National Science Day

National Science Day is celebrated in India on 28 February each year to mark the discovery of the Raman effect by Indian physicist Sir C. V. Raman on 28 February 1928. For his discovery, Sir C.V. Raman was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1930.

National Science Day is celebrated in India every year on 28 February. The celebration also includes public speeches, radio, TV, science movies, science exhibitions based on themes and concepts, debates, quiz competitions, lectures, science model exhibitions and many more activities. This day is celebrated to spread a message about the importance of science used in the daily life of the people. It is celebrated to discuss all the issues and implement new technologies for the development in the field of science. To give an opportunity to the scientific minded citizens in India. To encourage the people as well as popularize science and technology.

Science and Imagination

Human beings differ from other animals in many ways. Of particular importance is the ability to think, communicate and use language. This, in turn, gives us the skill to pass on information from one generation to the next. This ability has been more or less responsible for the growth of a systematic analysis of different questions. Systematic analysis of any question can be called science. Science is in no way limited to the laboratories or classrooms. What the chefs do as part of their cooking process in kitchen, skills that have been honed over years of experimentation and careful observation, is not far from a scientist experimenting in a lab.

The person who invented the wheel, the person who discovered fire, the tribe that discovered agriculture, they were all scientists in their own right. From the times of the early Greeks till the times of Galileo and Newton, those whom we, in present days refer to as scientists were actually philosophers or naturalists. Archimedes was a philosopher as was Galileo; even Darwin was a naturalist. A more stringent categorization of science into branches came about with the growth of scientific knowledge. People like Archimedes and Aristotle contributed to all branches of human knowledge without bothering about the divisions of physics, chemistry or biology. This trend can also be seen among philosophers like Galileo, Leonardo da Vinci, Johannes Kepler and Newton; they also did not have a fixed area or branch of study. They analysed nature as they observed it and tried to come up with suitable explanations. Sometimes when they felt the need to extend the range of human senses, they also invented devices like a telescope or a microscope.

Science and mathematics have always been closely interrelated. Mathematics enjoys the undisputed position of being the universal language of science, irrespective of your branch of interest. Many a times in history, it becomes difficult to classify people as just scientists or mathematicians. Newton himself is equally famous as both, though his Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica often referred to as simply the Principia would primarily be considered as a mathematical text. One comes across names like Gauss, Euler, Bernoulli, Pascal—people who made breakthroughs in mathematics and then applied them to the natural sciences to further our understanding of the natural world. You could also find a person like Benjamin Franklin, who was a politician and a diplomat, but was also a skilled observer of nature; he proved that lightning was a manifestation of electric discharge and also invented bifocal lenses.

This proves that science is not just for the scientists researching in their labs. All of us can be scientists in our own way. The invention of computers has led to yet another domain in the field of science and allowed for much more interdisciplinary activities. People from a wide varity of interests can now contribute to science in the domain they can. Even those who are professionally pursuing other fields than science are also a part of this chain by contributing to fields such as Information Technology and Artificial Intelligence. So we must take this as a huge advantage, and strive to make this world a better place to live!

Looking Forward! - Science In India

From ancient times, India has been a leading nation in the areas of science and technology. The evolution of India as a unique society can be attributed to the ancient concept of vasudaiva kutumbakam, meaning the whole world is one family. This unity had aroused feelings of to tolerance towards freedom of expression and knowledge. Rishis like Varahamihira, Aryabhatta, Vagbhatta, Susruta contributed towards the proliferation of knowledge of highest value and had put India at the forefront of all scientific developments and advancement. In fact, owing to the immense royal patronage provided for science, advancement of its knowledge and application of science in daily lives became a common factor in Indian society. When the whole of western society was in darkness, India rose high and shone as the ‘golden sparrow’ of the globe. The discovery of various scientific facts and the development of scientific concepts and technologies gave rise to a new age that could keep India in the forefront of the knowledge hub for centuries.

The most important and indestructible wealth is knowledge’ and an individual with a quest to acquire knowledge is believed to be truly on the path of enlightenment and liberation. Therefore, it is important for all of us to know our rich and glorious past. Each one of us should imbibe in you the vision of our ancient scientists and sages who could achieve highly with available resources. They were people of great vision, value, wisdom, purity and compassion. Hence, it is extremely important that India retains its position as the spearhead of the global scientific fraternity. The spark has already been ignited by our great scientists like Ramanujan, C.V. Raman, Vikram Sarabhai, APJ Abdul Kalam and various organizations like ISRO, CSIR, DRDO, and so on.

There is abundant talent in India and it needs to be utilized effectively and efficiently. It is the utmost duty of all of us to encourage students and learners all to think innovatively. The eagerness and spirit of scientific temperament should be developed in students. The task is accomplishable if you all strive for it. The goal is certainly not far away. Vande Mataram!

The theme for National Science Day 2022 is - "Integrated Approach in S&T for Sustainable Future".

The need for Sustainability

This is the era of technology. Everyday, the world is getting more of it. But in this process, we should remember that our progress in STEM should not become a threat to our lives. Thus we should move forward to modernity, but sustainably. It is the nature of humans that drives us to development. Consequently, the wider future impacts are not considered. As a result, a lot of damage happens to our environment due to this type of approach. Thus, the longer we continue to pursue unsustainable development, the more severe will the consequences be. One of the most common is climate change which is being debated widely worldwide. In fact, climate change is already wreaking havoc on our surroundings. So, the need of the hour is sustainable development. We must ask ourselves, must we leave a scorched planet with an ailing environment for our future generations? In order to undo the mess created by us, we must follow sustainable development. This will help us promote a more social, environmental and economical thinking. Most importantly, it is not that difficult to attain this.

We are all well aware of the do's and dont's we need to follow. Its just about making them a practice. Small sustainable steps from each one of us can bring out a great difference. There is an urgent need to fight gloabl warming, climate change, food scarcity, and all other problems from the world. If we are successful in this, it will be an actual development for us. So let us all join hands to march ahead towards modern technologies but carefully and sustainably.

On this note, I wish you a very sustainable National Science Day and an outstanding career in science. Keep Hustling!