Opinion In a black-and-white world, colour me olo
In 1856, an 18-year-old was trying to find the cure for malaria. Instead, he found a way to create the colour purple. William Henry Perkin, a student at London's Royal College of Chemistry, dipped a piece of cloth into his mixture of coal aniline and chromic acid. The cure for malaria was still about a century away, but what Perkin did discover was a way to create the first colour in synthetic form. Researchers from UC Berkeley and the University of Washington this week made a similar discovery. They had laser pulses fired into their eyes and claimed to have found 'olo', an 'incredibly saturated' blue-green, a colour 'never seen before by the human eye'.
The discovery was made using a device called the Oz Vision System, named after Emerald City in L Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The colour cannot be seen by the naked eye without laser stimulation. The scientists used the Oz to stimulate only the M (medium) cone cells in the eye, allowing them to view the colour. It was named 'olo' to denote the binary 010, indicating that of the three cone cells in the eye — L (long), M and S (short) — only one, the M, is stimulated.
Scientists have argued that the discovery will be helpful in better understanding colour blindness and how the human brain visualises colour. But it has also been contested because of its limited value. After all, what is a new colour when only a few people can see it? If not material or scientific value, olo certainly seems to add philosophical value to the understanding of the world. In a world given to viewing the Other in strict binaries of black and white, olo, with its blue-green timbre and contested existence, shows that there is always room for ambiguity. It also comes with a simple lesson: There is value in looking at things through someone else's eyes. You may just discover something new.
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Time of India
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#48: The science-backed diet-and-fasting blueprint for a longer, healthier life
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MORE 'What's the most effective diet and fasting framework that helps improve both lifespan and health span?' This is a question I get asked a lot, and one that I have spent many years trying to research and experiment with. With so many diets and fasting strategies out there, it's hard to separate trends from what's actually backed by science. In today's post #48, I provide my conclusions and recommendations, along with the clinical evidence supporting them. As always, while each of our bodies react differently and therefore need to be optimized for accordingly, the Evidence Based Medicine (EBM) studies I quote have been done across large populations. For those that want the conclusion without reading further, here they are: a) base your meals on Mediterranean principles, b) eat in a 10 AM–7 PM window, c) add in a once or twice a month 24 hour fast, and d) avoid extremes. A Quick Note on Evidence Based Medicine (EBM) Evidence-Based Medicine or EBM—the practice of making health decisions based on the best available scientific research out there. But not all the millions of studies published are equal, so scientists rank them by strength. Sort A = High-quality evidence (large, consistent clinical trials or meta-analyses). Most trustworthy. Sort B = Moderate-quality evidence (some good studies, but with mixed results or smaller scale). Sort C = Low-quality evidence (based on expert opinion, early trials, or animal studies). There is also a metric called I² (I-squared), which tells us how much the results vary across the numerous studies in a meta-analysis. I² < 25% means the different studies mostly agree = reliable evidence. I² > 50% means the different studies had different results = use with caution. Together, Sort level and I² help us separate what's truly proven from what's still speculative. This combination—EBM Sort A with I² < 25%—is what I consider the gold standard. When evidence meets that bar, it makes my short list. The clear winner: Mediterranean diet EBM Sort A, I² = 9% If there's one eating pattern that consistently wins across cultures and decades of studies, it's the Mediterranean diet. In a meta-analysis of over 1.5 million people, those who followed this diet saw a 9% reduction in all-cause mortality. The PREDIMED trial, one of the most robust dietary studies ever conducted, showed a 30% drop in cardiovascular events in participants eating a Mediterranean-style diet enriched with olive oil or nuts. The key ingredients of a Mediterranean diet include vegetables, legumes, olive oil, fish, nuts, whole grains—and very little sugar or processed food. It's sustainable, flavorful, and deeply rooted in how some of the world's healthiest populations eat. For those interested in the Indian version of the classic Mediterranean diet, check out the video interview I did with renowned clinical nutritionist, Dr. Geeta Dharmatti, on the Longevity Lab Community video meet series. If you want to watch snippets from the talk, you can do it here or join the Longevity Lab Community to watch the interview or to review the summary show notes Coupled with intermittent fasting (10am to 7pm eating window) EBM Sort A, I² = 22% Now let's talk about when you eat. I personally follow intermittent fasting (IF) with a 10 AM to 7 PM eating window, giving my body ~15 hours of fasting each night. This schedule fits my lifestyle while tapping into powerful metabolic benefits. In a 2020 meta-analysis with I² = 22%, IF was shown to significantly reduce fasting glucose, insulin, body weight, and inflammation—even without reducing calorie intake. That's a big deal. 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Time of India
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Additionally, it suppresses melanin production too which makes it a popular anti-ageing remedy, as mentioned in the National Library of Medicine. Oolong Tea Image credits: Getty Images If you are one of those rare people who do not like green tea, then study authors recommend swapping it with Oolong tea. You can also drink both. 3 cups of oolong tea daily is advisable to drink. Oolong tea is made from the leaves of the camellia sinensis plant and is partially oxidised. One step to a healthier you—join Times Health+ Yoga and feel the change
