Page 4 - Research

Team including Indian wins 2023 Nobel prize for humorous scientific feats

A team of scientists from India, China, Malaysia and the US has won this year's Ig Nobels, the prize for humorous scientific feats, in the mechanical engineering category for its study of repurposing dead spiders to be used in gripping tools, the organisers said. Counting nose hairs in cadavers, repurposing dead spiders, smart toilets idea, and explaining why scientists lick rocks, were among the 10 winning achievements in the 33rd Ig Nobel Prize ceremony. The prizes were announced on Thursday during an online event produced by the magazine Annals of Improbable Research'. The Nobel Prize is the premier award in science, reserved for those that "have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind. However, the Ig Nobel Prize celebrates the most trivial and ridiculous achievements that first make people laugh, and then think. Researchers Te Faye Yap, Zhen Liu, Anoop Rajappan, Trevor Shimokusu, and Daniel Preston, from Rice University in the US, won the prize for their research on ...

Artificial intelligence could aid future viral outbreak response: Study

Researchers have developed an innovative patient triage platform powered by artificial intelligence (AI) that they say can predict patient disease severity and length of hospitalisation during a viral outbreak. Triage is the prioritisation of patient care based on illness, severity, prognosis, and resource availability. The platform, described recently in the journal Human Genomics, leverages machine learning, a form of AI, and data from metabolomics -- the study of small molecules related to cell metabolism. The innovation is intended to improve patient management and help health care providers allocate resources more efficiently during severe viral outbreaks that can quickly overwhelm local health care systems, the researchers said. "Being able to predict which patients can be sent home and those possibly needing intensive care unit admission is critical for health officials seeking to optimise patient health outcomes and use hospital resources most efficiently during an outbreak

Cabinet okays Rs 5k cr PRIP scheme to boost research and innovation

The scheme is set to stimulate collaboration between pharmaceutical companies, Cabinet greenlights Rs 5,000 crore PRIP scheme to boost research and innovation institutions, and start-ups

Indian, Japanese bodies partner on waste management, environment research

The Kolkata-based International Society of Waste Management, Air and Water (ISWMAW) and the Kyoto Beyond SDGs consortium of Japan have inked an agreement on academic, research and industry collaboration between the two Asian countries on various environmental issues. ISWMAW president Sadhan Kumar Ghosh said twenty students from India and 20 others from Japan will also visit each other's country as part of an exchange programme. He said 47 educational institutes are involved in the exercise - 40 in West Bengal and seven in Japan. The MoU was signed for establishing partnerships focussing on sustainable development goals to develop human resource exchanges and information exchange and research collaboration among the industry, academia and government. "Apart from visiting different academic institutions and places of interest and participating in different programmes, every visiting student will be put up at the house of a Japanese friend of his age as part of the initiative to know

JNU professor Gobardhan Das appointed as new director of IISER Bhopal

Gobardhan Das will be the institute's third director since its inception in 2008

Sebi proposes body for administration, supervision of research analysts

Capital markets regulator Sebi on Tuesday proposed to recognise an entity designated as Research Analyst Administration and Supervisory Body (RAASB), which will be responsible for the administration and supervision of the research analysts. In its consultation paper, Sebi said that the proposed body should not place any additional financial burden on the research analysts (RAs). Further, the application fee and registration fee as specified under the current RA Regulations has been proposed to be rationalised accordingly. In addition, it has been suggested to amend the rules to provide that membership of RAASB should be one of the eligibility criteria for consideration of the grant of registration certificate as RA. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has sought comments from the public on the proposals till September 12. "Considering the evolving nature of business of RAs, it is proposed that, on similar lines as IAASB, Sebi may recognise a body, designated as Resear

NRF: What research should be funded?

