How to sit on backseat of a two wheeler

I think this needs some kind of training, espacially if you are travelling with me on my Hond Activa.
1. Its not free. I charge 3Rs/km as a contribution towards petrol fund.
2. Don't grab my shoulders, they are important for me to balance and control the bike. A Gentle hold once in a while is OK.
3. Keep distance, there is ample space on Honda Activa. Also don't sit so disconnected that I will have to look back to know if you are there!
4. I know you are curious of what's happening in front of the road, and I am Huge enough to block it. But don't bend on right or left, I can easily make out, because, to balance the bike, then I have to bend in opposite direction! And Since I can't really bend, it puts unequal stress on two sides of my back, which is unhealthy.
5. So, to check if you are sitting properly, I need to rest my feet on ground, in the beginning, and when your feet are not on the ground, I need to make sure if there is same pressure on both of my feet. This holds good even if you are sitting both legs one sided.
6. Don't teach me how to drive, slow or fast. If you wish, you can take the driver's seat! FYI, I have an RTO approved licence.
7. If told in advance, an extra helmet can be made available. You travel on my bike at Your Risk.
8. Don't expect me to travel more for your sake, be happy to get to travel on my bike for the tour-length on which I am also travelling.
9. Humming is ok, and I won't mind you telling me to have a break and get some snack on a long journey.
Jaigurudev.

That thing called PhD

Just now came across an article! Should have seen it earlier! For all those who are even remotely concerned with the thing called PhD:
I did a PhD and did NOT go MAD!


Also, worth knowing is the
History of PhD and other academic degrees.

fantastic New Hostel !!!

Our Institute has been so much generous on all the students to have built a spacious, comfortable(in fact luxarious) hostel for students, which is also a guesthouse for our visitors!!

I am happy about my own room, it has everything so well planned. excellent bedding and cubboard, a wall shelf for my books just like they have in Shelfari.com, attached freshroom with hot/cold water shower, full length mirror and just very clean and lighted room!! Its like a five star room. {uhmm uhmm... another envious thing for software guys about the researchers!}

I am sure this will inspire me and lot more students to do our research at our best potential!!
You can see some photos during inauguration of our hostel at our
website.

Good news + general update...

Hello Everybody!!

I am a back from a much needed break and fun at home, celebrating my favourite Diwali festival!!

And today when I arrived at my desk, I have received the good news of acceptance of my first research paper for publication in Astrophysical journal!! hurray!
A publication is the only quantitative assessment of a researcher, and this is the best gift I could have asked for!

hmmmmm... Life seems to be all set to roll on now...

Back from Mumbai, I met up with Sabari last evening. We are generally used to meeting daily, and a gap of a week is like a long long time!
I updated him on what is happening in Maharashtra and Goa, we exchanged lots of new learnings about the game called "Life". He told me things I missed in YES!+ here. Even a week's gap in YES!+ activities, and it seems I have fallen out of place! After lot of gupshup and go-sip {"go-means-knowledge"!}, we went to attend Shant's brother's wedding. I met some more YES!+ friends there, and we had a great dinner. On the way we had bought a flower bouquet and I enjoyed learning how nicely he was packaging it. At the wedding, it was so nice celebrative atmosphere. Lots of interesting faces, there! :) I noticed some nice shining jewellary. In the dinner I enjoyed more of Puri and Chhole, Sabari liked more of rice variety. All of us liked the buttermilk! As soon as my stomach gave me a full signal, I stopped back this time...! Actually we are supposed to have 1/2 of our stomach with solids, 1/4th with liquid, and leave 1/4 empty! That empty quarter I have not experienced in my life! hahaha!
Back to Sabari's home we did some more go-ssip and I saw nice clothings for Sabari's wedding. hmmmm. The countdown has began, the tickets are booked by Mahesh!

Looks like a fantastic week ahead. My best wishes to you all too!!

Happy Diwali !!

