Science & technology

Scientists have discovered a beetle trapped in amber that dates back to 99 million years, a finding that may help better understand the relationship between ancient flowering plants and pollinators. A group of unusual evergreen gymnosperms, known as cycads, may have been the first insect-pollinated plants. A study published in …

Robots that can diagnose diseases, play badminton and wow audiences with their musical skills are among the machines China hopes could revolutionise its economy, with visitors to a Beijing exhibition offered a glimpse of an automated future. The popular stars of this year’s World Robot Conference, which ended on Sunday, …

At Google, there are thousands of projects, supported by machine learning. They are impacting so many products from Gmail, Smart Reply, autonomous driving, Google Assistant to cloud AI functions. Google has been pushing forward a few core aspects related to AI. The first is data, it is so important to …

The Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), India’s next indigenous fighter, is expected to make its first flight by 2032. Development work on the jet is under way. “The AMCA will feature geometric stealth and will initially fly with two GE-414 engines. Once we develop our own engine, it can be …

Ashok Leyland, the Hinduja Group’s flagship company, unveiled Innoline, a BS IV engine driven by an in-line fuel pump. “This is the latest innovation from Ashok Leyland for commercial vehicles,” said Vinod K. Dasari, managing director, Ashok Leyland. “This technology can be upgraded and used for BS VI engines as …

After 4G mobile services, Reliance Jio on Wednesday started registration for optical fibre based fixed-line broadband service through which it has claimed to offer a download speed of one gigabit per second. “JioGigaFiber. Make your neighbourhood #Gigaready with Gigabit wifi, TV, smart home, free calling and more,” read the registration …

While the governments at the Centre and States have taken proactive steps to encourage electric vehicles (EVs), on-ground hurdles such as high levels of corruption at the regional transport offices (RTOs) could hold back the sector, according to Goldie Srivastava, CEO of SmartE, an electric vehicle solution provider that has …

Gaganyaan, the human space flight Programme green-flagged and set for 2022 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is highly doable, Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation K. Sivan said here soon after it was announced on Wednesday. V.R. Lalithambika, a specialist in advanced launcher technologies, will helm the project as …

Prasar Bharati wants Independence Day event to gain greater visibility Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day speech will be live-streamed on the Google homepage. Google had done a similar thing during Donald Trump’s inaugural address in January 2017. When you go to Google search page and search for Independence Day, …

To cater to demand for trained manpower in disruptive tech The International Institute of Digital Technologies (IIDT), started by the AP Electronics and IT Agency (APEITA) in Tirupati in February, 2017 to cater to the increasing demand for trained manpower in disruptive technologies, has decided to set up a campus …

How artificial intelligence is helping to crack down on the $460 billion fake designer products industry A few months ago, on a night of infant-induced sleeplessness, I stumbled upon the Reddit group, ‘RepLadies’. This community of fashion savvy women (and men) focuses on finding the best replica designer goods — …

Chandrayaan-2 to land a rover on the lunar surface The launch of India’s second mission to the moon, Chandrayaan-2, may be delayed till January 2019, according to a top official. The ambitious mission was supposed to be launched in April, and was later fixed for October. The postponement comes in …

Increased prevalence of mcr-1 gene that confers multidrug-resistance has now been reported in Klebsiella pneumoniae bacteria, increasing the fear of infection by pan drug-resistant bugs. This gene endows resistance against last hope antibiotic — colistin. A study published in Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy found that about 10% of the K. …

The fishing industry along a portion of India’s east coast could be on the brink of a collapse. This dire warning comes as scientists find that fisheries in coastal Tamil Nadu and Puducherry use destructive methods and do not comply with existing regulations, which could stress the already over-exploited fish …

Neurons transport cargo of various sizes constantly, and many times, this can lead to traffic jams. A new study of the roundworm (Caenorhabditis elegans) and fruitfly (Drosophila) shows that such traffic jams can be due to purely physical constraints, not involving any chemical signalling processes. Such stalling of cargo can …

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Bhopal have found that depleting the production of a specific protein kinase (p21-activated kinase 2 or PAK2), which is normally produced in excess in head and neck cancer, affects a chain of events that finally reduces the growth of …

Invasive species are normally considered to come from outside a given ecosystem. But a study by researchers from the Indian Institute of Science Research and Education (IISER) Pune have shown that selection process for dispersal in fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) can lead to evolution of traits related to invasive potential. …

The final tender (the request for proposal) for the purchase of 110 fighter aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF) can be expected only around mid-2019, a senior defence source said, confirming that the IAF was evaluating responses to its request for information from six global firms. “The bids received …

Extract: Gynaecologists and obstetricians across the country can now exhale in relief: the Drug Technical Advisory Board (DTAB) has recommended to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare that the ban on the retail sale of the life-saving drug, oxytocin, may be lifted. The DTAB recommendation has brought immense …

Drug firm Zydus Cadila said it had received approval from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration to market Azithromycin for Oral Suspension USP, used to treat bacterial infections, in the American market. The medication is used to treat respiratory infections, skin infections, ear infections and sexually transmitted diseases. The drug …