Book Review: Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson

Pooja Kashyap

Although title of the book says Astrophysics for People in a Hurry but believe me the book has more depth than the label interprets. Neil deGrasse Tyson is an epitome of masterly skill at explaining complex scientific concepts into the most elementary and comprehensible manner. He makes astrophysics so interesting that even a person who has no inclination towards the subject will surely gravitate towards the space and evolutionary history after listening to his talks. His enthusiasm is contagious indeed.

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Tidal Disruption causes Dark Matter to Evaporate: Intra Galactic Interactions

Pooja Kashyap

Dark matter is one of the key ingredients in the understanding of evolution and in the formation of galaxies. Majority of scientists are of the view that dark matter consists of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMP). It is because of their weak interactions with matter that we see around, it becomes extremely difficult to detect.

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Tactile Sensation For Soft Robotics: Stretchable Sensor

Pooja Kashyap

Sensors that could stretch will pave way towards new intelligent soft systems. Working on the same line of thought Cornell researchers have combined fiber-optic sensor with no so expensive LEDs (light-emitting diode) and dyes. The outcome is a form of a stretchable “skin” that is able to spot topographical distortions like pressure, bending and strain.

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Octopus Inspired Device For Transferring Delicate Implants: Biomimicry

Pooja Kashyap

Researchers at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and collaborators have come with up an innovative way to surgical grip the fragile tissue grafts. Generally, during the ultra-thin tissue grafts, the grip leads to the collapse of structural integrity and functionality of soft tissues transplants. It has always been a challenge to preserve them during grafting and transferring process.

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Microfluidic Squeezing Leads To Stemness: Cell Engineering

Pooja Kashyap

In an interesting finding, scientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Boston Children’s Hospital have discovered that physically pressing microscopic intra-cellular structures together can trigger cells to grow faster.  This phenomenon at microscopic level resembles the spread of things like ideas, interests and even infections within a close proximity of people.

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Biodegradable Electronic Blood Vessels: Tissue Interactions

Pooja Kashyap

In a joint effort, researchers at China and Switzerland have developed electronic blood vessels that mimics their natural counterparts. Most of the times, some foreign agent when implanted within the human body display uncertain behaviour. Incompatibility is a critical issue and at times, it often leads to tissue trauma.  

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Memory Consolidation via Excitatory And Inhibitory Networks: Neuronal Circuits

Pooja Kashyap

Until now, neuroscientists believed that during memory consolidation only “one” excitatory process occurs and that also in the Hippocampus region of the brain. Lately, McGill-led multi-institutional research team has discovered that there is not one but two different processes that are simultaneously taking place in different neural network within brain.

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