1. A Morning Encounter at Mandrem Beach The sun had barely begun its climb over the Goan coast on Sunday morning when the rhythm of Mandrem Beach was broken by an unusual and unsettling sight. What had started as a typical day for early risers, fishermen, and tourists strolling along the shore quickly turned into something extraordinary. A sub-adult false killer whale—a large, deep-water species of oceanic dolphin, despite its misleading name—had been carried in by the tide and was now stranded on the sand, lying on its side and helpless against the push of the waves. The animal was…

Even before the world had fully learned to pronounce coronavirus, another quiet epidemic had already begun. The World Health Organization gave it a name: infodemic. It is not caused by a pathogen, but it spreads just as quickly and just as dangerously. An infodemic is an overwhelming flood of information, with misleading rumors, fabricated stories, manipulated images, and conspiracy theories mixed in with genuine facts. Like the virus, it is highly contagious and grows exponentially, crossing borders effortlessly through social media, messaging apps, and even word of mouth. It complicates every aspect of the pandemic response, because when people believe…