADROUGHT in parts of Africa and Asia about 17,000 years ago led to mass migration of humans and animals. It is regarded as the most severe in the last 50,000 years. Rainfall in this drought-hit region is caused when winds from the northern and southern hemispheres converge ne-ar the equator. This area is called the In-tertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). Till now it was believed the mega-drought was caused because the zone shifted southwards. But researchers at Paul Smith’s College, New York, reckon that many other forces were at play.

IN WHAT could have ramifications on the ocean food web, scientists have found that rising acidity of seawaters slows down marine nitrogen cycle.

What is exposome?

Exposome is the record of every interaction an individual has with his or her environment since conception. These interactions could be external, such as exposure to air and water pollution and diet, or internal such as the body’s response to infection or psychological stress.