Masks are one of our simplest, cheapest and most effective allies in the war against COVID-19. In this article, Madhuri looks back at the hundred-year-old history of using masks to prevent plagues and pandemics and the science behind what makes them so strategically important as a public health tool.

Sankar Adhya from NIH, speaking at a special session on 100 years of phage discovery, gives a historical overview of “the discoveries and personalities in bacteriophage research”.

Bacteriophages, viruses that infect bacteria, were discovered a 100 years ago. Aswin Sai Narain Seshasayee writes about the initial discovery and some of the conflicts surrounding it.

Repurposed World War II-era buildings give a glimpse into India's scientific history. The old hydrogen plant at IISc, is today used for eminently peaceful purposes—supplying idlis and dosas to hungry campus-dwellers.