First Steps as a Science Writer

Following the theme of my last post in February, I have finally made some progress (Very small, but still counts!) in my aspirations to be a science writer. My ComSciCon-CanWest submission has finally been posted on their blog. The subject matter covers my own doctoral research in plasmonics: Mimicking photosynthesis in nature using metal nanoparticles. The […]

Getting Started in Science Writing

Hi again, everyone! It has been 5 months since my last post. Much has happened in my life in that time, and setting aside the occasional procrastination, I have actually been quite productive during my time away from the the blog. Apart from focusing on completing work relevant to my doctoral studies, I had the […]

Living in the Extreme: Extremophiles

Life on earth, as we know it today, developed through an evolutionary process of significant complexity over millions of years. The details are still contested in the scientific arena, but general consensus states life originated around 4.0 billion years ago on the ponds and oceans of a primitive Earth. Back then, our planet was bathed […]

Seeing through the pinhole – Ancient Scientists- Chapter 3 – Ibn al-Haytham

Ibn al-haytham or Alhazen (c. 965 – c. 1040), as he was known among his Western contemporaries, was an Arab mathematician, astronomer, and physicist. Born around a thousand years ago in the city of Basra in present day Iraq, Haythem’s creative powers flourished during a period known as the Islamic Golden Age. History would indeed […]

Book Review: Fermat’s Enigma – In pursuit of a proof

Pythagoras’ theorem has been an equation of great significance and is well-known by everyone from school children to scientists, architects, and engineers. The first time I encountered the equation was in elementary school while learning about right angle triangles. In this equation, Pythagoras of Samos stated that in every right-angled triangle, the hypotenuse must equal […]

Radio Telescopes: Listening to the Past

The basic actions of observation and introspection have been crucial to our growth as a species. Our ancestors gazed with great curiosity upon the star-studded night sky. Like moths to a flame, we were drawn to the expansive wonder that was the cosmos. Reminiscent of an unexplored ocean, it lay open for all to traverse […]

Ancient Scientists – Chapter 2: Hypatia

Science and religion share a complex history in a mutually independent relationship that has had its phases of appreciation and harmony as well as division and conflict. Among the diverse personalities of the ancient world, it is Hypatia, a female Greek philosopher, whose life most personifies the strained dynamics of these two institutions. Hypatia, born […]

Ancient Scientists – Chapter 1: Eratosthenes

Science is a progressive endeavor. Our present knowledge of the world is founded on the speculations and introspections of our ancestors in a time when science was not just a field of study but an integral philosophy of life. As far as the ancients were led to believe, humanity was a mote of dust in […]

COSMOS: A Personal Voyage (1980) – “Re-View”

The first I heard of Carl Sagan was in high school when one of my professors suggested science writing as a prospective career path. He would mention his admiration for Sagan’s ability to dissect scientific concepts and communicate them to his readers in an eloquent manner. He would suggest I follow in his footsteps and […]

Perspective: What is Science?

The word “science” can mean different things to different people. To the general public, it can be a callback to the white lab coats, and microscopes that complete the classic trope of a “mad scientist.” To a student, it can be an unfriendly reminder of that incomprehensible fat textbook in the corner of the room. […]