Scientific Name Solanum indicum Linn. Family Solanaceae Used Part Fruits Distribution Area A spiny herb, found throughout the warmer parts of Nepal and India, up to an elevation of 1,500 m.…

Scientific Name Rhododendron anthopogon D. Don Family Ericaceae Used Part Stem, Leaves, buds. Distribution Area A small shrub found in Alpine Himalayas of Nepal from 3300-4000 and also in the…

Law and Science : #2 The Chicken Little Mentality Fiat Justicia, Ruat Caelum Fiat justicia ruat caelum is often expressed as: 'let justice triumph or else the sky will fall'.  It may be more…

Ahoy maties, how the time flies. It is "Talk Like A Pirate Day" once again and the science communities be awash in pirattitude. Or not, perhaps 'tis just me. But if it's not just me, and the little…

Jatropha curcus General introduction Jatropha is bush that grows in the warm regions of the world as it is sensitive to colder climates. Once it’s planted it grows and produces nuts that contain oil…

Nanotechnology refers to research and technology development at the atomic, molecular and macromolecular scale leading to the controlled manipulation and study of structures and devices with the…

Are plants really demonic oxygen stealing crooks that will sneak up at night and kill us all? Can plants kill you by simply respiring? This is what I want to look at with this post. I’m sure you are…

To the list of special issues dealing with the evolution of eyes (E:EO, Phil Trans R Soc B), you can now add one on nervous systems in Nature Reviews Neuroscience. Nature Reviews Neuroscience Vol…

Scientific Name Piper longum Linn Family Piperaceae Used Part Dried spike Distribution Area A climber occurring in the hotter parts of India, from Central Himalayas to Assam, Khasi and…

Scientific Name Saraca asoca (Roxb.) De Wilde syn. S. indica auct. non Linn. Family Caesalpiniaceae (Fabaceae) Used Part Bark. Distribution Area It occurs almost throughout India up to an altitude…

I’ve been putting the case for some months now, that evolutionary biology is in a deplorable state due to an uncritical acceptance of the unrealistic assumptions that lie at the heart of selfish gene…

A Maui News article about the Hawaiian language caught my attention (okay, the attention of my google squid alert) with this sentence: Waihee is usually translated as "octopus water," but there's a…

Scientific Name Nardostachys grandiflora DC. (=N. jatamansi DC.) Family Valerianaceae Used Part Rhizome Distribution Area Found in the alpine Himalayas from Punjab to Sikkim and Bhutan, at…

Scientific Name Linum usitatissimum Linn Family Linaceae. Used Part Seeds. Distribution Area An erect annual, herb, cultivated throughout the plains of India and up to an altitude of 1,800…

The Economist reported that in early 2007, for the first time in history, more humans lived in cities than in the countryside. We are now a different species, in terms of the environmental…

"It looks, just looks fantastic," said Nicole Stott of the "very shiny ball HTV" in the "beautiful view." The United States astronaut was looking through the windows as she spoke to…

Testing the inputand the Equal Opportunity Game

Having returned from a Polymer Physics conference a couple of days ago, I felt the need to read one of the masters of the subject, Nobel laureate Pierre-Gilles de Gennes.   I came across…

Just when you thought you've heard every discrimination story in the book, another one comes along. The most recently persecuted group? Jedi Knights. According to the story out of the UK, the…

I was notified today that within three weeks I am due to write a proceedings article for the "Physics in Collision" conference I attended in Kobe two weeks ago. The task is not too stimulating for me…