A giant of the scientific community who showed how to make sense of the universe

Scientific stutter

Do animals have a language, and hence a mind, of their own?

Octopuses are super-smart ... but are they conscious?

The idea of non-human consciousness raises a host of philosophical questions

This week in environment and science

Environment and science related updates from across the world

Green Climate Fund approves eight projects at Zambia meet

Approved projects worth US$ 168 million

‘Food was grown to keep community healthy’

The local system of agriculture produces more healthy and useful food, says Miller

Yaounde Declaration: Health ministers of 11 African countries commit to end malaria deaths

But experts insist that such expressed political will must be accompanied by action on the ground  

AI can see you

A sophisticated and frightening face-recognition algorithm being employed by technology firms could be the end of privacy as we know it

As the world heats up, solar panels will degrade faster – especially in hot, humid areas. What can we do?

We’ll need to incorporate new ways of cooling panels and improve the materials used. We also need to improve manufacturing processes and …

Book Excerpt: Have you ever tried a sustainable safari in Africa?

In safari tourism, the balance between humans, development, and wildlife is a difficult one to strike; but there are safari companies trying to …

A new virus-like entity has just been discovered – ‘obelisks’ explained

Obelisks have a circular single-stranded RNA genome and no protein coat but, like viruses, their genomes contain genes that are predicted to code …

Simply Put: Alone

IPCC Special Report: Climate risks require India to rethink its approach

The report warns of increased risk of coastal flooding, heatwaves, food scarcity and vector-borne diseases

COVER STORY: Why are governments across Africa on a legislation spree to regulate seeds market

Countries and economic blocs across Africa are on a legislating spree to regulate the continent’s seed markets, ostensibly to overcome …

Megadrought along border strains US - Mexico water relations

A landmark 1944 US-Mexico treaty that governs water relations between the two countries, is buckling under the enormous strain of climate change

4 charts show Venezuela's worsening migrant crisis

The exodus impacts even those who haven’t left. Many schools and medical centers have closed throughout the country due to lack …

COVID-19: The poor must wait years for the jab

Intellectual property rights can act as a barrier against wide access to vaccines, treatments for the novel coronavirus disease  

Single-use plastic ban: Environment lessons India can learn from East Africa

Import, manufacturing or sale of single-use plastic bags in Kenya could earn a fine of $40,000 for companies and $500 for individuals

One step forward, two steps back

The initial phase of UPA II witnessed prolific rule making, but this was not followed up with responsible governance

Climate change, the hidden hand

Anthony McMichael takes us on a tour across epochs, showing how collapse of civilisations has roots in climate change

'Science is evidence that current American diets are far from sustainable'

Laura MacCleery of regulatory affairs at Centre for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) decodes what the new dietary recommendations on …

13 smarter ways to fight wildlife crime

Poachers will run out of luck with countries using these promising technological tools to detect wildlife crime and step up law enforcement

Ice Age heat waves might have killed mammoths, says study

Abrupt warming, which resembles the human-made global warming of today, may have driven the mammoths’ extinction

Collision recourse at CERN

Mammoth experiments are under way to test various theories of particle physics. The next stage of experiments is expected to help us understand …

World seeing signs of climate breakdown: Antonio Guterres

UN Pact for Future must prioritise communities bearing brunt of climate emergency, says UN secretary-general