Happy Diwali !!

Kindly accept these flowers,

And You are invited to walk your way To:

Physics Fun Days!

&

Something out of Nothing

Life and afterlife of a research scholar

Over the past five years, I have confronted these three questions at least a thousand times, when I tell someone that I am doing research for PhD: So how is it going on, when it will get over, and what you will do after that!?
The expressions behind the questions are often varied from simple curiosity to total surprise, from personal concern to "oh my God, what is he doing"!
To enlighten all on this peculiar type of living, here are some answers.
First, the research scholars are not near to extinction, fighting for survival species. We get good stipend and accommodation, food and other facilities that any softy guy would envy... Plus we have flexible timings and we don't travel 1 hour to the office! So chill, being a research scholar is a cool life.

Second, as to when it will get complete, I will let you know when it is done. Dont worry, everything that has a beginning has an end.

Third, what after PhD.
Again, I hope those with PhD do survive in this world, else it would be height of educated unemployment!
Nevertheless, thanks for all your concern.
Here is what I might do after PhD:

1. Go on a vacation for two months
2. Go for a post doc... yes, research has no end
3. Go learn guitar and piano and dances
   
4. Scuba diving in Goa
5. Skydiving
6. Join an Animation course and produce high quality 3D movies
   
7. Become a Journalist and tell real tales: Join SSCMS!?
8. Join SSRVM and open up schools that really educate kids not make them muggers
   
9. Organise an Utsav
10. Become YES!+ teacher
11. Teach in BSc and MSc Physics at any place in the world
12. Open a Satvik Ayurvedic restaurant
13. Become an Ayurvedic Doctor
14. Write books on Physics
15. Do an MBA
16. Learn java and become a softy.
17. Go on a world tour, the hitchhikers way.
    
18. Become an astronaut and go to moon
19. Take a lift from some spaceship and go hitchhike in the galaxy
20. All of above
21. None of above
    

One hour day and Half hour night

I always feel grateful for being in a Research Institute. Its this sheer opportunity to meet some of the most brilliant people on the planet. Today we had a talk by the Astronaut Claude Nicollier, "My experience in Space".He showed some amazing pictures of the earth from space, it was simply fantastic to see the entire Himalayas in one picture. Also, the distribution of river Ganga where it meets the ocean.
It was also an absolutely stunning picture to see that on top of one of the desserts, the cloud coverage is exactly on top of the sea, and it ends on the coastline.

Absolutely passionate about his work, he mentioned how he had undergone rigorous training in water chambers. Their first mission was repair of the Hubble Space Telescope. Imagine changing parts of a huge (2 meter diameter) telescope in space! In those water chambers, they make exact replica, with high fidelity modelling, of the space telescope. In space you need to stabilize your body, and move very slowly. They practised it for months before the mission, in the water chambers. Exact and detailed planning, even practise of handling unexpected failures and problems.

When you are in space, you are in a very low air pressure surrounding. Say 1/3rd of that on earth. So the nitrogen tends to get into the blood. There are Air Chambers, where you increase the air pressure to normal ones on the earth, and rejuvenate yourself. Claustrophobia is the fear of enclosed spaces. If you have it, then these small Air chambers are not meant for you! Also the Astronaut's suit can be very cumbersome to get into and carry along.

You can see here a photo of a pair of astronauts repairing the Hubble Space Telescope. Notice that one astronaut has firmly grounded his feet on the robot arm of the space ship,(you don't see the spaceship, the arm is the white rod like thing in the photo), and other Astronaut is freely floating. Whenever the Astronauts are doing such work, doing space walk, they are attached to the space-craft by a thread: they are tethered. This is to ensure that they don't just get lost in space by mistake! As he jokingly said, if an astronaut or a repair tool is lost, it becomes a useless satellite to Earth! So all the repair tools and parts are also tethered to the spaceship.

