The Indian Institute of Technology-Madras on Friday honoured mathematician Manjul Bhargava with an honorary Doctor of Science degree. Prof. Bhargava received the degree from IIT-M director Bhaskar Ramamurthi at the 52nd convocation of the institute.
The citation, which began with a quotation by British mathematician G.H. Hardy about the importance of beauty in a mathematician’s patterns, traced the awardee’s achievements and his interest in mathematical pedagogy and exposition, which led him to teach innovative courses and publish articles for non-technical audiences.
“Professor Manjul Bhargava personifies the human quest for beauty in every aspect of life. The institute is proud to honour a person who has inspired, and will continue to inspire generations of mathematicians and students across the globe and particularly in India,” the citation concluded.
A total of 2,234 candidates from various programmes, including Ph D, Master’s and dual degree streams, have qualified for degrees.
Three B. Tech students who were awarded for their outstanding performance in academic and extracurricular activities have chosen to pursue research in premier institutions in US. R. Srinivasan, B. Tech (CSE), who has won three prizes, including the President of India prize, the Bharat Ratna M Visvesvaraya Memorial Prize and the B. Ravichandran Memorial Prize, has been admitted to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’ Ph.D programme.
Akshay Krishna, B. Tech (Engineering Physics), who won the Governor’s Prize and the Hema Balasubramanian Excellence Award, has been selected for Ph.D by Princeton University; R. Aravindabharathi, B. Tech (Biotechnology), who won the Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma Prize, will take up research in molecular biology in the University of Michigan.
M.Tech dual degree student B. Spandana Raj (CSE), who won the V Srinivasan Memorial Prize and the Alumni Association Prize, has been placed in Google Inc. “I don’t know where I would be working – may be in Bengaluru or Europe. But next year I would be in the company’s headquarters in the US,” said the graduate who hails from Warangal in Andhra Pradesh.
Chairman of the Board of Governors Pawan Goenka, pointing out that South Korea’s economy was technology driven as the country invested around 4.5 per cent in research and development, urged the students to pursue research and inspire a culture of innovation.
Prof. Bhaskar read out the performance report of the institute.
