Prof. Kankan Bhattacharyya was an eminent scientist and I'm sure his students will tell you about all the ways he trained them to become scientists. However, my interactions with him and memories of him are more of  a personal nature. I first met him in February 2019 right after I joined IISER Bhopal to begin my independent research career. In the dining hall of the Visitors Hostel at IISER Bhopal, there was one person who was the loudest, constantly cracking jokes, teasing people and taking the conversation forward. I was introduced to him, i.e, Kankan Sir, by one of my colleagues there ..read more

I was raised by an English Professor and therefore, have been around books since my childhood. I was made to write long essays in English whenever I had a new or unique experience. Most of our bedtime stories were read out from children's books written in English. Given my environment and my inherent nature, my favorite pass-time as a kid was reading novels. Therefore, it was from a very young age that I started understanding or imbibing the importance of writing and speaking grammatically correct sentences. I was corrected every time I said an incorrect sentence.  I will forever be grate ..read more

Someone recently asked me if I attend panel discussions or other meetings related to women's issues in science. And I replied that I don't. In fact I actively avoid it and decline the invitation even when someone specifically asks me to be on the panel. This got me thinking about why I don't like to attend these. After all, I do feel very strongly about equal participation of and opportunities for women in scientific research and other activities.  But somehow I don't feel like I am the right person to talk about or discuss serious issues, especially, at a public forum.  These forum ..read more

Leadership is key to any team, no matter how big or small. One might be a cog in the machine or have their own small team or even lead an entire workforce for an event. But the key to success, I think, lies in how effectively the team lead can take their whole team together and create a good atmosphere for success. I think leadership skill comes to the forefront at every level, no matter where you are in life or in your career. To be more specific, I have now seen closely and been part of a few different event organization teams at various levels in my career. And, I see how the chaos or the m ..read more

To the students who think they're so smart that they can fool the instructor: Sorry to break this to you, but no, you're not fooling anybody! In fact, you are the fool if you think otherwise. So, let me tell you something that might shine a light on your otherwise dead brain. Learning is a two-way street. If you want to learn, I am willing to teach over and beyond what is expected of me. I will still teach even if you don't want to learn because that is my job. However, like they say, you can only bring the horse to the water, you cannot make it drink.  When you leave the class, I noti ..read more

I'm finally in the most exciting phase of my career. Things are looking up. I am largely my own boss (coz that's never entirely true :P) and can work on and design the problems that excite me. Every decision and every consequence of that decision, whether it bears fruit or goes on to be my undoing is completely mine. It is slightly scary but also the kind of challenge I really like. So here is a list of responsibilities, instances and circumstances which surprised and sometimes also frustrated me. Maybe, some years down the line, I'll be able to look at this list in amusement. So, hear goes ..read more

You can find Part I here. I moved to Boston in June 2016 with renewed enthusiasm. I was determined to make the most of the combined setup of experimental and theoretical research in the lab. And, let me tell you performing experiments is no easy task. It requires a lot of careful planning and execution, and for statistical robustness, a lot of repetition as well. I have written about this earlier, but it took me close to a year to learn everything and be comfortable about executing it without supervision. Another challenge that I faced as a new experimentalist was my inability to understand ..read more

Traveling through the heart of India presents a completely different picture of the country altogether. I have lived in the large metro cities of south India for most of my life. The last time I traveled, let alone lived in any small city in India was about 15 years ago. So, it is fair to say that I am a complete novice when it comes to the workings of a small city, its people and its culture. This weekend, I decided to travel from Bhopal to Mathura to visit my Aunt and Uncle who moved there a few years ago. Picture this scenario when I got to the Bhopal railway station. Men, young and old a ..read more

This December I completed my research tenure at Harvard, which also marked the end of five years in the US. I thought I should document this moment, to cherish it and to also look back. But, it is a hard thing to do, summing up five years of life and career in a foreign country, which is not so foreign any more. I came here having completed my Ph.D not wholly knowing what to expect. This naivety both shielded and surprised me in my trials and adventures that followed. This has definitely been the most difficult phase of my life so far, but also the most enriching. I still remember that first ..read more

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr My rating: 5 of 5 stars This is one of those books that takes its time in setting up the premise. And, for that reason, it is slow in the beginning. As we read through, we follow each character's personality and journey during the good times until things slowly take a turn for the worse. This takes up a lot of time during which nothing happens, but we slowly learn what each one is doing and how they go about their daily lives. I think this captures the reality of war so beautifully, where things go bad in phases. For instance, in this story, one fa ..read more