Undergraduate students in the CUBE programme meet online every day in CUBE ChatShaala and write up each session on metastudio.org. Here are the latest write-ups; follow a link to read the full summary and join the discussion.
🌧️ The Monsoon That Came Back: Why It Still Rains in the South After September
The session on 24 October 2026 took up a question that was easy to see from the window that evening: why does the rain behave so differently from one part of India to another at this time of year? Sailekshmi began as presenter, and Aarya…
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🧠 Before the Brain Knows: The Story Behind Pulling Your Hand Away
The CUBE Chatshaala session of 23 October 2026 brought together twelve participants from different centres, including Sailekshmi, Manali Bhujade, Niharika Baghari, Aarya Takke, Kiran Kalakoti, Khushbu Gupta, Arunan MC (Madel Thivim, Goa),…
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🥭 Why Did Tree No. 1 Skip? Questions from Six Mango Trees
CUBE Chatshaala met on 22 October 2026 with seven participants: Niharika Baghari, Kiran Kalakoti, Arunan MC, Prithviraj, Susanta Tanti, Khushbu Gupta, and Sailekshmi. The session moved between two themes: a mango phenology observation and…
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👆 Tracking Growth, Tracing Regeneration: Nail Marking and Earthworm Fragments at CUBE ChatShaala
Day 2407 | 21st October 2026 Today’s ChatShaala brought together ten Cubists from ten centres across India: Uttarakhand (Dehradun, Bageshwar), Goa (Thivim), Maharashtra (Mumbai), Kerala (Panipally and Trivandrum), Uttar Pradesh (Noida)…
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🩸 Thirteen Students, Four Blood Groups and One Telling Clump
The CUBE Chatshaala session of 20 October 2026 belonged to the Animal Physiology theme, and the experiment on the board was blood group identification. Attendees were MS Sailekshmi, Niharika Baghari, Khushbu Gupta, Nidhi Devdas, Arunan…
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🐛 Woolly Bear or Tiger Moth Larva? Identifying a Hairy Caterpillar from Concrete to Neuron
The CUBE Chatshaala session on 9 October 2026 began. Fourteen participants were in the discussion. Sailekshmi took the presenter role in the early part of the evening, and Aarya and Kiran helped moderate. Aarya also kept the whiteboard…
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🧫 From a Liver Cell to a Pond: One Evening, Two Ways of Seeing Cancer
The 8 October 2026 session opened with Sakshi Beloshe presenting her work from ACTREC, where the project head is Sunil Shettry. Her project looks at liver cancer through the lens of protein translation. The whiteboard diagram showed a…
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🥛 Slicing Starch, Staining Curd: Unlocking Frugal Microbiology
The CUBE Chatshaala session on October 7, 2026, brought together 11 Cubists representing 7 regional centers—spanning Uttarakhand, Maharashtra, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, and Uttar Pradesh—to evaluate frugal microbiology techniques, low-cost…
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👆 From Henna Marks to Skeletal Proportions: Unpacking Today’s CUBE ChatShaala Discoveries
The CUBE Chatshaala session on September 17, 2026, brought together participants including Sailekshmi, Kiran, Diya, Raina Sayyed, Riya Sakat, Vatshla Singh, Yukti Manral, Prof. Arunan MC (B Desai Road, Mumbai), Himanshu Joshi, Divya,…
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🔬 Decoding Drosophila: Life Cycles, Model Systems, and Developmental Biology
During today’s session on 16th septmber 2026, the discussion focused on the developmental biology and life history traits of the fruit fly ( Drosophila melanogaster ), exploring why it serves as a quintessential model system in biological…
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🪰 Deciphering *Drosophila*: Observations, Preference Tests, and Anatomical Truths at CUBE ChatShaala
The CUBE ChatShaala meeting on September 15, 2026, focused on practical, home-based biological investigations using Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) as a model organism, paired with critical reflections on scientific observation and…
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🌺 Unlocking the Hibiscus Mystery: Do Cuttings Hide a Seed-Bearing Secret?
