Nidhi Sharma

Journalist living and working in New York City.


Scientist, writer, explorer. There is philosophy in curiosity.

NBC News •

Cheap and green: Heat pumps take hold around the world

2022 was a big year for the humble heat pump. In the U.S., more people bought heat pumps for their homes than traditional fossil-fuel furnaces. In Poland, the market for heat pumps more than doubled. China is installing more than any other country. Based on refrigeration technology that’s more than 200 years old, the heating contraptions have gained popularity thanks to their green footprint and low cost to operate. “After maybe buying an electric vehicle or taking the bus more often or carpo
NBC News •

As Ukraine plans its recovery, a climate group has a seat at the table

When world leaders and international experts met Tuesday to discuss how to rebuild Ukraine, they were joined by a small group hoping to make a big impact on the country’s energy future. Alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was Svitlana Romanko, an environmental lawyer and founder of Razom We Stand, a Ukrainian climate advocacy group that is pushing for the Ukrainian government to “greenify” the nation’s reconstruction.
CEP Magazine •

Surviving Self-Quarantine: 3 Tips from an Astronaut

As millions of citizens around the world hunker down in their homes to ride out the COVID-19 pandemic, many struggle with the emotional and physical toll of isolation. When separated from friends, family, and coworkers, it can be difficult not to feel bored, lonely, or restless. Al Sacco, a chemical engineer and astronaut, was isolated in orbit on the International Space Station, and he has some sage advice for those currently sheltering in place.
CEP Magazine •

The Caltech 6: America’s First and Only All-Female Class of ChEs

The lives of six women reflect how far we have come, and how much further we have to go. On an unseasonably warm late-October day in Pittsburgh, PA, Rosemarie Wesson took the stage at AIChE’s 2018 Annual Meeting. Under the muted glow of a dozen spotlights, she told the story of six women who entered the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in 2001. Four years later, they would become the first and only all-female chemical engineering class to graduate from any American coed college.
Live Science •

How Bats Could Help Scientists Stop Ebola Outbreaks Before They Start

The current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has spread to at least 58 people, and has killed nearly half of those individuals, according to an update today (May 23) from the World Health Organization (WHO). This is the nation's ninth Ebola outbreak since 1976, when the deadly virus was first discovered in a village near the country's Ebola River. But what if scientists were able to predict Ebola outbreaks and stop them before they even started?
RVA Magazine •

Opinion: The Valentine’s Controversy History Series On Monuments Fails to Address Real Issues

“Rather than focusing just on Monument Avenue tonight, I’d like us to take a look at the landscape of the city,” said Bill Martin, Director of The Valentine Museum. “So, if you’re here to talk about the removal of the statues, you’re in the wrong place.” Martin, along with Richmond Magazine, Capital Region Collaborative, Kelli Lemon (Coffee With Strangers) and VCU professor John Accordino, made up a panel for an event Monday evening meant to highlight the connection between monuments and touris
RVA Magazine •

The Rise of an Epidemic: Opioids, Their Impact on Virginians, and Efforts to Combat the Growing Crisis

Kim grew up on the west end of Richmond, a young girl with big blue eyes living in the nice part of town — bad things didn’t happen to girls like her, not in the suburbs. By 14, though, she had started experimenting with weed and alcohol. As a freshman at Hermitage High School, Kim moved onto bigger and better drugs. Forget her school colors of red and blue, she’d found white — in prescription opiate pills and powdery bleached cocaine.
GayRVA •

Iridian Gallery’s J. Alan Cumbey Retrospective Brings New Life to Late Richmond Artist

I can almost see J. Alan Cumbey, sprawled next to his sister in his Willi Smith suit and his skinny tie, chain-smoking as his sister tells me about his life. He looks bemused, from the even line of his flat-top down to the tips of his pointy shoes. Cumbey was a prolific gay writer and artist in 1980s Richmond — better known for his wry writing style than for his jarring artwork.
Mobile Warming •

Climate Change in the Florida Keys

The scene was harshly symbolic, and in my eyes, indicative of the state of our modern planet. These vultures – who seemed much closer to nature than humanity could ever be – noticed the decrepit state of a habitat that is perhaps not as pretty as say coral reefs, but is just as important. It was depressing, to say the least, to see these birds that prey on lifeless beings circling a place that once belonged to a greener, livelier earth.