Innovation is beyond time

GOA, INDIA: What happens when an astrophysics expert explores the galaxy of innovation in IT? Professor Ajit Kembhavi, director, IUCAA (Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics), Pune did just that in the opening keynote at C-Change 2010 here today, when he connected how science, industry and innovation can go hand in hand.

He started by illustrating how some pioneers and mavericks changed time-endured theories and myths and thus opened new doors of innovation and progress. Citing Galileo, he told how he found four dots around Jupiter and this discovery was extremely impactful. Likewise Einstein's Cross that came out of his theory of light's bending changed many beliefs.

Astronomy's mysteries disrupted the well-established convictions of the Western world that proposed Earth at the centre of the universe. Prof. Kembhavi stressed here that if any idea that you have is truly innovative, unlike what technology's shelf life of a banana as perceived, it has to be beyond time.

Kembhavi said there are ideas that completely change the dimensions of place and time. A great idea can have the impact of extending beyond time.

As modern technology improves, we can test out ideas of early masters. The influence of ideas multiplies, as he explained further. Newton's law that was discovered hundreds of years ago can help establish new marvellous truths about galactic centres.

"Milky Way was found by Galileo to be a band of stars. He could see 80 stars when others could see a few. He also concluded that the universe is very large and strange than we can imagine. Something that we know today as 'Dark Matter' of the universe."

The astrophysicist then outlined how efforts should be on to tap this unknown matter.

"To understand galaxies required a lot of innovation itself, like making large telescopes. Adoptive optics with lasers etc, is another innovation that can finally help capture non-twinkling rays of stars. But that again met hurdles of technology and from Air Force. Large blocks of telescopes, running large data centres and software are being worked on. We are planning a huge science data centre in India also."

IUCAA has been the pioneer with things like first email and first web page in the past and is continuing that with new ways of inter-university collaboration. The architecture at IUCAA had the challenge of being practical, useful, reasonable and not expensive, and attractive at the same time.

Other innovative developments are on to enable science and high-end astronomy in a very democratic fashion and tapping the cleverest people in remote areas of India.

"Can we have an enabling mechanism through technology?” he asked. 

Serious innovation is also helping to bridge the gap between universities and research units, added Prof. Kembhavi. “Innovative technology has to be one that makes a big difference to untouched segments of society. UGC is coming with Infonet Engine, which is one such effort.”

Can technology enable the clever students sitting in a university in Bihar? Definitely, he said.

“We used satellite communication till fibre connectivity happened. Another example is doing away with costly print form of journals and going for innovative electronic access which required nothing but change in IP addresses. With a little effort there was a saving of 90 per cent,"  Prof. Kembhavi explained.

Bridging long lasting divides and unfair balances is what technology should be oriented to, he concluded. Industry should work together with education entities to plug the divide, stressed the astro expert.