Humour in SciComm, Magnetic Blood Control, Neyveli Mines, Nerve Cell Repair and more...

Weekly Newsletter | Issue #13 - 26 Mar, 2025

Mar 26, 2025

Greetings from Research Matters!

Do you have a research publication or upcoming events you would like us to cover in the newsletter? Email us at editors@researchmatters.in.

This week was a very special day for us at Gubbi Labs and Research Matters—it was World Sparrow Day. The bird appears in our name and logo and represents the work Gubbi Labs does. Check out our poster for World Sparrow Day. We also have a detailed infographic on water for World Water Day.

On this week's stories - why scientists should use humour to communicate science, using magnetic fields to regulate blood flow, improving beam-column joints, origins of Neyveli Mines and Nerve cell repair after a spinal cord injury. Check out our regional section for stories in Hindi, Marathi and Kannada. We also have a podcast in Kannada in collaboration with Janasuddi. There are also stories from other media and events happening this week. Don’t forget to check out Scidle - the science wordle, for a new science word every day.

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Stories in this edition

Two scientists walk into a bar… How humor shapes our view of scientists | University of Georgia and others

A new study finds that using humour to communicate about topics like AI increases a scientist's likeability and credibility.

Magnetic Field Regulates Blood Flow in Partially Blocked Arteries | IIT Bombay

A theoretical study demonstrates magnetic force lowers blood pressure fluctuations and stabilises flow, setting the stage for advanced cardiovascular therapies.

A new computer model to accurately predict when beam-column joints can fail | IIT Madras

IIT Madras researchers have developed a new tool to accurately model the beam-column joints in buildings accurately and predict when they might fail.

Asia’s largest opencast lignite mines at Neyveli, Tamil Nadu, formed 50-70 million years ago, says new study | Anna University, Others

A new study has examined this vast lignite deposit more closely, not only for its energy potential but also to learn about the mine’s distant past.

Science Games & Puzzles

Try the science wordle game - Scidle, and share your score with the world!

Play Scidle

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Brought to you in collaboration with Janasuddi by Dr Kollegala Sharma and team.

Research Beat | Research-based news in other media

'Where are India's Nobel prizes...': Myntra founder calls out India’s failing 0.6% R&D spend - Business Today
No more finger pricks? IISc successfully uses light and sound to make diabetes tests painless - The South First
Who is ISRO’s next space traveller? IISc Bengaluru is ready to launch bacteria - The Print
IISc scientists have cracked the code for Earth landing. India’s gearing up for space tourism - The Print
New IISc research offers to detect glucose through painless photoacoustics - The Hindu
IISc's AI model to offer heat-stress predictions - Deccan Herald
The Houdini Of The Himalayas: Meet The Indian Scientist Who Fooled The World For 30 Years
Union minister announces genome sequencing of 10,000 isolates of Mycobacterium TB - Economic Times
Meet the Red Princess of the Silk Road: A 2,200-year-old mystery lost in time - India Today
Why dark energy is losing its force - Times of India

Events

Offline & Online: CSIR AMRIT Lecture Series “Making Breakthroughs… - Prof Anil Kumar Gupta | CSIR Headquarters Auditorium, New Delhi - 26 March 2025, 3.00 PM
Online: Lodha Genius Programme (LGP) ThoughtLab presents: An Exclusive Webinar with Nobel Laureate Martin Chalfie | Ashoka University - 28 March 2025
Lectures and Panel Discussions on Blackholes, Art and Tech, Dementia and more | Science Gallery Bengaluru (SGB) - 27, 29-30 March 2025
Amulya & Vimala Reddy Award Lecture on Sustainability - Prof Monto Mani | IISc - 01 April 2025
Lecture: ‘The Three Waves of Environmentalism’ - Dr. Ramachandra Guha | NCBS - 02 April 2025

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