No one nose but...

India, Dec. 14 -- What does it take to make a room smell good? Air-fresheners may seem simple enough: a perfume that spreads across a space, via aerosol, slow-release tablet or plug-in diffuser. They ... Read More

Air apparent: Swetha Sivakumar on the clever science behind air-fresheners

India, Dec. 13 -- What does it take to make a room (or car, or cupboard) smell good? Air-fresheners may seem simple enough: they're a perfume that spreads across a space, via aerosol, slow-release ta... Read More

Twist and pout: Swetha Sivakumar on the history of lipstick

India, Nov. 15 -- It is one of the world's oldest cosmetics. For thousands of years, people have tinted their lips as part of a beauty regimen. In Ancient Egypt, such mixes were made with henna, crush... Read More

Twist and pout: Swetha Sivakumar on the history of the lipstick

India, Nov. 15 -- It is one of the world's oldest cosmetics. For thousands of years, people have tinted their lips as part of a beauty regimen. In Ancient Egypt, such mixes were made with henna, crush... Read More

On the sunny side of the street

India, Nov. 2 -- If mass-produced sunscreen is less than a century old, part of the reason boils down to class. Key inventions tend to benefit those in power, and through most of settled history, the ... Read More

On the sunny side of the street: Swetha Sivakumar decodes SPF

India, Nov. 1 -- Isn't it strange that we've had mass-produced sunscreen for less than a century, though we've been wandering about outdoors for millennia? Part of the reason for this boils down to c... Read More

Foam improvement: Swetha Sivakumar on the history of toothpaste

India, Oct. 17 -- The quest for minty-fresh breath goes back at least 5,000 years. Around 3000 BCE, Ancient Egyptians equated beauty and health with a good set of teeth. They mixed ground-up oxen hoo... Read More