Nithin Ramesan

Immerse(#2): Coffee under the Microscope

Caffeine is best known as a stimulant of the central nervous system in humans – in other words, it keeps us from falling asleep. One of the main methods by which it achieves that is by inhibiting the action of adenosine (by preventing it from bonding with its receptor). Adenosine is the chemical that induces feelings of drowsiness in humans. Existing literature has established that adenosine also plays a major role in the formation and motion of the slime mold aggregate. A natural question to ask, then, is whether caffeine could play a similar inhibitory role in slime molds – and this is precisely the question that Dr Baskar’s work answers.

Secretary Review: Students’ General Secretary – Aditya ‘2C’ Bharadwaj

“Aditya received generally positive reviews from the heads of organizations that are under the purview of the SGS. They opined that he gave them a lot of freedom to manage their respective organizations, while suggesting new initiatives. However, a common complaint among organizational Cores under him was that he did not represent them satisfactorily when their organizations ran into roadblocks with the administration.” Read more about the outgoing SGS’s tenure.