As you are orbiting, you have sunrise and sunset more often! You get 1 hour of a day and 1/2 hour of a night! Of course, you don't go to sleep in that night when you are in shadow of the earth. So you need to get used to this kind of bright and dark timings. Before the Earth becomes totally dark, and Sun goes behind it, you can see a beautiful cresent of the Earth! The moon also rises and sets quite fast. The sky is absolutely dark, and you can see Sun also as just another, closer, brighter and bigger star.

On Earth, our body has mechanisms to push lot of blood supply to the head. So much supply is not needed when you are in space. Lot of body fluid imbalance and loss of orientation can happen when you just reach the space. So if you are planning to visit and go for a space ride, be prepared for some phisiological unpleasantness! He said its like sea-sickness.

To become an astronaut, he said, you need good physical fitness, sound mental balance, and a sound educational background. After that, its a luck to be selected, as there is lot of competition and few jobs available!

A Physics Graduate, who did research in Astronomy, and took over Air Pilot job, and then worked as an Astronaut, Claude Nicollier is now full time professor in Lausanne, inspiring young students to the thrill of Space research.

Nurture the talent

Its our Founder's day in my Indian Institute of Astrophysics today. We had a public lecture by Prof. C N R Rao, the eminent Scientist. Check more about his excellent research career, the extraordinary awards he has received and other information on his website. The Auditorium was housefull and we had standing audience!

In a fantastic talk on "Science in India, a personal recollection", he spoke with all humor the ups and downs in research. His 50 years of experience in building research institutes, guiding students, was evident. He stressed the need on nurturing and encouraging talent in all possible ways for study of Science. He said the funds are now available, in contrast to 40-50 years ago, and we need to give quality results. He asked us, the researchers, to abandon mediocracy and choose the most interesting, important, problems for research. He said, we need those "nutty fellows", the bright young minds, who don't care what other people think, and get themselves immersed in study. He said, we can't discipline scientist like in military, but we need to bring the best of the young minds by taking them beyond their comfortable capcity.

He cited how, even with limited facilities and funds, even in old days there used to be some scientists who would do their best work, and it would meet the international standards. Talking about our Founder, he said, Vainu Bapu was a very methodical and eloquent speaker, and always insisted on excellence.
More about my Institute, check on the website.
Tomorrow also we have a nice talk on "My experiences in space". A talk by an Astronaut! Come and book your space before time, as I know the auditorium is likely to be housefull as today!

New Physics blog opened

hi all,
I was writing a few notes on Physics in this Blog, However, I was keeping equations outside. :) To write without any limitations, I have started a blog totally devoted to Physics! Ask questions, read amusing stuff and so on. Its here. Characteristic to my style of writing, it will be simplistic and readable to most of you!
Cheers!
Love
Abhay.

night sky of the World

Above picture shows how much city light is emitted in different parts of the world at night... recorded by some satellites. More info is here:- night sky in the World. interesting, isn't it!

Skyview!

True to my religion, Physics, I thought an article on Astronomy and Astrophysics is a must! What you see above is how the sky looks like in a less than a degree field of view in a region of Large Magellanic Cloud, our next door galaxy. The image is taken by Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope.
Isn't it unbelievable that in that small part of the sky there are so many stars! And its so very beautiful. As if there is a Diwali in that galaxy, and all those are houses with diyas lit up on their doors.
And another amazing thing about sky-view is that, when you look in different directions, you are actually seeing light that originated in different times from those stars, so there is a temporal information encoded in the picture! What you see is a spatial collage of different pasts in various directions..

Berkeley physics course is now available!

