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…

Scientific Name Commiphora mukul(Hook. ex Stocks) Engl. syn. Balsamodendron mukul Hook. ex Stocks syn Commiphora wightii (Arn.)Bhandari Family Burseraceae Used Part Gum Distribution Area…

Scientific Name Entada phaseoloides (Linn.) Merr. syn. E. scandens Benth. Family Fabaceae Used Part Fruits. Distribution Area The plant occurs throughout the sub-Himalayan tract, from Nepal…

Scientific Name Sida cordifolia Linn. Family Malvaceae Used Part Seeds Distribution Area Common Uses .Considered useful in sexual debility and spermatorrhoea. Used in drugs for sexual strength.…

Galileo's contributions to science in general, and optics and astronomy in particular, were so monumental that over 350 years later we still discuss them in introductory physics courses. A recent…

In order to be able to perform unescorted access to areas where ionizing radiations are present, and to work with and use radioactive materials, workers at Fermilab have to pass a specific training…

Planck, a European-US collaborative mission launched by ESA, has provided its first pictures. Planck is a followup to WMAP, and looks at the cosmic microwave background. But it has a host of other…

Black holes are invading stars, according to a new hyposthesis for the origin of the bright flashes in the universe that are one of the biggest mysteries in astronomy today.  Those flashes,…

Meteorites discovered with known orbits are incredibly rare but researchers using cameras which capture fireballs streaking across the night sky have managed to find not only a tiny meteorite on the…

Freedom of the press is integral to a functioning democracy and respect for human rights, it is said, and a new study tackles the effects of media freedom in countries that lack democratic…

Scientific Name Bauhinia variegata Linn. Family Fabaceae Used Part Bark Distribution Area Most parts of Nepal in sub Himalayan tracts and outer Himalayas of the Punjab ascending to 4,000 ft…

Scientific Name Host: Pistacia integerrima Stew. Ex. Brandis syn. Pistacia kinjuk Stocks . Drug is Galls induced by insects. Family Anacardiaceae Used Part galls, the drug sample is of galls.…