Dec 11 2008
The technical sessions at the 2nd Bangalore Nano began today with the opening address by Professor C N R Rao, Chairman of the Science Advisory Committee to the Prime Minister of India, followed by highlight lectures and scientific presentations by Prof. Pulickel M. Ajayan, Rice University and Prof. Dipankar Chakravorty - Indian Association for The Cultivation of Science. Bangalore Nano 2008 is jointly organised by The Department of IT, BT and Science + Technology, Govt. of Karnataka and JNCASR (Jawaharlal Nehru Center for Advanced Scientific Research) and MM Activ Sci-Tech Communications at the Grand Ashok Hotel, Bangalore.
Speaking on the occasion, Professor C N R Rao, said, “Nano Technology has tremendous potential and I see lot of young people taking a keen interest in this field. In India, in spite of the economic slowdown, science & technology has done well and has shown steady growth. In the past year or so many positive developments have taken place in the NanoTech field. Even though science is not very attractive monetarily, many youngsters have shown great interest in R&D. The future seems very exciting with large scale applications waiting to happen in NanoTech.”
Professor C N R Rao, advices students to beware of Educational institutions that offer Masters Degree in NanoTechnology. “Please beware of institutes that offer Masters Degree in Nanotechnology. The field of nanotech is still in a nascent stage and one cannot give a master's degree in Nano. R&D is fine but not a master's degree.” he said.
Presenting a highlight lecture on the future and challenges in engineering at the nanoscale Prof. Pulickel M. Ajayan, said, “The status of India has gone up in recent times. There are good investments coming-in and many youngsters are being motivated towards science & nanotech. The major challenge facing the Nano industry is nanoengineering. One of the best examples is the Carbon Nano tube. The various approaches that have been taken to develop applications using carbon nano tubes are a blend of the traditional top-down approach and the bottom-up approach, but there are several bottle necks in that approach.”
Prof. Dipankar Chakravorty spoke on his recent findings on composites containing nanocore shell, nanowires and nanosheet structures.
The various topics that are addressed in the 2nd Bangalore Nano 2008 are - Nano Biotechnology Health & Pharma industry & manufacturing, Nano food & agriculture, Chemicals & Nano materials, ICT & Electronics Energy, Environment & Greentech. A panel discussion will also be held on Nano Vision & Nano Mission. A special program for children "Nano for the Young" is being organized on December 12, 2008. The 2nd Bangalore Nano 2008 features a Poster Session, where-in young Scientists and Researchers are given the opportunity to share their Innovations and Research in Nanoscience and Nanotechnology with the Industry, Research Institutes and Venture Capitalists. About 75 posters from IITs, NITs, Michigan Technological University, CSIR, NCBS, IISc, JNCASR, AIIMS, etc. are presented during the event.