I love Tata McGraw Hill Publications... they bring out the best of the books in the world to Asian students in an affordable price!
Now they have revived the Classic Physics textbooks:- the Berkeley Physics Course:

Vol 1 Mechanics
Vol 2 Electricity and Magnetism
Vol 3 Waves
Vol 4 Quantum Physics
Vol 5 Statistical Physics

These books will tell you the Graduate Physics in the most precise form! They give you the scope and limitations of the theory presented. The third volume Waves is filled with ample illustrations and experiments. The exercises given will sharpen your skills.
Second volume on Electricity and Magnetism, the Nobel Laureate Purcell has described in a diagramatic and a very illustrative manner, how accelerated motion of a charge gives rise to electromangetic radiation...
Learn Physics from the Best!

Making Physics Popular at college level

Making Physics Popular at college level
Abhay Karnataki,MSc Physics,IIT Bombay,2nd Year student,February 19, 2003

... the power of instruction is seldom of much efficacy, except in those happy dispositions where it is almost superuous."
This apt remark is a telling comment on the state of instruction and remains as true today as when it was rst quoted by Edward Gibbon. There is a natural inclination in every child, starting from vastness of astronomical objects, as to know how this world works, what laws govern the nature around us. Since this is the subject matter of Physics, there is so much a need to
us to recognize and implement the best possible and natural methodology of imparting physics. Conventional education bombards the students with a gamut of equations which leaves the student grasping for breath. What is needed is a literature that complements this maths with a lucid physical description of phenomena, so as to bring out its natural properties, and
sustain interest and motivation of students.
To this end the books play a very important roll, since the students can spend most of their time with these. Following monumental books form the best foundation in Physics one can have:
Resnick and Halliday.
Berkeley Physics Course, 5 Volumes.
Feynman lecture series, 3 Volumes.
Surely there would be some other combinations, but these are time tested.
Resnick and Halliday develops a curiosity about the methods of Physics and gives a visa to the generalizations of theories, gives glimpses of frontiers, relates the concepts to the real world surrounding us through numerous daily life examples.
Berkeley course endures the student with a rigorous and complete background of future studies. It gives precise limitations and scope of the theory being presented. The problems are very interesting and give an insight in understanding almost all essential basics of physics. Both of the above give excellent order of magnitude calculations, something which is very important to give a feel of the subject.
Feynman lectures are universally acknowledged as being the best lecture series we ever had on Physics. With his endearing charm and uncharacteristically disarming style of an engaging Physics Teacher, Feynman covers most of Physics in a manner that could be understood by a dedicated beginner. However, no Physics course is complete without the tutorials and recitation
sessions, in which the students are grilled in the concepts told. This is where above books and educators come in. They are in a position to complement the course by giving due emphasis to the appropriate nuances of the subject and clarify the perspectives.
Apart from the books, the next important thing that brings students close to Physics is the experiments. I strongly feel that there is a need of setting up of the experiments rather than doing just observations of already setup experiments. The students must learn how to play with the apparatus, rather than just number crunching. Certainly, the current group of experiments should be retained, but alongside the students should be encouraged to set up some, possibly without grading them on the basis of those setups.
Following areas are very easy to explore:
 Electronics: let them make some simple ligingcircuits! ! Even without understanding how a diode works... BSc students could be encouraged to setting up some Power Supplies, Digital counters. And at the final year some experiments that might involve microprocessors.
 Simple mechanical experiments: using gears, batteries, motors, levers, bearings... the aim of these experiments need not be something directly useful, but something which conveys the essential Physics behind actual real life working systems. Third Volume of Berkeley Physics Course, Waves, provides an excellent set of home experiments.
 Computer programming: Computers should be brought into the work experience of students at an earlier stage. Without bothering too much about the details of programming languages, they should be given a first hand experience of the softwares available. Internet education plays an important role in fast and up to date knowledge of the subject. It has broadened the capacity of the individual to access the vast amount of data. Following activities would be of interest:
-function plotting using softwares.
-plotting trajectories of charged particles in various combinations of E and B fields.
-generation of fractals.
-viewing 3 D images of solids.
Study of classic experiments: some of the classic experiments like Millikan's oil drop experiment, J.J. Thomson's e/m measurement, Michelson's interferometer which are possibly available to undergraduates, should be studied in very much greater detail. The constraints of time should be uplifted
from the students, so should be the burdens of being evaluated for doing the experiment, and its completion. For, the spirit of scientific adventure ( so essential for the joy of doing Physics) can be experienced only in a liberal academic atmosphere free from such mundane constraints.
The courses should be designed so that there is maximum correlation of theory taught and experiments performed. The idea should not necessarily be to cover the entire syllabus, but to convey the essential physics in the subject and to inspire the student by conveying the personal excitement of learning the subject. An inspired student will learn much more on his/ her
own, than what can be taught in the class rooms. A certain care about delicate balance of students' psychological, emotional
inclinations is to be taken by the teachers. I believe that there are no bad students, there are only fast and slow students. Some people grasp some things fast and some do it slowly. There should be both, freedom and care, on the part of the teacher. Teachers can give freedom to self progress and go much ahead in the subject to the fast students, and they have to pay
more attention to those who grasp it slowly.Only a good work culture in the class can impel simultaneous growth of all. To help this grow, assignments can be given by clubbing fast and slow students, where slow students present the conclusions of the work. Such group discussions and seminars of students
would be very helpful.
"Problems for toffies" - this is something which works very well! The idea is to have healthy competition with excitement of prize.
Another activity that can be encouraged is reading of simple, early original papers. These are the landmark papers, which mark the history of science, and milestones in scienti c progress. Since the facts discovered then, are now firmly established and have became accessible to the novice, the
concepts in the papers are easily understandable. On the other hand, the joy of discovery presented in the original papers is unmatched by any later substitute on the same topic.
Often we can celebrate the birth anniversery of a Physicist, with a series of discussions of his/her best works. A wonderful course on Classical Physics through work of Sir G. I. Taylor is being oered in MIT and Harvard. It is an excellent example demonstrating how a single scientist's work can be so
beneficial and illustrating with a wide variety of research areas.
I thank all my teachers who guided me and introduced to the fascinating world of science and in particular Physics.
Let's make learning Physics a celebration.


