January Updates

Link to Talk

Link to docs

I was delighted to be part of the National Seminar on “Functional Materials for Futuristic Innovations (NSFFMI-2026)” organized by the Postgraduate Department of Physics, St. Stephen’s College, Pathanapuram, held on 29–30 January 2026. It was a pleasure to deliver a lecture as a Resource Person on “Two-Dimensional Nanomaterials: Redefining the Future of Fuel Cell Technology” and to interact with enthusiastic students, researchers, and faculty members. The seminar provided an excellent academic platform for meaningful discussions on emerging materials and their role in future technologies. I sincerely thank Dr. Aswathy P. Pillai, Dr. Rini Varghese, and the entire Department of Physics team for their meticulous planning and warm hospitality. My gratitude also goes to the Principal, Dr. Biju A., the organizing committee members, and all those who worked behind the scenes to make the event a success. I am happy to have been part of this vibrant academic gathering and to share a few memorable moments and snapshots from the seminar. Such initiatives truly strengthen collaborative learning and research culture.

The pre-submission seminar of Mr. Nithin J S, Research Scholar, Department of Physics, University of Kerala, was successfully scheduled and conducted on 19 January 2026 at K S Viswanathan Hall, Kariavattom Campus.

His research work, titled “Photophysical Response and Substitution-Induced Spectral Tuning in Ba₂MgTeO₆-Based Multifunctional Double Perovskite Phosphors,” was presented in the presence of Dr. Jinesh K. B, Professor & Head, Department of Physics, IIST Thiruvananthapuram, as the external expert.

Presentation Time Structure

Each paper will follow the format below:

• 8 minutes – Oral presentation

• 2 minutes – Questions from the Chair

• Up to 1 minute – Questions/comments from the audience (if time permits)

⏱️ Time discipline is mandatory. Presentations exceeding the allotted time will be gently stopped to ensure fairness to all presenters.

Mandatory Presence Till Session End

• All presenters are required to remain present for the entire session, irrespective of their individual presentation slot

Feedback & Reflection Requirement

At the end of the session, each presenter must submit a brief feedback/reflection response, addressing general academic questions

Your cooperation is appreciated in maintaining

• Time discipline

• Respect for fellow presenters

This session aims to be interactive, reflective, and intellectually enriching for everyone involved.

List of Presentations 

1. Assessment of PM₂.₅ and PM₁₀ concentrations and their association with meteorology along three years in South India: Insights from Machine Learning Models
   Dr. Raghavendra Kumar
   Associate Professor, Engineering Physics, KLEF, Andhra Pradesh

2. Spatiotemporal Variations in Aerosol Extinction Coefficients and Their Subtypes Over Andhra Pradesh, South India retrieved from CALIPSO Observations
   Pelati Althaf
   Research Scholar, Engineering Physics, KLEF

3. Spatiotemporal Variations in Pollutant Levels Across South India During the COVID-19 Lockdown: A Comparative Study Using Ground and Satellite Data with a Machine Learning Approach
   Dr. N. S. M. P. Latha Devi
   Associate Professor, Engineering Physics, KLEF

4. Atmospheric Chemistry of Ozone–Methane Interactions: Implications for Ozone Depletion and Climate Forcing
   Balamanikandan R.
   Research Scholar, BITS Pilani (Hyderabad)

5. Energy Transition, Climate Change, and Sustainable Development: Global Research Trends and Evidence from Kerala’s Power Sector
   Shanimol Emerson
   PhD Scholar, Department of Economics, Govt. College for Women, Thiruvananthapuram

6. Assessment of Olla Pot Microbial Fuel Cells as an Irrigation System for Cluster Bean Plant Growth along with Green Energy Production
   Shijinachandran
   Research Scholar, CPCEE, Pondicherry University

7. Exploring the Role of Algae in Clay-Based Proton Exchange Membrane for Microbial Fuel Cells
   M. Vishnupriyadharshini
   Research Scholar, CPCEE, Pondicherry University

✨ Chief Minister’s Mega Quiz – University Level (University of Kerala) ✨

The University-level round of the Chief Minister’s Mega Quiz was conducted successfully today, and the event went very well with enthusiastic participation 

💐 Congratulations to all the participants for their active involvement and commendable performance. Your enthusiasm truly made the event meaningful and vibrant.

