Zeroing In

The greatest of dreams that human civilization has looked up to, are undoubtedly related to extending our reaches into the unknown - the space. This exploration not only serves to fulfil the aspirational ideals of humankind, but also plays a major role in developing the life-tools that aid and shape the everyday lives of the whole community. Of course, it doesn't come as a surprise that rocket science is deemed to be one of the most complex of subjects, and its manifestation from scratch- formidable.

In this discussion, we conversed with one such rare space science veteran from India who has played crucial roles in shaping the Indian Space Program almost right from its beginning. A world renowned aerospace engineer, pioneering technocrat, and above all a brilliant science communicator and teacher, Dr. B.N. Suresh is presently serving as an Honorary Distinguished Professor at ISRO Headquarters.

Listen on to hear our conversation with him, as he talks candidly about the excitement of the vast field of rocket science and the plethora of opportunities for brilliance it encapsulates, along with his personal experiences and journey through the formative years and the beginning of the Indian Space Program in this part of the episode.

Also featured in this episode, you'd find the voices and questions from the curious bright young minds who joined us for the live session from schools across the country, and made the discussion an incredible treat to be a part of; these were: 

The problems engineers face in the real world, go well beyond the approximations and assumptions one often sees in textbooks. They deal with the nonlinear regime, far away from the comforts of equilibrium conditions,  where even problems like modelling the wrinkle on a membrane due to the passage of air might be impossible to model and deal with. To find just the right balance between simplicity and feasibility is what makes an engineer truly skilled.

Today we are in conversation with one such engineer, who has worked in both the industry and academia, thus bringing in a fresh perspective on what it is like to deal with engineering problems on a regular basis. A dynamic personality, well known for his sense of humour and his flair for teaching, Dr. Krishna blew our minds with how examples from everyday life could actually help solve some of the pressing problems that the industry faces.

The team for Zeroing In for this episode included Sushanth Shanbhag, Arun Subramani, Aman Naveen, Kanthan Narayanan, Kriti Raj, Ethan Phangcho and Shreya Mishra. Featured season poster by Naman Jain. Zeroing In season’s theme song featured herewith, 'Kuikkukisu', created by Ethan Phangcho.

Trailer - Zeroing In with Dr. Praveen Krishna

Acoustics, the study of sound, has always been an integral part of engineering. There are countless techniques which revolve around the manipulation of these pressure waves, to test the stability and integrity of structures, be it aircraft hulls or even the buildings and skyscrapers that you see around. But did you know that the study of instruments like the Violin have revealed essential insights into the field of acoustics and that research into Indian instruments would reveal a lot more?

This week, we are in conversation with a research pioneer from the field of Applied dynamics and vibrations, who brings his arsenal of practical knowledge that he built up during his ten year tenure in the industry, working with giants like Honeywell and GE. A passionate teacher who stresses on the importance of practical knowledge and hands on experience above all and an expert engineer, his work spans a wide spectrum of fundamental engineering problems dealing with structural and vibration dynamics.

Listen to excerpts from our conversation with Dr. Praveen Krishna, wherein we explore the fascinating field of acoustic engineering and nonlinear dynamics.

Cover art by Saurabh Shandilya. Background score by Bensound.

"August rain: the best of the summer gone, and the new fall not yet born. The odd uneven time. "- Sylvia Plath

The rains, be it the mango showers that herald the end of the summer or the torrential downpours accompanying cyclones, have always invoked a wide range of emotions in everyone’s heart. But did you know that the oceans that surround us actually play a very important role in driving the rains?

For this week’s episode, we discuss the role of the oceans in climate change and many more, with Dr. Roxy Mathew Koll, an eminent oceanographer from the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology.  Dr. Koll took us on an exciting ride, giving us  a sneak peak into the life of an oceanographer who studies the forces of weather that shape the world.

“With every drop of water you drink, every breath you take, you’re connected to the sea, no matter where on earth you live” - Sylvia Earle, Marine biologist

Covering more than 70 per cent of the Earth’s surface, the ocean is indeed the blue heart of our planet. The oceans apart from being home to an astonishing number of lifeforms, also control the climate especially playing an important role in the monsoon cycles. But such an important entity still remains vastly unexplored.

This week we let go of the shore and head for  the seven seas with an eminent oceanographer and climate scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Dr. Roxy Mathew Koll. Recognised as one among the top 2% scientists ranked by Stanford University, our guest is a lead author for Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and has contributed immensely in dispersing knowledge about climate change to the common public as well.

Hear on for the excerpts from our conversation with him and catch the full episode releasing this weekend.

Cover art by Saurabh Shandilya. Background score, Deep Blue by Jonny Easton.

