Op-eds
Renewable energy and technological debt
Renewable energy is a bit like oil.
VM
Scicomm
Sci-Hub isn't just for scientists
Quite a few reporters from other countries have reached out to me, directly or indirectly, to ask about scientists to whom they can speak about how important Sci-Hub is to their work. This attention to Sci-Hub is commendable, against the backdrop of the case in Delhi high court, filed by
Scicomm
Middle fingers to the NYT and NYer
American outlets will steal our journalists' ideas and obfuscate memories of their initiative and the Indian government will treat them like they don't exist.
Tech
Re: Musk v. Twitter
A collection of some comments on and reactions to Elon Musk's attempts to buy Twitter, and related issues.
Op-eds
Free-speech as an instrument of repression
One of the more eye-opening discussions on Elon Musk's attempt to take control of Twitter, and the Twitter board's attempts to defend the company from the bid, have been playing out on Hacker News (here and, after Twitter's response, here) – the popular discussion board
Scicomm
MIT develops thermo-PV cell with 40% efficiency
Researchers at MIT have developed a heat engine that can convert heat to electricity with 40% efficiency. Unlike traditional heat engines – a common example is the internal combustion engine inside a car – this device doesn't have any moving parts. Second, this device has been designed to work with
Scicomm
At last, physicists report finding the 'fourth sign' of superconductivity
Using an advanced investigative technique, researchers at Stanford University have found that cuprate superconductors – which become superconducting at higher temperatures than their better-known conventional counterparts – transition into this exotic state in a different way. The discovery provides new insights into the way cuprate superconductors work and eases the path to
Scicomm
Anonymity in journalism and a conflict of ethics
I wrote the following essay at the invitation of a journal in December 2020. (This was the first draft. There were additional drafts that incorporated feedback from a few editors.) It couldn’t be published because I had to back out of the commission owing to limitations of time and
Analysis
NFTs aren't thriving – they're often in the hospital
This is not a real anniversary but it's worth commemorating, if only to remember the pseudo-events propping up the NFT business-culture. One month and one year ago, a cryptocurrency user named Metakovan purchased an NFT associated with a piece of art from its creator, a fellow named Beeple,
Analysis
On the NBDSA opinion against Zee News
On April 5, JNU PhD student Shehla Rashid tweeted that the National Broadcasting and Digital Standards Agency (NBDSA) had ordered Zee News to remove links to a show it had broadcast in November 2020, alleging that Rashid was indulging in “anti-national activities” and that she was “funding terror”. The program
Uncategorized
Awaiting more info on WP.com's new pricing
After my last blog post on WordPress.com's bizarre paid-plans rejig, which stayed on top of Hacker News for a few hours and eventually caught the attention of the CEOs of WordPress.com and Automattic, the former, Dave Martin, said the company was listening to bloggers' feedback
Life notes
What are you doing, WordPress.com?
Be sure to check out the update at the bottom. I recently wrote that I've stuck with WordPress.com for so long, for all its purported limitations, because its features fully suffice the committed blogger whose content is textual for the most part and because the company behind