The CUBE ChatShaala session, held on September 14, 2026, focused mainly on answering the central research question: “Does Hibiscus produce seeds?” . Participants in the session included Niharika Baghari, Kiran, Sailekshmi, Arunan MC (from…
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🌿 Unraveling Plant Genetics: From Floral Anatomy to Molecular Fingerprinting
The CUBE ChatShaala session held on September 13, 2026, brought together active participants including Sailekshmi, Arunan MC, Yukti Manral, Niharika Baghari, Vatshla Singh, Akshada Narad, Kiran Varma, Manali Bhujade, Sweta, Diya,…
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😷 Decoding the Cold: Immune Memory and Pathogen Complexity
During today’s CUBE ChatShaala session, participants examined the immune system’s specific response to pathogens, using the common cold as a central case study . The session brought together participants including Sailekshmi, Manali…
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🔬 Viral Frontiers: Unpacking Immunity and Rhinovirus Dynamics
During today’s CUBE Chatshaala session on Microbiology and Immunology, participants examined how host defense mechanisms interact with viral entry strategies : Innate Immunity & Physical Barriers : Kiran Varma and Akshada Narad emphasized…
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🥛 Decoding the Science of Fermentation and the Dynamics of Peer Review
The session focused on the physical, chemical, and biological mechanisms that govern curd formation, comparing traditional fermentation with chemical acidification. Participants analyzed how milk changes when it is treated with a starter…
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🥭 Mapping the Mango Matrix: Biogeography and Cultivar Diversity Across India
During today’s CUBE Chatshaala meeting, participants worked together to examine the spatial distribution and diversity of mango varieties ( Mangifera indica ) across several regions of India. The main objective of the session was to test…
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😣 Why Does This Bitter Little Gourd Grow Where It Shouldn't?
Title: Exploring the Spine Gourd and India’s Monsoon Patterns: A ChatShaala Field Report Today’s ChatShaala session began with Yukti Manral sharing a field observation of a climbing vine found near Rajpur Road in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, on…
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🌱 Science vs Illusion: What Bamboo Taught Us About Trusting Sources
The CUBE ChatShaala session on September 6, 2026, brought together participants from across India to explore biological diversity, local research initiatives, and the rigorous application of the scientific method to everyday observations.…
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🧧 Honoring the Mentors of Inquiry: Bridging Biology and Pedagogy on Teacher's Day
During today’s special Teacher’s Day session on September 5, 2026, the CUBE ChatShaala discussion focused on Niharika defining the core distinctions between foundational biological sciences namely anatomy, physiology, and morphology while…
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💅 Unraveling the Rhythm of Growth: Hormones, Nails, and Homelab Science
The CUBE Chatshaala session on September 4, 2026, brought together citizen science researchers to discuss home laboratory investigations and formulate testable biological hypotheses . The meeting opened with updates from Niharika in…
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🥛 Unraveling Sugars & Roots: Key Insights from CUBE ChatShaala
During today’s CUBE Chatshaala session on September 3, 2026, the discussion centered on Niharika’s Homelab Experiments based in Bageshwar, Uttarakhand . The primary focus was a water solubility experiment aimed at observing…
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🥛 From Curd Jars to Pea Plants: A ChatShaala Genetics Detour
Today’s ChatShaala session opened with a practical proposed by Sailekshmi centred on observing Lactobacillus under the microscope, with the broader objective of culturing Lactobacillus at home using curd as the starting source. The idea…
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🪰 Why Won't the Flies Come? A CUBE Investigation
Today’s CUBE ChatShaala session centred on the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, and its extraordinary standing as one of biology’s most productive model organisms. The discussion opened with a nod to Mendel’s pea plant experiments as…
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🪰 One Fly: The Science of Drosophila as a Model Organism
Today’s session brought together a lively group of participants, centred on the humble fruit fly and its outsized importance to biology. Sailekshmi and Aarya led the discussion, with Kiran, Arunan, Neetu, Bhagwati Sahu, Priyanka, and…
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🌱 Unpacking the Hidden Story of a Pollen Grain
Today’s CUBE Chatshaala began when @Aarya shared an Instagram post with us. The post contained an interesting comment connected with the statement: The statement is famously associated with Theodosius Dobzhansky, Dobzhansky used the idea…
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🌾 Beyond Genetics: Farmers Know More Than We Often Assume
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Although @Sailekshmi had shared a photograph of a sprouting potato earlier , today’s Chatshaala discussion was based on that observation. The photograph showed small green buds emerging from the surface of the potato.…
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From confusion to clarity : A Journey through scientific instruments and the science of light✨
“Science is not about memorizing facts; it is about understanding the story behind every fact.” Today’s Chatshaala began with an inspiring interaction with @Sailekshmi a B.Sc. Zoology (5th Semester) student from Kerala University . She…
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From Nail Growth to Neural Connections – A Journey of Observation, Measurement, and Scientific Thinking🌸
"CUBE Chatshaala Learning Reflection ’’ “Learning begins with observation, grows through curiosity, and develops through scientific thinking.” I learned about a nail growth study presented by @Sailekshmi using the ink-mark method. In this…
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Understanding Vectors, Diseases, and Blood Cells 🔬
Today’s Chatshaala session was an exciting journey into the fascinating field of Vector Biology. We were joined by students Rishabh Ojha from Acharya Narendra Dev College *, University of Delhi, who are pursuing B.Sc. (Hons.) Zoology and…
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