PS. This article won first prize in a Science essay competition. It was briefly edited by my then friend and now scientist, Ashutosh Jogalekar. You can visit his blog .

Stability of Vehicles

You think you do a big job when you are balancing a 2 wheeler while driving it? You hardly do anything! A major role is played by rotating wheel. To see why, just imagine yourself balancing the 2 wheeler that is stationary, for as long as you generally drive! Balancing a stationary 2 wheeler is tough. Do it with cycle, you will have to do some good amount of acrobatics!

Why would a rotating wheel be more stable? What is fall of a bike? Its essentially tilt that doesn't reverse, and continues till it touches the ground. A rotating wheel, when tilted, actually turns - that's how you take turns - rather than falling by side.

A complex mechanics equation and formulae and vectors show why this is necessary. To get a simple idea, think of it this way:- a sledge moving on ice has a tendency to move in the same direction. If you apply sideways force, the direction of motion will be very slightly changed to that side, while it continues to move in more or less same direction.

In case of rotating wheel, it has a tendency to continue to rotate around the same axis - say the axle of wheeel - unless you tilt it. When it is falling, it just shifts the direction of axle - like the small direction change in sledge motion - and continues to rotate around this new axis.

When a wheel tends to fall, instead of falling sideways and continuing to move in the same direction, it will change the direction of travel, and spiral towards fall. This is easily seen by anyone playing with a cycle wheel and pushing it by hitting at back. The wheel will roll on, and depending on which side it bends, it will spiral in that side and fall. What it doesn't do, is to go in straight direction and fall sideways!

Spinning top also shows the similar stability. It can balance itself on a needle end. It will keep balancing and rotating and once friction eats up the energy, it falls down spiralling.
It also shows another behaviour, when, after throwing it may not have landed vertically, and slight tilt causes its rotation axis to go in circle around the vertical axis. Notice that even though its tilted, because its rotating, it goes in circles, rather than falling down. A stationary top will simply fall down. This is called as Precession.