An effective National Research Foundation would prioritise excellence over relevance, support a wide range of projects, and stress funding millions of individual researchers

Karnataka Research Foundation to be set up for R-D in startups: Minister

Karnataka Minister N S Boseraju on Saturday said a state-level research foundation will be formed to conduct research and development in startups and industries. Speaking at the valedictory session of the Indian StartUp Festival-2023 at Sathya Sai Village here, Boseraju said it is imperative for constant research and development in the field of science and technology that is fundamental to the startup ecosystem. "Our government is taking all necessary steps to create an enabling atmosphere including scientific temperament in the process of learning. We have also focused on protecting ecology and environment as well as ensure a robust economy," said the minister, who holds the Science and Technology and Minor Irrigation departments. Stating that Bengaluru is rightly described as the startup capital of the country, Boseraju said the government has created an enabling atmosphere in terms of infrastructure because of which a number of startup industries are coming up in a big way. "In

Bill to set up national agency to fund research across universities passes

The Rajya Sabha on Wednesday passed the Anusandhan National Research Foundation Bill 2023 to set up a national agency to fund research across universities in the country. The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on Monday. It was passed by a voice vote in the Rajya Sabha in just 40 minutes after being taken up for consideration and passage. Only six members participated in the debate as the Opposition had earlier walked out of the House. Replying to the discussion for consideration and passage of the Bill, Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh termed it "history in the making" and said it is going to have long-term outcomes. As Opposition members were not present in the Upper House during the discussion and passage of the Bill, Singh said the government was looking forward to having more constructive inputs from them as well. Participating in the discussion on the Bill, Sujit Kumar of the BJD said: "The hope is that this Bill - NRF 2023 - will bring about an integrated, holis

Lok Sabha passes Anusandhan National Research Foundation Bill for research

The Lok Sabha on Monday passed the Anusandhan National Research Foundation Bill to set up a national agency to fund research across universities in the country. Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh had introduced the Anusandhan National Research Foundation Bill-2023 on Friday in the Lower House. The bill seeks to set up a Rs 50,000-crore fund, with a sizeable contribution from the private sector by tapping into the corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds, to "seed, grow and promote" research and development (R&D) and foster a culture of research and innovation throughout India's universities, colleges, research institutions, and R&D laboratories. "PM Narendra Modi has provided an enabling milieu due to which over the last nine years, many taboos of the past were broken, space was opened up for the private sector that is why many startups are working with ISRO. It was our Chandrayan that brought pictures of water and today organisations like NASA are waiting for ..

NRF to ensure equitable funding for research: Jitendra Singh at BRICS meet

Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh on Saturday said the proposed National Research Foundation will ensure equitable funding for scientific research and greater private participation in the endeavour. Addressing the 11th BRICS STI Ministerial Meeting at Goeberha in South Africa virtually, he said the National Research Foundation will also be given the task of creating a policy framework and regulatory process to promote research and development across universities. On Friday, Singh introduced the Anusandhan National Research Foundation Bill in the Lok Sabha to set up a national agency to fund research across universities in the country. "We are planning a unique public-private partnership entity for which Rs 36,000 crore of the research funding is to come from the private sector, mostly industry, whereas the government will put Rs 14,000 crore for the same to ensure greater participation of industry," the minister told his counterparts from Brazil, Russia, China and South

Summers in Arctic were ice-free over 100,000 years ago, finds research

A subpolar plankton species found in the Atlantic water expanded far into the Arctic Ocean during the Last Interglacial, indicating that summers in the Arctic were ice-free during this period. Published in Nature Geoscience, this research analysed the microfossil content of sediment cores to determine the extent of sea ice present during the Last Interglacial, a recent period of the Earth's geological history characterised by a climate warmer than today. The Arctic sea ice, an important component of the Earth system, is disappearing fast due to climate warming, whereas the summer sea ice is anticipated to vanish entirely within this century. To gain a deeper understanding of the climate dynamics in a world without the Arctic sea ice, researchers have turned to analogues from our geological past. However, the extent of sea ice during this period has been intensely debated and there is no consensus, limiting understanding of this period and the ability of researchers to simulate it i

Lok Sabha passes bill to set up agency to fund research across universities

A bill to set up a national agency to fund research across universities in the country was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Friday by Union Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh. The Anusandhan National Research Foundation Bill-2023 seeks to set up a Rs 50,000-crore fund, with a sizeable contribution from the private sector, to "seed, grow and promote" research and development (R&D) and foster a culture of research and innovation throughout India's universities, colleges, research institutions, and R&D laboratories. It seeks to set up different funds the Anusandhan National Research Foundation Fund, for the financing of activities under the Act; the Innovation Fund for supporting outstanding creativity in the areas supported by the foundation; the Science and Engineering Research Fund for the continuation of the projects and programmes initiated under the Science and Engineering Research Board Act, 2008; and one or more special-purpose funds for any specific project or