🙏 I sincerely thank the Campus Directorate, IQAC, CLIF and DSS for their support and coordination.

Please see the video for a glimpse of the event.

Once again, congratulations to all, and thank you to everyone who contributed to making this initiative a success.

Video link

Warm regards,

Dr. Sibi K. S.

University Nodal Officer

University of Kerala

Link to drive

link to video

  

Integrating Artificial Intelligence in Science Research: Tools and Techniques

Programme Schedule

Day 1: 06/01/2026, Tuesday
9.00-9.15 am	:Inauguration and welcome address
9.15 - 10.45 am	:Introduction to Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
Resource Person	Dr. Vinod Chandra    Professor, Department of Computer Science, University of Kerala
10.45 – 11.00 am	Tea break
11.00 – 12.30 pm	: Building Curriculum Using AI tools      Overview of AI in higher education
12.30 – 1.30 pm	:Exploring AI curriculum frame works,     Tools: ChatGPT/Gemini/Copilot
Resource person	Jishnu Unni C      Knowledge Officer, ICTAK      Corporate Trainer
1.30 – 2.00 pm	: Lunch break
2.00 pm – 3.30 pm	: Python Foundations of AI      Basics of python: data types, file I/0
3.30-3.45 pm	: Tea break
3.45 – 5.15 pm	: Functions, modules, OOP concepts      Use cases
Resource Person	Dr. Sajil C K      Knowledge Officer, ICTAK      Corporate Trainer

 

Day 2: 07/01/26, Wednesday
9 - 10.30 am	: Brain Computing Interfaces
Resource Person	Dr. Sumithra S   Professor, Department of Mathematics   Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology
10.30 – 10.45 pm	Tea break
10.45 – 11.45 pm	: Content creation with AI ·       AI-assisted lesson and multimedia creation
11.45 – 1.15 pm	: Generating visuals and diagrams using DALL-E    Using AI to generate quizzes and simulations for science topics
Resource Person	Manoj C M    Knowledge Officer, ICTAK    Corporate Trainer
1.15-2.00 pm	Lunch break
2 – 3.30 pm	: Data handling and visualization in python ·       Pandas for data cleaning and structuring
3.30  – 3.45 pm	Tea break
3.45 – 5.15 pm	Visualization with Matplotlib and Seaborn
Resource Person	Riji N Das   Head-Knowledge Officer   ICT Academy of Kerala

 

Day 3: 08/01/26, Thursday
9.00-10.30 am	: Neuromorphic technologies from materials to applications
Resource Person	Dr. Jinesh K B  Professor and Head  Department of Physics, IIST
10.30 – 10.45 am	Tea break
10.45 – 11.45 am	: Automating Assessments and Grading ·       Gen AI tools for automated question generation and evaluation
11.45 – 1.15 pm	: Designing rubrics and grading scripts with GenAI Tools
Resource Person	Jishnu Unni C  Knowledge Officer, ICTAK  Corporate Trainer
1.15-2.00 pm	Lunch break
2 – 3.30 pm	:Introduction to Machine Learning  Scikit-learn basics and ML pipelines
3.30  – 3.45 pm	Tea break
3.45–5.15 pm	:Hands-on: predict scientific outcomes
Resource Person	Dr. Sajil C K  Knowledge Officer, ICTAK  Corporate Trainer

 

Day 4: 09/01/26, Friday
9.00-10.30 am	: Leveraging AI in Scientific Research
Resource Person	Prof. Asharaf S  Dean (academic) and Professor  Digital University Kerala
10.30 – 10.45 am	Tea break
10.45 – 11.45 am	: Enhancing student engagement with AI ·       Conversational AI for science labs
11.45 -1.15 pm	: AI in gamification and simulation based learning
Resource Person	Manoj C M  Knowledge Officer, ICTAK  Corporate Trainer
1.15 – 2.00 pm	Lunch break
2 – 3.30 pm	Deep Learning Frameworks ·       Tensor flow and Keras basics
3.30 – 3.45 pm	Tea break
3.45 – 5.15 pm	Build a simple ANN models for scientific data
Resource Person	Riji N Das  Head-Knowledge Officer  ICT Academy of Kerala