The larger the speed, more the stability. Of course, more speed invites other dangers.Also, this means that falling sideways is much easier on smaller speeds and sharper curves. So be careful!

Friction - Devil or God!?

Everywhere you see, one is attempting to reduce Friction. E.g. the lubricating oils in ball bearings, door hinges. However, have you thought about what would happen if there was no Friction!
Without Friction, you can't even walk on the floor! That's what happens, in rain, if the floor is slippery, you tend to fall down. Why, because the Friction has got reduced. Its a strange thing that the force of Friction, which opposes every motion, is actually supporting the entire mechanism of motion!
Let's say you want to walk. Now suppose you were in Space, then unless someone gave you a push, you wouldn't move from where you are! So when you walk, what you do is you push back on the ground. The only way you can push something is when you have some grip over it. That's Friction. Without Friction, when you attempt to walk, you will actually roll over and fall!
When a wheel moves on the floor, three things can happen: It can slide like a sledge- this happens when your wheels are break locked and there is no rotation of wheel, or It can rotate without any translation, as it happens when a wheel is stuck in a ditch of mud, and any amount of acceleration only gives it rotation, no translation. Third thing which is expected, normal behaviour, is rotation and translation. This can happen only when there is adequate Friction.
What is Friction. On a microscopic level, the smooth looking surface is not a regular plane. There are hills and valleys at atomic level. Whenever two surfaces meet, they form temporary contacts, and molecules of one surface invade in hills and valleys of other surface. They interlock and push each other. So if a top surface is moving forward on a bottom surface, the bottom surface pushes the top one back, and the top surface pulls the bottom one forward.
This is easily seen in case of liquids. The analog of Friction is Viscocity. An Oil is more viscous than water and Honey is more viscous than Oil. In a mixer, when the blade rotates, it carries along with it the layer of liquid next to it, and that layer drags the next layer with it and so on, the subsequent liquids are set in motion. Had there been no Viscocity, you wouldn't be able to stir your coffee!

Physics Studies, exams and Interviews

I receive many querries by students pursuing graduation and post-graduation in Physics, and following are summarised guidelines for them.
Books to read during BSc Physics:-

1. Resnik Halliday, Fundamentals of Physics
2. Berkeley Physics Course, 5 Volumes
3. Feynman Lectues on Physics
   
4. Concepts of Modern Physics:- Arthur Beiser
   

For problem solving :- "Physics by Example" - Rees

Books to be read during MSc Physics:- Follow your Professors..! Don't get too lost in the treatises!

How to prepare for exams, and how to face the entrance interviews for MSc or PhD:-

1. Sit back and revise your BSc/MSc syllabus.
2. Close the books and write down all the Physics you know, from formulae to ideas, concepts.
3. While you are doing step 2, you will recall certain things that you know, but don't remember exactly. Open the books and fill in such gaps.
4. Repeat 2 & 3 until you have good list of ideas in Physics. Now, THIS is Your Physics. What you read till then, was just what others knew. THIS much Physics you know. Its yours, congratulate yourself! One night before the exam you need to revise only this.
   
5. Give as many entrance exams as possible. In any one exam, lets say NET, you don't do well, then come back home and figure out what you didn't do well. e.g you may not have understood Statistical Mechanics well. Then study that before the next exam, and give the next one with confidence.
6. Don't gamble, be careful of negative marking.
7. Do YES!+ program:- www.yesplus.org . Its important not to have just bookish knowledge, but also to have the ability to apply it well, in a relaxed and focussed state of mind, during exam as well as when you face the interview. This is one of the many important benefits you get out of YES!+ workshop.

Projects:- Its a good idea to engage yourself in summer and winter projects in various research Institutes. Alternate your projects in terms of theoretical, experimental or simulation based.

