The male barramundis, a fish species similar to bhetki are also able to lay eggs apart from females. Barramundi is... read more

The male barramundis, a fish species similar to bhetki are also able to lay eggs apart from females. Barramundi is a very popular & palatable fish in Australia, New Zealand, Papua, New Guinea, Oceania, & south east Asian countries. Though these are sweet water fishes but are also found in saline water as they reach estuary region during breeding & lay eggs. According to statistics, the male offsprings out number females initially but the trend gets reversed in case of adult fishes due to gender change as almost all the barramundis become females. less more

43 percent of world’s mangrove forests are located in Indonesia, Australia, Nigeria, and Brazil & in Sundarban of India &... read more

43 percent of world’s mangrove forests are located in Indonesia, Australia, Nigeria, and Brazil & in Sundarban of India & Bangladesh, the latter has been declared as the World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Recently Dubai, the capital city of United Emirates has created a new mangrove forest. Mangrove is a special type of plant which grows in saline water of coastal region & play the key role in countering natural disasters catered by increasing climate change. A natural beach with coral reefs, mangroves, grassland within the mangrove forest has been planned at Jebel Ali Sanctuary of Dubai. There is a plan to develope this beach with 60% mangroves within few years. The effort is also on to develope this mangrove forest as a natural treatment plant for saline sea water. less more

As humans are first turning into robots defying nature; scientists have come out with robots that can sustain nature, Recently... read more

As humans are first turning into robots defying nature; scientists have come out with robots that can sustain nature, Recently a young scientist from Dubai Institute of Design & Innovation presented a solar operated robot, named A-SIDBOT, in the annual global grand show in Dubai, that can plant seeds of its own. This 3D printed 20cm long robot can operate with a single charge & can actually select the place of planting by checking the moisture content of soil through a specially designed in-built scanner. The robot just needs to be filled with the seeds from outside. Another young scientist from East Technical University presented a robot that can separate microplastics from water; and can become very useful in containing pollution in rivers and oceans. less more

A research paper published in ‘Science Direct’ journal has shown that the 2300 km long Great Barrier Reef of Australia... read more

A research paper published in ‘Science Direct’ journal has shown that the 2300 km long Great Barrier Reef of Australia got completely washed away in last 30 years. Satellite images indicate that out of 30 thousand sea coasts in the region, only one could remain fully insular to climatic changes and global warming. Every other beach has got affected by the warm sea storm; and the famous coral coasts have repeatedly been impacted and eroded by warm ocean currents during 1998 to 2020. All the conservation projects, undertaken so far, proved inadequate so far; and the huge tourism industry grown around the coral reefs, are in trouble. According to scientists, if global warming cannot be reduced at the soonest, coral reef will not survive. less more

Dutch scientists have come up with a drone that eats plastic pollutants in water bodies! One of the main concerns... read more

Dutch scientists have come up with a drone that eats plastic pollutants in water bodies! One of the main concerns of environmentalists around the world now is plastic pollution, especially water-borne plastic wastes. A Dutch company has recently come up with an innovative way to get rid of them; through the specially designed floating drone ‘West Shark’. About four feet long drone has two compartments; first one swallows the water along with plastics; while the second one segregates the plastics and keeps those confined. It is claimed that this drone can clean up 160 liters of waste at a time, and no fossil fuel is required to operate the machine. Though presently the drone is said to be operating only in fresh water systems like rivers, ponds etc; but soon it is likely to be functional also in the saline marine system. less more

Next time you are out for a dinner to a five-star hotel or planning to have a cosy house party... read more

Next time you are out for a dinner to a five-star hotel or planning to have a cosy house party bringing food through a popular online service; make sure that the menu cards display the calorie content of each food item. Food Security & Standard Authority of India (FSSAI), the official food regulator of the country, has passed a regulation asking all the five-star hotels, big restaurants having central & state licences, food chains and even the online food agencies to display calorie, nutritive value & quantity of each of the items mentioned in the menu chart being shared with the customers. Airport, railway, government office canteens have also come under the scanner of the new order. The order has come into effect from January 1, 2022 but the union government has exempted any monitoring till June to enable the units attracting the new norm to become self-compliant. According to the new rules, the customer has to be informed about total calories present in any food item; any possibility of allergy by taking the food item; giving green mark for vegetarian and brown for non-vegetarian food items; whether the food contains ajinomoto, caffein or artificial sugar; whether the food is organic; and finally, amount of protein, carbohydrate, fat in each item. less more

Cities of Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran and Jordan in West Asia are repeatedly being hit by dust storms; which scientists... read more

Cities of Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran and Jordan in West Asia are repeatedly being hit by dust storms; which scientists link to changing climate. According to reports thousands turn ill, and have to be hospitalised mainly due to respiratory distress. A weather expert of Jordan stated that cold dry winds cause the blowing of the sand layer with plummeting of water level along with soil erosion of Tigris & Euphrates river considered to be major cause for this situation. It is reported that the annual rainfall has also dropped drastically; all being the tale-tell signals of climate change dynamics. Recent research found that Saudi Arabian dust storms are most prominent during February–June. less more

The State Agriculture department has decided to set up an organic village in a block each within 9 districts to... read more