 

Day 5: 10/01/26, Saturday
9.00 – 10.30 am	Quantum Computing
Resource Person	Dr. Ashok Kumar        Associate Professor  Department of Physics  IIST
10.30 – 10.45 am	Tea break
10.45 – 11.45 am	:Feedback and Learning Analytics Using AI ·       Collecting and analysing student feedback using AI
11.45 - 1.15 pm	·       Dashboards and analytics with power BI/Google Data Studio
Resource Person	Jishnu Unni C  Knowledge Officer, ICTAK  Corporate Trainer
1.15 - 2.00pm	Lunch break
2 – 3.30 pm	: PyTorch and Applied AI ·       PyTorch workflow and transfer learning
3.30 – 3.45 pm	Tea break
3.45 – 5.15 pm	: Use pre-trained models for scientific image classification
Resource Person	Dr. Sajil C K  Knowledge Officer, ICTAK  Corporate Trainer

 

Day 6: 12/01/26, Monday
9.00 – 10.30 am	:AI for Research and Publication Support ·       AI tools for literature review and citation management
10.30 – 10.45 am	Tea break
10.45– 11.45 am	:Summarization and paper drafting with GenAI Tools ·       Ethics and academic integrity in AI-assisted research
Resource Person	Manoj C M  Knowledge Officer, ICTAK  Corporate Trainer
11.45 – 1.15 pm	: AI and bioinformatics: Key to Biomedical Research
Resource Person	Team: Dr. Sheeba K and Dr. Sherin K
1.15 - 2.00 pm	Lunch break
2.00 – 3.30 pm	:Capstone Project  Participants develop a mini project combining python and AI for  a science use cases
3.30 - 3.45 pm	Tea break
3.45 – 5.15 pm	: Capstone Project (Contd…) ·       Participants develop a mini project combining python and AI for a science use cases
Resource Person	Riji N Das  Head-Knowledge Officer  ICT Academy of Kerala
5.15 – 5.45 pm	Valedictory Function

 

 

Discussion

https://www.manoramaonline.com/karshakasree/features/2026/01/08/how-robots-and-drones-revolutionize-agriculture.html

Once, a farmer prayed to Lord Shiva.

“Swami, farming is always full of trouble-wind, rain, clouds, birds, pests. You are a God sitting on a mountain… you won’t really understand my problems. Just make me God for a few years. I’ll show you how farming should be done.”

Shiva smiled and said,

“Alright. You be God. I’ll take a vacation.”

The farmer became God.

He brought perfect technologies-

AI, drones, humidity analyzers, weather control.

When he wanted rain, it rained.

When he wanted wind, the breeze came gently.

He ordered birds not to come-and they didn’t.

No pests. No storms. No uncertainty.

Everything was perfect.

The corn plants grew tall, green, strong.

The farmer was thrilled-“This will be the greatest harvest ever!”

But when he harvested…

the cobs were empty. No grains inside.

Angrily he called Shiva:

“What trick is this? Why did you do this to me?”

Shiva replied calmly:

“When life faces no resistance, it stops striving.

When everything is easy, living beings stop becoming.

The plant thought:

‘Why should I struggle? Why should I store energy?’

So it grew… but it did not live.”

So yes, with due respect to Achuthsankar Sir and to Manorama-

it is a wonderful article, thought-provoking as always.

But as we discussed in class:

👉 What can be automated, will be automated.

👉 What requires consciousness, responsibility, judgment-cannot.

Life is not just an object.

Life = object + conscious action.

AI can be powerful.

But consciousness cannot be automated.

യന്ത്രികമായി ചെയ്യാവുന്നത് യന്ത്രം ചെയ്യും.

മറ്റുള്ളതെല്ലാം മനുഷ്യന്റെ ഭാഗമാണ്.

That balance is where the future truly lies.