Career in Physics

An enthusiastic reporter,V. Kumara Swamy from "The Telegraph", Calcutta took my interview through emails. Here is the article he published.
My detailed interview is quoted below, as per his questions and my answers:-

1) Please mention a bit about your ambition as a child, your interest in
astrophysics and about your achievements so far.

As a child I was always a curious observer of everything around me. I read the book by Resnik and Halliday and quickly realised that Physics is the subject that brings me closer to my understanding of the nature around me. I was also blessed to have good teachers who could answer my queries based on the reading of Berkeley Physics course and Feynman's Lectures. With this foundation, there has been an undying zest for Physics and I pursue Astrophysics as an Application of Physics to stars and space - an aspect of nature that draws attention of one and all.

2) What are some of the qualities are needed to be a successful researcher in physics?

Its important to have sound background in Mathematics. Mathematics is the language of Physics. Its absolutely necessary to have a good problem solving practise, Physics is a science where you isolate a particular situation in Nature, and study it in detail. Though Mathematics is a great tool, one also needs to remember to constantly relate the formulae and equations to what is happening in reality, in the physical phenomena you are studying. For this reason, students should never neglect any experimental work, and should take every opportunity to do more experiments.

Research in Science needs an attitude to find many different ways and also a zeel not to give up at any stage whatsoever. I also feel that young students should give more preference to learning the methods of science, rather than some particular topic, in selection of area of research. Once these methods are learnt, they could be applied to any topic.

3a) How has the role of physicists evolved over the years.

This question can be answered only by Senior Physicists.

3b)They dabble in various fields depending on their interest, what do think of your own field?

Astrophysics brings to you closer to the vastness of Nature. Here thousands of years are a very small time, and one realizes that one's own body, the houses, cities and such things which we give so much importance, are in reality very minuscule compared to the universe. When you are looking in sky, you are looking in past, because that ray of light has left that star several years ago. So what you see is a collage of past locations and phenomena in different directions.

Over the last century, the advances in Satellite Technology, have given a boon to study of Astrophysics. We are able to probe in farther parts of universe, by collecting more feeble light from the space based telescopes. We are also able to achieve excellent resolution thanks to the CCD Cameras. And only because of fast computers and huge memory spaces, we are able to store and process gigantic data of astronomical images. Most of the data is freely available even to a graduate student, thanks to internet.

I am studying properties of Interstellar Dust, the dust between us and the stars. Its of micron size and is sparsely spaced, however, because of large distances in space, its cumulative effects significantly changed our view of stars and their surroundings.

4) Can you please say a few words about the career progression in anorganisation like the one where you doing your research now. Do you think astrophysics is one field that opens up more doors for research at a international level than any other? In other words, world can be your playground?

I joined the Joint Astronomy Program at IISc, after my MSc Physics in IITB. After 1 year of Research Training Program in special topics of Astrophysics I chose to work in IIA. I had a number of attempts till I started off on my current research topic, and I was awarded senior research scholarship after completion of my comprehensive exam. I visited Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg, Germany, for a one week Summer School related to my research area, and two week mini-project for developing collaborations. I am very glad that my Institute as well as the German Institute gave adequate financial support for the visit.

I feel that in all branches of science, there are excellent opportunities, and they await the explorer.

5) Can you also please list some of the leading institutes in the country that you think give great opportunities for youngsters?

There are atleast 25 independent Institutes in the country. All have their own speciality. All IIT Physics Departments welcome PhD research. Many University Physics departments are also doing good research, subject to availibility of funds.

With the recent hike in scholarships for research scholars, I see research as a very much valid and bright career option. It is stable, exciting, innovative and fulfilling. It is not so much important as to Where you work, but that how you work, and how much you work.

6) Please mention a bit about your own background

I did BSc Physics from Fergusson college Pune, MSc Physics from IITB and I am currently Senior Research Scholar in IIA, as a part of Joint Astronomy Program of IISc.