Tyrian Purple

Hats off to Mohammed Ghassem Nouira and BBC Future for sharing an insightful story on Tyrian purple.

Useful link:

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20231122-tyrian-purple-the-lost-ancient-pigment-that-was-more-valuable-than-gold

Shipwrecks In The World's Oceans

I had always been curious wanting to know how many shipwrecks were there in the world's oceans because they are storytellers of the past. It could also contain mind-boggling riches. Many thanks to Zaria Gorvett of BBC Future for the insightful story.

Useful link:

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20230609-how-many-shipwrecks-are-there-in-the-worlds-oceans

The World's Greatest Lithium Supplier

Royce Kurmelovs's story on how Australia became the world's largest lithium supplier is a must read.

Useful links:

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20221110-how-australia-became-the-worlds-greatest-lithium-supplier

https://www.talisonlithium.com/greenbushes-project

The Super-deep Royal Diamonds Revealing Earth's Secrets

Zaria Gorvett was spot on. Royal diamonds are the best storytellers on the planet because of their sheer size and numbers.

Useful links:

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220922-the-super-deep-royal-diamonds-revealing-earths-secrets

https://www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/history-and-stories/the-crown-jewels

The Lost Index

I love reading Zaria Gorvett's extraordinary stories on medicine and beyond. 

Useful links:

https://www.bbc.com/future/columns/the-lost-index

http://www.zariagorvett.com

The Next Supercontinent

Geology always fascinates me. Nature has no rules. Landmasses will one day rearrange into an entirely new configuration. Countries once isolated from one another will be close neighbors. It will definitely not happen in my lifetime. Many thanks to Richard Fisher for highlighting the possible geological scenarios. 

Useful link:

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220401-how-the-next-supercontinent-will-form

How To Fossilize Yourself

A serious question worth exploring. Could I myself end up preserved and mineralized, like tribolite?

Useful link:

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220324-how-to-maximise-your-chances-of-being-fossilised

Effervescence & Champagne

Chemical physicist Gerard Liger-Belair knows more about champagne bubbles than anyone else on the planet. He has got the best job in physics and has built a career around bubbles working in a lab stocked with top-notch champagne. 

Useful links:

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20211230-the-complex-science-in-your-glass-of-champagne

https://www.univ-reims.eu/minisite_45/who-is-who/effervescence/liger-belair-gerard

Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia

Khanty-Mansiysk (West Siberia), home to just over 100,000 people, is Russia's unofficial capital of oil. The question is, what could be the basis of the new, post-fossil fuel economy in Russia? This is definitely the krillion dollar question. If one thing is certain, it is that if Russia is to adapt to the global trends in clean energy, new industries are going to have to take center stage in its economy such as a new economy based on knowledge and science. Khanty-Mansiysk will need luck too. Time will tell. 

Useful links:

https://oilcapital.admhmao.ru

https://www.bbc.com/future

https://www.hup.harvard.edu

https://www.climate-chance.org

The Kindness Test

Kind acts can have a ripple effect. Give it a try.

Useful links:

https://www.sussex.ac.uk/research/centres/kindness/research/thekindnesstest

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210921-what-we-do-and-dont-know-about-kindness

The Natural Capital Laboratory

What happens when we try to put a price on nature? Stay curious.

Useful links:

https://aecom.com/uk/natural-capital-laboratory

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20211018-scotlands-great-experiment-to-calculate-the-value-of-nature

Angad Daryani

Inventor. Social entrepreneur.

Useful links:

http://www.angadmakes.com

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210909-the-young-inventor-purifying-indias-dirty-air

Concrete

Concrete accounts for around half of all human-made things. And if its rate of growth continues, it will overtake the total weight of Earth's biomass sometime around 2040. Try to picture that in the mind's eye: there is a day approaching soon when there will be a greater weight of concrete on Earth than every single tree in every forest, every fish in every sea, every farm animal in every field, and every person breathing, walking, living right now. Many thanks to Richard Fisher and Javier Hirschfeld.

Useful link: 

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210628-concrete-the-material-that-defines-our-age

A Day In The Life Of A Flavour Inventor

A truly fascinating domain. Flavourists are rare specialists with an intimate knowledge of chemistry. Get to know Marie Wright.

Useful links:

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210602-a-day-in-the-life-of-a-flavour-inventor

https://www.wildflavors.com

How Face Masks Affect Our Communication

Interactions with others is difficult. I have learnt to use my eyebrows expressively. It works well for me.

Useful link:
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200609-how-face-masks-affect-our-communication

The Unsurpassed 125-year-old Network That Feeds Mumbai

Get to know the Dabbawalas of Mumbai. They are the best in the world. They pick up home-cooked meals, mostly from the customer's own houses, and deliver them to their workplace in time for lunch.

Useful links:

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20170114-the-125-year-old-network-that-keeps-mumbai-going

https://mumbaidabbawala.in

The Best Trees To Reduce Air Pollution

Consult with local experts. Evergreen trees can be excellent pollutant-trappers and can work all year round, unlike their deciduous relatives.

Useful links:

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200504-which-trees-reduce-air-pollution-best

https://www.nature.org

How Personal Contact Will Change Post-Covid-19

The recent pandemic has changed everything we know, particularly about how we remain socially connected. People have risen to the challenge and have tried to maintain social connections in creative ways, but at the same time it has been different and it can be hard to adjust to the new ways of being social.

Useful links:
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200429-will-personal-contact-change-due-to-coronavirus
https://www.psy.ox.ac.uk/team/robin-dunbar

How Do You Build A City For A Pandemic?

Redesign functional spaces. We need a refined pandemic architecture in the face of globalised health threats.

Useful links:
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200424-how-do-you-build-a-city-for-a-pandemic
https://www.archisearch.gr/architecture/open-call-pandemic-architecture-international-ideas-competition

The Toxic Killers In Our Air Too Small To See

Its nanoparticles.

Useful links:
https://www.timsmedleywriter.com
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20191113-the-toxic-killers-in-our-air-too-small-to-see