Bridging traditional and modern knowledge

PANAJI: Models of India’s Mars orbiter Mangalayaan and the country’s lunar exploration craft Chandrayaan, a climbing wheelchair, Brahmos missile, bomb disposal robot, Arjun battletank will be some of the displays at the Bharatiya Vigyan Sammelan and Expo in Goa from February 5 to 8. A piece of alloy that can make aircrafts seem invisible, and therefore make them undetectable by radars, will also be on display at the event.
“The alloy has been made by Dr C S R Prabhu, former NIC head, based on ancient Indian knowledge spelt out in Ghruhad Viman Shastra by Rishi Bharadwaj. The alloy has been proven to absorb 80% light and therefore can make planes untraceable by regular radar,” Jayant Sahasrabuddhe, national organizing secretary of Vijnana Bharati, said in Panaji on Tuesday.
The event will highlight the scientific and technological advancements of India in various fields with stress on the traditional knowledge in the field in India.
“The event will open at Football Ground near Kala Academy on February 5. All sessions will be open to the public and there will be scope for detailed question and answer sessions,” Satish Shetye, Goa University, vice-chancellor, said.
A workshop for around 300 students and faculty members from engineering colleges in Goa will also be held by the Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO) at the directorate of technical education at Porvorim on February 5 at 2.30pm on career opportunities in the defence sector.
Nuclear technologist and Padma Vibhushan Anil Kakodkar will deliver the keynote address at the event on February 6 at Dinanath Mangueshkar Hall in Kala Academy at 10am. Padma Bhushan and creator of India’s first supercomputer Param, Vijay Bhatkar, and Union defence minister Manohar Parrikar will also be present at the event.
Former DG of DRDO, Padma Bhushan Dr Saraswat will deliver a talk on science and technology for aerospace and defence. Padma Vibhushan M S Valiathan will speak on modern medicine and ayurveda.
Y V N Krishnamurthy, scientific advisor to ISRO chairperson, will deliver a talk on the footprints of Indian science in the global scientific development. Delegates will have to register online on www.bvs15.in.
Several sessions aimed at bridging the traditional scientific wisdom of the country with modern scientific knowledge will be held.