Science Day Celebrations 2021

Congrats




Important Notice


 

For the first time, this year, Department of Physics, University of Kerala decided to celebrate science day 2021 under the title PARSEC with 30 selected students from nearby colleges as we are celebrating the Golden Jubilee Year of our existence.


I extend my sincere thanks to our alumni members Daizy Teacher, Sunila madam, Girija teacher, ligi madam and Annama madam for sponsoring the event.  I also extend my thanks to Sri. A V Sathish and Professor Avinash Khare for being our chief guest for this intriguing event. The main pillars of coordinating the event were the faculty members, office staffs, and Students (Both research and PG) of Department of Physics.


Motivation-Super 30

    This initiative was motivated by the real-life story of Sri. Anandkumar, an Indian mathematics teacher who offered coaching for entrance exams to those students who could not afford the admission fee for entrance coaching. His classes started with Rs. 500 rented classroom with 30 students. In a span of one year, we taught many students who finally got enrolled in premier institutes of science in India. His story was made as a Hollywood film and it was titled Super 30. The film became very popular and now Sri. Anandkumar is an iconic figure in the list of teachers who motivated students for challenging goals.

Parsec 2021


Since Department of Physics, University of Kerala is celebrating its 50th year of existence, we were motivated to create a knowledge-sharing platform for 30 students who are selected as per their interest in knowing research opportunities in our department. Parsec was the name coined by the first-year PG students of our department. We planned a 3 day residential program for 30 students with three focus theme presentation on X-ray Diffractometer, Vibrating Sample Magnetometer, and Raman Spectrometer. There were two additional sessions One on Nuclear Power plants and another one a luminary lecture on Black holes 



Why Science Day is to be celebrated?

Many had asked why is the need to celebrate Science Day with week-long programs. The answer is Science needs to be acknowledged and science needs to be promoted and science needs to be made popular. And there is no other day than Science day to make a conscious effort in these lines. People should remember February 28, 1928, since This day holds a special place in history. On this day, India’s greatest scientist came up with the historic invention ‘RAMAN EFFECT’, which won the Nobel Prize in physics in 1930. An inspiration to all, and it is also the need of time to celebrate the same. Can you imagine anything in your life that isn’t touched by science?

 Day 1-February 24, 2021

The first day started with the inauguration of the event. The program was planned in such a way that the selected 30 students should feel at home in our department for effective knowledge sharing.  Hence an icebreaking session was handled by ELOISE(First-year PG Students) to make the ambiance for the Parsec event.  The first focus session was X-ray Diffraction and the lab sessions were planned in such a way that enough attention is given to the selected students. 



About XRD

XRD was the first major equipment purchased under the PURSE program sanctioned to University. It is still the most utilized equipment in the university. It is the prime tool to understand the symmetry involved in the smaller world. It was indeed a privilege to share the working principle, applications of the Bruker X-ray Diffractometer available in our department. This facility is open to all students maintained and operated by CLIF (Sophisticated instrumentation center) of the University of Kerala. 

Day 1-Lab sessions

Six labs were arranged on a rotation basis. Only five students were allotted to a lab at a time and a minimum of 30 minutes is exclusively allotted for the discussion with research scholars after the presentation on the working of instruments.  

Day 2- February 25, 2021


Together with a focus session on equipment's available in the Department of Physics for Research, we also wanted to have general talks in between for those who are interested in other fields of research like Nuclear Physics and Astronomy. A Special thanks to Sri. A V Sathish for making a wonderful interactive session on Kudankulam Nuclear Plant, its prospects, and importance in modern India. In this context, a field visit to Travancore Observatory, a facility maintained by the Department of Physics was also arranged for all those who love to spend time with stars, planets, and the moon on the last day. 

About VSM



The most expensive one and the most useful one to understand the magnetic properties of the various samples which find application in diverse fields of science. A special thanks to Dr. Savitha Pillai S for coordinating the talk and planning special interactive sessions with the instruments working. 

Day 3- February 26, 2021



Science day Celebration will be incomplete without a discussion about Raman and his greatest contribution Raman effect. A special thanks to Dr. I Hubert Joe for discussing Raman Spectroscopy from its basics to its wide applications in material research to medical applications. Together with research scholars, a good interactive session in the Raman spectrometer room, where once Dr. K S Viswanathan, a Student of C V Raman installed the first Raman facility in Kerala University. Yes, it is an auspicious event for all history enthusiasts. 

Day 3- Field Visit

All the focus events and thematic lab sessions should conclude with a big bang. The idea was to create an event where we could share our friendship with Super 30. Travancore observatory, a facility maintained by the Department of Physics, is the apt place to visit because it does justice to both the need for popularizing science and also to give basics about simple tools which could be used to get an understanding of Astronomy. 

Parting words

From the start, we were clear that this event will showcase the know-how about the instruments and facilities available in our department to those who are looking for an opportunity in doing research in future.  The event is to continue in coming years with much more focus and enthusiasm. We are spirited to make a focus batch of 30 giving them ample time to interact and understand them every year rather than given a general public talk for the mass audience about the importance of Science day. We assure you that this event is going to continue in future.

Once again a big thank you to all our alumni and well-wishers for the grand success of the program. 



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