When we think about applications of Science in everyday life, Chemistry in cooking emerges as a natural extension. Cooking is one of the exhaustive applications of Chemistry in our everyday lives. When I was in college, Physical Chemistry was a hard nut to crack for me, especially Thermodynamics. I struggled…
View More 2 Concepts of Chemistry in Cooking
Science concepts I often come across students and parents who complain about the Science and Maths concepts learned in school. They think that learning such concepts is a waste of time and these concepts do not have real-life applications. These comments are usually peppered with doses of righteous indignation. A…
View More 3 Science concepts that help you in traffic
Festival of Lights Deepavali is the festival of lights. It is also the time of the year when children and families gather to burst firecrackers. The year 2020 has seen subdued celebrations all over India, with minimal firecrackers. I stopped indulging in firecrackers many years ago. My fascination has taken…
View More The Science of Firecrackers
“I never use the concepts I learned in school” I hear this statement often. In conversations with students, parents, friends, colleagues, public, even in memes. Generally, this statement is accompanied by a critique of the education system. How our education system is teaching us ‘useless concepts’ while it should be…
View More Clarity of Concepts in School
The ubiquitous ‘e’ Most of us in the English-speaking world know that ‘e’ is the most used letter of the English language. If you do not believe me, try writing a sentence without the letter ‘e’ in it. You will succeed, but the difficulty you will face will prove my…
View More E for Elegance
Lock-down as a trigger The lock-down and quarantined existence over the last few months has given us opportunities to re-evaluate our habits and life choices. I have been continuously reflecting and introspecting. I have re-evaluated many things – my daily routine, my work schedule, my eating habits, my socialising activities,…
View More It is time to think ‘alternative’
As we continue to be under lock-down, I believe it is even more essential to engage ourselves and our families in healthy pursuits. This is necessary so that we are in the right frame of mind to forge ahead into our altered lives once the lock-down gradually recedes. Children especially…
View More Exploring complex concepts through simple activities
I continue here from my previous articles. If you haven’t read them yet, please do so here in Part 1 and Part 2. The power of periodicity: There is a day every month that the Indians offer their prayers to their ancestors or the departed which is on the New…
View More My journey with Astronomy – Part 3
I continue here from my previous article. If you haven’t read that yet, please do. The science behind ಮಕರ ಸಂಕ್ರಾಂತಿ (Makara Sankranti): Indian traditions follow two approaches to the calendar – the sun-based ಸೌರಮಾನ (sauramaana) approach and the moon-based ಚಾಂದ್ರಮಾನ (chaandramaana) approach. The time measured using each approach is based…
View More My journey with Astronomy – Part 2
“ಸೋರುತಿಹುದು ಮನೆಯ ಮಾಳಿಗಿ, ಅಜ್ಞಾನದಿಂದ… ಸೋರುತಿಹುದು ಮನೆಯ ಮಾಳಿಗಿ!” ಸಂತ ಶಿಶುನಾಳ ಶರೀಫ This is a Kannada folk song written by Santa Shishunala Sharifa in the mid 19th century when India experienced an epidemic of Bubonic plague. In the song, he advises people to be sensible about the disease. He shares insights on…
View More Throwing Scientific Temper out of the window