Why celebrate Science Day?

The national Science Day is celebrated on the day when renowned scientist Sir C V Raman’s discovery Raman Effect was declared to the world on February 28, 1928.

Dr B RAmbedkar and Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru had a vision that future citizens of India would live in a society where science and technology would wipe out inequalities. However, we Indians even after seven decades of self rule continue to overlook our constitutional commitment and retain the old unscientific and irrational values. The nation-state inadvertently allows this culture of unreason and avoidance of scientific temper, so that citizens forget to question the irrationality of rulers in policy making and executions

Two of the few living legends and renowned Nobel laureates of Indian origin, Prof.Amarthya Sen and Prof.Venkataraman Ramakrishnan are periodically interacting with Indian audience, especially with young scientists and socially committed political activists.

Both of them emphatically mention the need for a knowledge-based society that could enhance the role of common citizens in policy making. This could be possible only by popularizing science and infusing scientific spirit or temperament.
They did not mince words while focusing the gaps prevailing in the contemporary system, regulated by administrators and policy makers that consciously thrive on peoples’ ignorance and conservative way of life. What is this scientific spirit or temperament, which they refer to?

Interestingly this phrase of scientific spirit or temper was interpreted in our Constitution, in chapter of Fundamental Duties of a citizen (51A-h).That is: “it shall be the duty of every citizen of India to develop the scientific temper, humanism and spirit of inquiry and reform”.

Dr B R Ambedkar and Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru had a vision that future citizens of India would live in a society where science and technology would create avenues for wiping out inequalities. They strongly believed that new inventions in science and technology would facilitate to overcome aberrations of nature and unevenness of socio-economic conditions. They expected people of independent India would relinquish old dogmas that are intertwined with religion, region, and caste and enter into an era of rationality with full of scientific temper- that remain the crux of transformations.

However, we Indians even after seven decades of self rule continue to sail in a manner that we overlook our constitutional commitment and retain the old unscientific and irrational values that keep us in the mess of insecurity and uncertainty. The nation-state inadvertently allows this culture of unreason and avoidance of scientific temper, so that citizens forget to question the irrationality of rulers in policy making and executions. Majority of rural communities remain in this mind-set that their destiny is decided by unknown person or super natural being.

Meanwhile few policy-makers that are conscious of constitution and aspirations of its makers, realised the need to regain the missing links in policy execution. This can be seen in terms of celebrating science days and establishing institutes for popularising science among citizens.

Our first Nobel laureate scientist Sir C.V.Raman, attracted the attention of the world through his invention of Raman Effect on 28 February1928.We honour him by celebrating our national Science Day on the day when his discovery was declared to the world.

Significance of Raman Effect: Raman Effect opened new vistas in understanding light, and paved way to exploit spectroscopy centered technologies. The molecular vibrations and infra-red radiations (electro-magnetic spectrum) of light were discovered by Raman with the support of his student Dr.K.S.Krishnan. Its uses are enormous in technologies related to analysing gases, liquids, and solids. Highly complex materials such as biological organisms as well as human tissues can be analysed by Raman Spectroscopy.

Recently, the scientists of Switzerland have understood the colour change phenomenon of garden lizards-chameleons-with the background of Raman Spectroscopy. The chameleons have a mobile lattice of nano crystals on the surface of their skin, which come together and disperse by shifting the wave-length of light reflected by this animal. The dynamic colour changing abilities of Madagaskar chameleons—from green to red within minutes, especially during social interactions were well explored. These nano crystals of different shapes and sizes as well as organizations have thrown light of inventions for advanced technologies.

Period of unfairness: The existing situation of thriving on the glory of the past and hiding under the myths and mesmerisms led for most unscientific and irrational interpretations by policy makers. The dubious distinctions of ruling class and short gain attitude of higher strata sections of the society percolated to the bottom level of society. The main issues- pauperisation of large sections, suicides of peasants and artisans, mass migration of people for livelihood are masked or diverted through most unscientific actions-Pushkaralu, yagnalu, yogalu, charity melas, investors conventions etc., by rulers. There is a perpetuation of the feeling that the afore mentioned rituals omit causes of problems plaguing our society. This is because of the absence of scientific spirit even among scientists or so-called intellectuals.

What to do? : Science is intertwined with human civilizations. Its path way can be traced in the struggles to learn more about the sky and nature. The journey that started at planets in the space has come to the level of detecting or perceiving Gravitational waves of Black-holes that travel around 130 crores of light years from space to earth.

Technology that helped the human life tremendously, perhaps, started with wheel inventions and entered into shaping of vehicles to reach other planets and identify extra terrestrial life in space. In this long journey, we come across Aryabhattas,Copernicuses, Geleleos, Newtons, Darwins Einesteins, Stephen Hakings as the representatives of the entire human race. They left a legacy of knowledge that enrich human dignity and scientific temperament.

Carl Sagan, an eminent Astro-physicist, who strived to popularise science among commoners, felt that the serious curse of contemporary human communities was to lose scientific spirit even while enjoying the fruits of science and technologies.

As per Sagan, investing on resources that enhance destruction (fuels, weapons, chemicals); exploiting human societies to amass wealth(imperialism, racial subjugation); propounding irrational theories of intelligent design or super natural power were due to lack of scientific temper even among so called intelligentsia.

Several scientists like Bertrand Russell, J.B.S Haldane, J.D.Bernal, CarlSagan, D.D.Kosambi, Joseph Needham, H.Narasimhaiah, Narendra Dhabolkar, M.M.Kalburgi and many others have struggled to popularise science among common citizens, and infuse scientific temper among decision makers.

In India an attempt in that direction is made by several organisations of science movement (including Jana Vignana Vedika) through All India Peoples’ Science Net-work. However, we are far from our goal in achieving knowledge-based societies and come out of superstitious and obscurantist forces .Concerted efforts are need of the hour to wipe out the miseries and myths created by man himself.

Prof N Venugopal Rao (The writer is former State president of Jana Vignana Vedika, AP)