Viral room-temperature superconductor claims spark excitement & skepticism

The papers have sparked wild enthusiasm online. At same time, there are reports of disputes among the Korean researchers over whether the research should have been released at all

Education ministry signs 106 MoUs to foster innovation, research, knowledge

The Ministry of Education on Sunday signed 106 MoUs with various esteemed organisations and institutions to foster innovation, research and knowledge exchange in multiple domains, ushering in a new era of collaboration in education and industry-academia linkages. The memoranda of understanding (MoUs) were signed on the culmination day of the Akhil Bhartiya Shiksha Samagam to mark the third anniversary of the launch of the new National Education Policy (NEP). The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) signed 15 MoUs with different institutes and sector-skill providers to give a specific focus on skill development and education. "These partnership will also promote skill assessment and capacity building," a senior MoE official said. The MoUs were signed in association with the Atal Innovation Mission, IBM, Intel, Microsoft, Apparel Made-Ups and Home Furnishing Sector Skill Council, Automotive Sector Skill Council, Sports, Physical Education, Fitness and Leisure Skills Council, .

Stanford University prez quits after problems discovered in his research

Tessier-Lavigne, a neuroscientist who joined Stanford as president in 2016 from Rockefeller University in New York, has been a leader in the field of brain and spinal cord research

Maybe govt will coin 'minimum funds, maximum research' slogan: Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P Chidamabram took a swipe at the Centre on Thursday over top research institutions of the country reportedly not having received any funds since April this year, saying maybe the government will coin a new slogan 'minimum funds, maximum research'. Citing a media report which claimed that scientists at top research institutions who ought to have received funds from central agencies for this financial year in April, were still waiting, Chidambaram said that as a result of this, purchases are on hold and project staff have not been paid for three months. He also quoted senior scientist, S C Lakhotia, as saying that he is paying his project staff from his own pocket Why are the Department of Science and Technology and the Department of Biotechnology silent on the matter, the former Union minister asked. "Maybe the Government will coin a new slogan this week: minimum funds, maximum research," Chidambaram said on Twitter.

No country can progress without embracing technology: EAM Jaishankar

No country can progress without embracing technology and research and development, Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Monday. Interacting with the students of NIT Delhi as part of the BJP's mega public outreach to mark nine years of the Narendra Modi government, Jaishankar advised them to understand local and global developments. "Globalisation has broken down the boundaries between inside and outside and you should understand what is happening around you," he said citing the impacts of the Covid pandemic and Ukraine war on the prices of petroleum products and food grains. No nation can become developed without embracing technology and research and development, the minister said. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, several changes have taken place in the last nine years, he said. Citing Modi's recent visit to the US, Jaishankar said, "He has a different image, especially in the democratic world as a senior experienced and credible leader." The

Covid-related worrying impacts daydreams' more than night-dreams: Research

On days when people when worried more about COVID-19, they experienced more negative emotions while daydreaming. However, people who generally tended to worry more about Covid, also tended to have more negative dreams, a new research examining how Covid-related concerns and worries affected the emotional quality of daydreaming and nighttime dreaming in these times found. More than a hundred participants were asked how worried, anxious, and concerned they were during the COVID-19 pandemic, in this study from the University of Turku, Finland, UK and Australia. They reported their daydreams every evening and their nighttime dreams every morning upon waking up. The researchers analysed more than 3000 reports of daydreams and night-dreams to come out with their findings, published in the journal Emotion, about how the pandemic has shaped people's inner experiences, having profoundly impacted the mental health of people worldwide. They said that the emotional quality of night-dreams or .

Indian researchers develop low-cost mobile pollution monitoring tech

They have developed a low-cost mobile air pollution monitoring framework in which, pollution sensors mounted on public vehicles can dynamically monitor the air quality