The State Agriculture department has decided to set up an organic village in a block each within 9 districts to produce vegetables without chemical fertilizers. About 8 lakh rupees have been allocated for each of the organic village where 40 farmers will work for 10 weeks within 12 hectares of land. The soil will be tested before & after cultivation in Bidhan Chandra Krishi Biswabidyalaya; as well as the crop quality after production. Apart from improving the overall environment, the project will help the farmers in using local materials during farming leading to cost minimization. Moreover the production will be increased three to four folds annually. Such organic villages are scheduled to be set up in Garbeta No. 2 in West Midnapore, Deganga in North 24 Parganas, Basanti in South 24 Parganas, Salanpur in West Burdwan, Chhatna in Bankura, Jhalda No. 1 in Purulia, Kumargram in Alipurduar, Balurghat in South Dinajpur and Habibpur in Malda. less more

Another animal under climate change gallows! Researchers have confirmed that climate change is turning out to be a major threat... read more

Another animal under climate change gallows! Researchers have confirmed that climate change is turning out to be a major threat to the southern yellow-billed hornbill, a resident of the Kalahari Desert in South Africa. Research shows that rising temperature is impacting their breeding output. The data shows that the average number of chicks per breeding attempt declined nearly three times already, 0.4 from 1.1, and there were no successful breeding attempts at all among the hornbills if the average air temperature went above 35.7 degrees Celsius. Normally the female seals herself in a cavity and stays there for about 50 days to brood and care for chicks, in order to protect them from predators. But the question hangs; who or what will protect them from rising temperatures? less more

The future of both tramways and reading books are under scanner in Kolkata as both, once part of the regular... read more

The future of both tramways and reading books are under scanner in Kolkata as both, once part of the regular city culture, are being pushed to the backburner. The State Transport Department and Publishers & Booksellers Guild have decided to join hands to keep both cultures afloat as they plan to set up a ‘boipara’ in the unused trams of Tollygunge tram depot. Similar initiative has already been set in motion in the College Street area of north Kolkata; already a book hub. It is said that there will be two stalls in two compartments of each tram; and one can indulge his or her reading habit sipping the fuming Darjeeling tea by sitting in the adjoining tram cafeteria. The initiative, once realised, will be a new addition after the already set up tram museum. less more

A new world has been created in the world's largest garbage island ’Great Pacific Garbage Patch’ as, according to scientists... read more

A new world has been created in the world's largest garbage island ’Great Pacific Garbage Patch’ as, according to scientists claim, it has turned into a complete ecosystem. Normally five groups of animals can be found in the ocean ecosystem depending upon range of ocean currents and spin of the earth. In the said ecosystem, animals belonging to all the five varieties could be found. The area was first spotted by the long-distance French swimmer, Benoit Lekomte; and afterwards scientists started research in the area and found that even animals, usually not seen anywhere except in the deep sea, had also set up their habitat within the rubbish heap. less more

The United States of America, Russia & China have long been trying to undertake long-term research about the moon keeping... read more

The United States of America, Russia & China have long been trying to undertake long-term research about the moon keeping human beings there over a long period. However, their effort often gets stuck on the question of how the food can be made available on the moon for people staying over a long time. The problem seems to be solved now as scientists from Florida University could farm vegetables akin to cauliflower & broccoli on moon soil brought about five decades back after trying for a long time. Bill Nelson from NASA admitted that a lot of time and research has gone into finding the appropriate moon farming-ready vegetable. less more

Satyanarayan, descendent of a former Nizam of Raghabpur village in Telangana, lost more than two third of his land due... read more

Satyanarayan, descendent of a former Nizam of Raghabpur village in Telangana, lost more than two third of his land due to several court cases. However, that could not pin down his dream to create a forest, and he actually created one on left over 70 acres of land. He studied agronomy to learn the skill of maintaining and preserving the trees; and now has about 5 crores plants belonging to 500 species including various fruit trees, medicinal plants, herbs, shrubs and others. No wonder various birds, animals and insects have also settled in his forest as well. less more

In Sundarban, migratory birds from Russia and Ukraine might have got struck and stayed back as an aftermath of ongoing... read more

In Sundarban, migratory birds from Russia and Ukraine might have got struck and stayed back as an aftermath of ongoing war; feel experts. Birds normally come to Sundarban from outside during November-December & return in March. This year 9275 migratory birds were identified after the period & their number was found to increase by more than 2000 compared to last year in different regions of Sunderban . Experts point out that many of the migrants from war torn Russia and Ukraine did not return and are overstaying in Sundarban; as high air and noise pollution during war creates a sense of insecurity within birds, as well scarcity of food. less more

The famous banyan tree of Howrah Botanical Garden is no comparison to this tree located in west coast of Australia;... read more

The famous banyan tree of Howrah Botanical Garden is no comparison to this tree located in west coast of Australia; considered the largest living tree in world now. A group of scientists have found that the tree is spread over an area of 200 km which is equivalent to the city of Kolkata. The scientists considered that the plant, Seagrass grassland, grows from a single seed due to the proliferation of a single gene. This tree creates its own replica & makes the surroundings colourful. Its scientific name is Posidonia australis. As a matter of fact, this tree broke the record of American Pando, which was considered as the world's largest tree till the Australian variety arrived on the scene. less more