When I was growing up, I gobbled up all the science related books at my primary school library, which really wasn't that many. Starved after that, my parents would kindly take me to the small National Library of Maldives, to read and borrow books. It was the only source of information on a wide variety of topics in the Maldives at the time. There were no real bookshops and those that did carry books stocked so few and so little variety, leaving a lot to be desired. This was a time when the World Wide Web was at its infancy and Internet connectivity was yet to reach the Maldives. Suffice it to say, I absolutely loved the library for what it represented.

Many of the books on science and engineering at the library were donated by various people. And the only source of current news and state-of-art on science and engineering available at the library came in the form of Popular Electronics, Popular Mechanics and Scientific American magazines that were being donated by a kind person(s) to the library each month. I know because they all carried a "Donated" stamp. I would eagerly go to the library several times a month to see if the previous month's issue had been donated. I loved reading each and every article in the magazines. I would try build as many of the science projects, the electronics projects and schematics they featured. That anonymous person(s) had a huge impact on my life.

I have no idea who it was... but one of you may know. If you do, please let them know that their simple gesture of kindness gave a kid countless joy and is deeply appreciated. Thank you!

To believe that voodoo, black magic or any other magical woowoo performance has or could influence natural processes and the progression of events is to profess profound ignorance... of how the world works and the frailty of the human brain.

We just spent a few hours assembling the new ‪‎16" Dobsonian telescope we got for Science Emmenah‬ public awareness and education events. It is a beast and we sweated a pool putting it together in the current heat of Male'. We have to sort out a few things before we can have first light with it. We are all so psyched!

Hopefully, we will be able to share with you all the delight of the views through this new telescope soon enough!

For all we've come to understand, of us and the universe, we've not come to understand empathy and compassion. For all we've been able to achieve, of curing disease and going to distant Moons, we've not been able to achieve peace and a healthy life for all. Of all the delusions we entertain, mine is the hope for a united human race.

"Science Emmenah" turned 1 today! It has been a year of hard work - writing posts in Dhivehi, writing for the "Science Dhaskuramaa" radio show, holding a few public events and finishing drafts of a few science books. I can't be thankful enough for the wonderful people - especially Aadhu, Hisham and Adam - who joined Musannif and I in our quest and eagerly spent countless hours getting various things done.

I hope our candle burns brighter and lights more candles in the year ahead. And thank you all for the support and encouragement!

I recently gave a talk at the 3rd instalment of MINDTalks. My talk focussed on curiosity and how it has guided and impacted my life.

MINDTalks, is a series of events "about passing of knowledge, information, experiences and amazing stories" being organised and held by MINDFields Inc. I thank them for inviting me to speak at their event. The founders of MINDTalks say they hope to inspire and motivate people in the Maldives.

You can watch my talk (embedded below) and other talks at the MINDTalks channel on Youtube. I hope you find my talk, which was mostly candid and impromptu, interesting and inspiring.

It maybe be less dramatic than war. It maybe scattered over several countries you've never heard of. It may not get much media coverage. It maybe a long term, amorphous, complicated problem. But what really gets to me and makes me depressed and literally tear up, everyday, is that about 25,000 people die every day from hunger or hunger-related issues, most of whom are children.

Imagine kids going for weeks without a decent meal, that they feel weak, confused and tired like you've never ever been, that they can't get proper sleep and hallucinate when awake, that they constantly feel cold and shaky, that their immune system is so shot that any minor disease or illness is a major threat, that their organs start to shutdown and bring about agony like you've never ever felt until they finally die. That's what starvation entails.

What do I think is the biggest injustice? That the world as a whole produces enough food that starvation should be history. But greed and lack of political will, among others, mean that starvation sustains and remains an ever present threat in many places across the Earth.

Where's the outrage?

Fucked up world we live in.