By Shivam Panda
As I have claimed before, science is just a fancy word for human inquisition. People have a stigma against research as it seems to a be a life of frustration or dissatisfaction or even a supposed lack of pay. While there may be some truth in that, those who go into research don’t do it for the money. In fact, contrary to popular belief, research could give you a life full of accomplishment and self-satisfaction, both of which are feelings seldom seen in other occupations.
I wanted to show to everyone what life in research would be like from someone who has led such a life herself, Dr Veera Praveen Menon. A successful academic, Dr Veera has been a government-funded researcher under the SAC-11 initiative, an intensive closed community research program in Analytical chemistry, and is now funded by BARC ( BHABHA ATOMIC RESEARCH CENTER, TROMBAY). Moreover, she has been a published nanochemist in a book ‘Green Nanoparticles’ for her work on caffeic acid, lauded an international prize for best research initiative for her work in ferulic acid, a life member of electrochemical society of India (ESI), IISC, Bangalore
and also being part of only a handful of people to have met and learnt from 2009-Nobel Prize Winner, Author and President of the renowned Royal Society- Sir Venkatraman Radhakrishnan.
Do we need more people in research considering today’s global plight?
“As an ad-hoc consultant for the researchers working with the Covid-19 ResearchGate page, I see quite a few youngsters working for the page as well.” The current pandemic does demand a certain amount of exploration and innovation in terms of the search for cost-effective and efficient ways of combating it. Consequentially, research is important now more than ever. “See, whoever you may be, I would encourage those who are inspired to join the research field. I would encourage those who have the ability to think outside the box, beyond the conformed stream of life, that is engineering and medicine, to join the field of research. I say this because research requires a lot of passion.”
In an occupation wherein the only, the motivation for succeeding comes from passion is uncommon. As put aptly by Dr Veera,
“To do something that no one has done before, being motivated by the passion to do something great, that is research.”
According to the World Bank’s Public Data, percentage of the population in research has decreased tenfold since 1950. While technology and science have been an ever-growing field, the statement, “more the merrier” could not be more right. Business tycoon (and real-life Iron Man), Elon Musk has been known to support the need for youth in research.
“There is a very poor division of talent in the global scenario.” -Elon Musk.
How do you think we can try to build a better aptitude for research amongst today's youth?
“Aptitude for stuff like this does not only come from birth, it is a thing about the environment.” Aptitude for research, is a trait that is more nurture over nature, must be prioritized from early on. Today’s children must be encouraged to figure stuff out on their own, think imaginatively, and nourish their intellect.
“If a child is allowed to pursue his or her interest and been given the freedom to learn at his or her pace in an environment totally different from the current education system, where it is more rote learning than understanding…” Many students are not suited for the style of education the current education system employs. Instead of problem-solving skills, it promotes specific “type of questions”, instead of understanding the concept and explaining in your own words, it promotes “necessary key-words” and instead of goals such concrete requirements, it should understand the individuality of each child and be more flexible.
“One of the most overlooked problems is, teachers generally tend to stick to the book when faced with questions outside their knowledge base. That lack of information on the teacher’s behalf is not good for the teachers.” This is a problem in places that are quite backwards and underdeveloped. In such places, the teachers may not possess a standard of qualification to teach beyond a certain class.
“Sticking to the book may be dangerous as it gives the students information as the author intends to. When I generally teach, I urge the students to explore a bit and understand for themselves, because it is totally research-minded.”
We need to teach students to think outside given the parameters because after all trying new paths and redefining parameters is what researchers do. In today’s scenario, we have students mugging up for exams, learning specific problem types, thinking only about formulas and its substitution etc. This bent of mind kills the creativity, curiosity and imagination needed to think outside the box, to break boundaries and do something new.
So, what is a researcher?
“Be yourself. Grow to make yourself more self-assured, have positive self-esteem, be humble and be driven.” According to Dr Veera Menon, it's necessary for a researcher to have these traits. Because of the constant doubt of whether or not the path you have chosen is right, you must learn to be self-assured, and learn to tell yourself that you are capable. While getting their PhD, many people might assume a ‘Holier-than-thou’ attitude, which obviously is not right. So, it is important to be humble.
Research isn’t an easy field, but it’s a satisfying field. One might endure a lot of frustration and might have to persevere beyond their means but the satisfaction of contributing something new to this world, something no one has thought of, that satisfaction make it all worth it.
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