Archive | June 2011
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The Top 20 Medical Schools in India in 2011
While I am VERY skeptical about these media-sponsored rankings, I am going to present these data because my alma mater figures in the top 20 medical colleges of India. Also, because there is no other data available listing the ranking of medical schools in India, we have to depend on these rankings, which, unsurprisingly, are […]
Argyll Robertson: Better Be His Pupil, Than Have It!
Argyll Robertson pupils (“AR pupils”) are bilateral small pupils that constrict when the patient focuses on a near object (they “accommodate”), but do not constrict when exposed to bright light (they do not “react” to light). This condition is colloquially referred to as the “Whore’s Eye” because of the association with tertiary syphilis and because […]
MedEd Monday #1: Seductive Statistics
This is a TED talk worth hearing: In less than 6 minutes, Sebastian Wernicke presents the power of numbers. Aptly titled “LIES, DAMN LIES AND STATISTICS” this is a discourse in how to use numbers. One of my teachers used to say that if you tortured numbers long enough, they would say whatever you wanted […]
Harry Potter and Corynebacterium
One of the earliest posts on this blog was a Harry Potter movie review. So it is only fitting that with the final installment of the Harry Potter octology set to release in a few days, the Pottermaniacs like me are getting worked up and to celebrate that spirit, I decided to log in this […]
Remembering Ajit Sengupta
My high school Biology teacher remains one of the most influential people in my life. He was not only a teacher of the Life Sciences, but also, of the science of life. And today marks the completion of a year since he passed away. As I stumble through one of the most difficult phases of […]
At-Taq of the Clones: @ZDoggMD Beware!
So you thought that science communication was all droll and boring lectures by nerdy looking professors who spout big words which work better than any sleeping pills man has made till date? Well, I am sure your fears had been dispelled by the awesome ZDoggMD and crew. I was also limited to his brand of […]
Baba Ramdev on Facebook
For the FB-meme enthusiasts like me, this has been a long awaited dream. Click on the pics to embiggen! At times like these, I feel so glad that my mom does not read my blog!
26
That is how old I get today. Like any other narcissistic academic, I looked up my birthday in history to see what it was like, in the past, and a lot of events of note have marked this day. But unfortunately, most of them are dreary and gory matters… In 68 AD, Nero, the Roman […]
Science 3.o Blogging Contest #WIN!
Thanks to the wonderful folks over at Science 3.0 for selecting my blog post as the winner for the Open Science themed contest for May! It is an especially gratifying win because this is a topic that I feel about strongly. Open Access and Open science are the way forward if we have to make […]
AIIMS MD/MS/MCh Entrances Rigged As Well?
In a bizarre bit of news that must have come as a shocker for more than just myself, a news article in the Hindustan Times claims that the CBI has arrested 5 people for rigging the AIIMS entrance exams this year. Having taken the exam this year, and knowing how high the stakes are in […]
The New Kids on the PLoS Blogs
A new PLos Blog is being launched and involves a couple of my favorite science bloggers, Ben Good and David Robertson, along with Lizzie Crouch (no relation of Barty Crouch) and Anna Perman. So, go check out the Inside Knowledge blog. I just wish they had an email subscription option!
Now Syria Stops the Internet
Following in the footsteps of one Hosni Mubarak, the Syrian supremo, Bashar Al-Assaad has shut down access to internet to stem the growing tide of resentment against him, and to quell another rebellion in the state. Image from Amnesty USA According to the article in Mashable: “Starting at 3:35 UTC today, approximately two thirds of […]
Super-Bugs in Bugs and A Media Scare
This e-pub ahead of print has sent the media into a tizzy, and why would it not! Consider the power of this headline in your morning newspaper: Bed Bug: Cimex lectularius Image via Wikimedia. “FLESH EATING BACTERIA ISOLATED FROM BED BUGS” Now that the zombie apocalypse has failed, there must be some new fad to […]
Gleeking Out!
OK. I can already feel the snark coming on. Anyways. Despite that, I am going to go ahead and write this post! As with all other shows, Glee, season 2, arrives to my part of the world literally an aeon after it was launched in the other side of the world. And I just simply […]
CSJC: Case 6 Now Online
The sixth case in the series of discussion on the Cochrane Students’ Journal Club has been uploaded on the site. Check it out here: Cochrane Students’ Journal Club: Case 6: Bronchial Asthma I am the moderator in charge this month and have some new ideas which I would like to incorporate into this month’s show. […]
