LIRC@SFIT

Kang is acclaimed for her key role in the development of Rotavac, India’s first indigenously developed vaccine for rotavirus infections Gagandeep Kang, 56, is Director of the Translational Health  Science and Technology  Institute (THSTI) in Faridabad. Acclaimed for her key role in the development of Rotavac, India’s first indigenously developed vaccine for rotavirus infections, Kang was recently awarded Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS), United Kingdom — the first Indian woman scientist to be thus feted. In an interview, she spoke about the challenges of being a woman scientist in India and why the country would do well with a 40% job reservation for women. Excerpts: Do you think the ‘woman scientist tag’ occludes your achievements as a scientist? I was once awarded a ‘Woman Bioscientist of the Year’ prize. The first time I got it, I thought, ‘That’s nice,’ but I’d rather be competing on a stage where gender doesn’t matter. The nice thing about the FRS is that th...

Scientists have developed a process to 3D-print transparent and flexible electronic circuits, paving the way for improved wearable devices in the future. The electronics consists of a mesh of silver nanowires that can be printed in suspension and embedded in various flexible and transparent plastics, according to the researchers from the University of Hamburg and Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron in Germany. This technology can enable new applications such as printable light-emitting diodes, solar cells or tools with integrated circuits. The researchers are demonstrating the potential of their process with a flexible capacitor, among other things. “The aim of this study was to functionalise 3D-printable polymers for different applications,” said Michael Rubhausen from the Center for Free-Electron Laser Science. Source:  https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/technology/scientists-print-flexible-electronics/article26974286.ece (Accessed on April 30, 2019)

Learning Outcome based Curriculum Framework   Public Notice LOCF   Learning Outcome based Curriculum Framework on undergraduate education. Source:  https://www.ugc.ac.in/ugc_notices.aspx?id=2096 (Accessed on April 30, 2019)

What is changing, why, and why is a section of teachers — most vocally at Delhi University — opposed to the idea? Eighteen-year-olds entering college in a couple of months from now will follow a new curriculum for undergraduate courses that the University Grants Commission (UGC) believes will improve, among other things, their employability. What is changing, why, and why is a section of teachers — most vocally at Delhi University — opposed to the idea? Advertising The new curriculum will be modelled on the UGC’s ‘Learning Outcomes-based Curriculum Framework’, or LOCF, guidelines. What is it? To read the full article, please visit: https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/why-some-are-concerned-about-the-undergraduate-locf-curriculum-university-grants-commission-5695152/  (Accessed on April 30, 2019)

We need to hold every school accountable for minimum benchmarks of learning. The first step to achieve this is to measure the performance of schools against benchmarks regularly. Several studies have shown that the learning levels among India’s students are poor. And yet, plans to improve the quality of education remains vague and unintelligent. The 2019 Congress manifesto expresses concern about the outcomes and proposes use of technology-enabled teaching methods to redress the problem. The BJP refers to quality of learning only once in its manifesto and plans to remedy it by improving teacher training and capacity building. But NITI Aayog, the government’s think tank, in its 2017-20 action plan, said teacher training or technology-enabled solutions in isolation are not effective to solve the learning outcome deficit. While we need many reforms, we must move away from labelling schools as recognised, unrecognised, government and private. Instead, ...... Source:  ht...

SAN FRANCISCO -  Tesla  CEO  Elon Musk  expects to start converting the company's  electric cars  into fully  self-driving  vehicles next year as part of an audacious plan to create a network of robotic taxis to compete against Uber and other ride-hailing services. The vision sketched out Monday during an event at Tesla's Silicon Valley headquarters requires several leaps of faith - something that the zealous investors and consumers who view Musk as a technological genius often are willing to take. To read the full article, please visit: https://auto.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/industry/tesla-ceo-plans-to-hand-the-car-keys-to-robots-next-year/69001996  (Accessed on April 25, 2019)

Source: Maharashtra Times dated April 24,2019 See also:  https://epaper.timesgroup.com/olive/apa/timesofindia/SharedView.Article.aspx?href=MTMUM%2F2019%2F04%2F09&id=Ar01707&sk=A9DB84E8&viewMode=image

India is currently in the middle of an electronics boom that's steadily picking up pace. In the future, we're going to need to make our own processors, in order to offset production costs. And IIT Bombay may have just started us on that path to self-sufficiency. IMAGE COURTESY: PRABOT/REDDIT The Institute has just debuted the country's first indigenously-produced microprocessor for SPARC ISA architecture. AJIT as they call it (no, that acronym doesn't stand for anything) was entirely conceptualised, designed, developed, and manufactured right here in India. To be clear, India recently had its first indigenously-developed open-source processor  in the form of Shakti . That was instead based on RISC-V architecture, and it was developed in collaboration with semiconductor tool design company Bluespec. The other main difference between the two is that Shakti is smaller and geared towards smartphones and IoT devices. Ajit instead is aimed at larger systems...

World Book and Copyright Day   is a celebration to promote the enjoyment of books and reading. Each year, on 23 April, celebrations take place all over the world to recognize the scope of books - a link between the past and the future, a bridge between generations and across cultures. On this occasion, UNESCO and the international organizations representing the three major sectors of the book industry - publishers, booksellers and libraries, select the  World Book Capital  for a year to maintain, through its own initiatives, the impetus of the Day’s celebrations.  23 April is a symbolic date in world literature. It is the date on which several prominent authors, William Shakespeare, Miguel Cervantes and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega all died. This date was a natural choice for UNESCO's General Conference, held in Paris in 1995, to pay a world-wide tribute to books and authors on this date, encouraging everyone to access books. By championing books a...