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Greening up the Eiffel
- The Eiffel Tower could be transformed into the world's largest tree if a project to cover the iconic structure's 327-metre height with plants comes to fruition
- Engineering group Ginger, specialised in “green” architecture, has spent two years working on the €72-million ($96-million) project that would see 600,000 plants attached to the tower
- Seedlings would then be cultivated until June next year, which would be placed on the structure until January 2013. The plants would then grow until January 2014 and be left there until their removal in July 2016.
- The project would produce 84.2 tonnes of carbon dioxide but the plants would absorb 87.8 tonnes, rendering the plan “carbon negative”.
- The project will also not replace the electric lights that have adorned the Eiffel Tower since 2002, which instead will simply shine through the leaves with a greener hue
Ant power
- Can we imagine carrying ten-time heavier objects than our body weight?
- However, ants could carry or pull objects weighing several folds heavier than their own body weights.
- According to the square – cube law, when an object undergoes a proportional increase in size, its new volume is proportional to the cube of the multiplier and its new surface area is proportional to the square of the multiplier.
- When an animal grows in length (or height), the volume increases in cube but the cross sectional area of its muscles increases only in square.
- In other words, larger animals have to carry their own weight, besides the heavier objects; so they are able to carry only slightly heavier objects. However, because of the smaller body size, the body mass of ants is much lower and hence they put fewer muscles into use to carry this body mass.
Laser technology detects fake whisky
- Three Indian researchers at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland claimed to have developed a method to tackle the counterfeiting of whisky using laser technology.
- They have come up with a user-friendly device that can prove if a whisky is genuine or not with a teardrop of sample.
- The research was carried out by Praveen Cheriyan Ashok, Kishan Dholakia, and Bavishna Balagopal Praveen.
- the key lies in the ability of the laser to detect the amount of alcohol contained in the sample, genuine whisky must contain at least 40 per cent.
- The method exploits both the fluorescence of whisky and the scattering of light and shift in energy when it interacts with molecules, known as its Raman signature.
- Other than detecting counterfeit liquor samples, this can also be used for quality monitoring of liquor in their production process
- we have filed international patent application under PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty)
Aggressive plan mooted for nutritional cactus
- Dr. S Ayyappan, Director General, ICAR, New Delhi.
- The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) will start focusing on this crop with 10,000 ha area in the country to spread and show amazing uses of cactus crop in India with Central Arid Zone Research Institute (CAZRI) as nodal centre.
- He suggested that the wide network of Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) can be employed to spread the cactus in different parts of India.
- Cactus can solve many problems of arid and semi arid areas of India. We can use it as non-conventional food with less calories and more nutritional quality. It can play an important role in food security of the country
- Cactus is getting attention in every continent as vital crop for increasing plant cover, carbon sequestration, livestock feeding, conserving wildlife, medicinal and cosmetic uses.
India & America: leading with science, uniting for action on HIV/AIDS
- Every year on December 1, we commemorate World AIDS Day.
- It is also an opportunity to pay tribute to more than 34 million people living with AIDS worldwide. Today, we celebrate those lives saved and improved in India and recommit to the fight against AIDS.
- Of particular importance is a study showing that antiretroviral treatment reduces the likelihood of transmission of HIV to an uninfected partner by a remarkable 96 per cent. For the first time, with this and other tools, we have a potential path to eliminate this disease from the global landscape.
- Despite early projections of a rapidly expanding epidemic, India has documented remarkable success in limiting HIV transmission. HIV incidence declined by 50 per cent between 2000 and 2009
- As part of its dynamic partnership with India, the United States, through the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), supports evidence-driven and innovative approaches to support India's National AIDS Control Programme.
- PEPFAR provides expert technical cooperation to address priority areas linked to HIV prevention and treatment, and health system strengthening.
- Throughout the world, treatment — both to save the lives of those infected, and to prevent infection of others — is a key evidence-based intervention, along with prevention of mother-to-child transmission, HIV counselling and testing and other strategies.
- Meeting the challenge of this disease will require commitment from all parties — including the governments of affected countries, donor governments, civil society, faith-based organisations, and the private sector.
Fungi and bacteria help one another travel
- Fungal spores can attach themselves to bacteria, ‘hitching a ride' wherever the bacteria travel.
- When faced with a gap, the bacteria can drop the fungal spores to form a bridge, and continue across the chasm.