Precision and accuracy are two of the most fundamental properties any measurement could have. The difference between 1 and 1.000001 might seem inconsequential but such miniscule differences often have significant consequences. It is the miniscule mass defects in atoms that lead to nuclear fusion and the miniscule angular deviations that cause a satellite to fall out of orbit. To measure such miniscule changes has always been a monumental challenge which instrumentation engineers are trying to overcome.

In our conversation with Dr. Anoop C.S, associate professor at the Indian Institute of Space science and Technology, we explore the world of instrumentation and sensor design. We discussed the elaborate details and processes that go into designing sensors and circuits that are employed in a wide spectra of application ranging from medical sciences to the space industry. We also talked about his experiences, ideas and his unique methodology that he applies to both his research work and his teaching.

The team for Zeroing In for this episode included Murala Aman Naveen, Kanthan Narayanan, Kriti Raj, Arun S, Shaun Ethan Chaudhary Phangcho, Shreya Mishra, Naman Jain and Fenil Shah. Featured season poster by Naman Jain. Zeroing In season’s theme song featured herewith, 'Kuikkukisu', created by Ethan Phangcho.

Sensors and instruments are an engineer’s extra set of eyes and limbs reaching into domains they cannot reach physically, be it the low pressure, oxygen-less environments of space or the high pressure, no light regions deep under the sea. To design an instrument is no easy feat, with hours of precision engineering and skill going in to construct the most elegant solution to the problem at hand.

While the field of instrumentation finds relevance in the everyday lives of the whole community at large, a plethora of details often go amiss. Stay tuned for we bring to you these very same details from an expert instrumentation engineer, who brings his passion for mathematics to the field of engineering to bring about marvelous creations.

Artwork by Saurabh Shandilya. Background score by Bensound.

Evolution is a race that has no finish line with the myriad lifeforms of the world constantly undergoing morphological and physiological changes just to keep up, to keep the eternal race going. Did you know that there are certain species of spiders that mimic ants? or that termite cultivate fungus inside their mounds or that most of the fig species have a unique species of fig wasp that exist in mutualism for survival? The wild realm aided by the process of evolution and natural selection holds an astonishing number of details that still elude the human understanding. In part two of the conversation with Dr. Renee M. Borges, we dwell deep into these fascinating systems as she shares with us her experiences and challenges she encountered while conducting experiments out in the open, while also parallely introducing a beautiful world that coexists.

The team for Zeroing In for this episode included Naman Jain, Murala Aman Naveen, Kanthan Narayanan, Kriti Raj, Arun S, Shaun Ethan Chaudhary Phanghcho and Shreya Mishra. Featured season poster by Naman Jain. Zeroing In season’s theme song featured herewith, 'Kuikkukisu', created by Ethan Phangcho.

Around 200 years back, Darwin set out on his historic voyage around the world, observing and cataloguing the immense diversity the world had to offer, he laid down the foundation for a theory that shook the foundation of biology, the theory of evolution out of which was born the field of evolutionary ecology which tries to unravel the countless puzzles of life nature has to offer.

Our guest for the day is a pioneering expert from this very same field, who has gone on adventures through forests and jungles all over the world, witnessing and explaining the miracles of the wild, trying to uncover the underlying complex relations that connect different species. In our conversation with her, we explore her research which deals with a vast range of topics ranging from fungus farming termites to fig pollinating wasps.  Dive in to listen to the ever charismatic Dr. Renee Maria Borges, Professor at the Centre of Ecological Sciences, IISc explain the intricacies of life with the help of scintillating stories from her own treasure trove of experiences.

The team for Zeroing In for this episode included Murala Aman Naveen, Kanthan Narayanan, Kriti Raj, Arun S, Shaun Ethan Chaudhary Phanghcho, Shreya Mishra, Naman Jain and Fenil Shah. Featured season poster by Naman Jain. Zeroing In season’s theme song featured herewith, 'Kuikkukisu', created by Ethan Phangcho.

Around 200 years back, Darwin set out on his historic voyage around the world, observing and cataloguing the immense diversity the world had to offer, he laid down the foundation for a theory that shook the foundation of biology, the theory of evolution out of which was born the field of evolutionary ecology which tries to unravel the countless puzzles of life nature has to offer.

Our speaker for the day is a pioneering expert from this very same field, who has gone on adventures through forests and jungles all over the world, witnessing and explaining the miracles of the wild, trying to uncover the underlying complex relations that connect different species. In our conversation with her, we explore her research which deals with a vast range of topics ranging from fungus farming termites to fig pollinating wasps.  Dive in to listen to the ever charismatic Dr. Borges explain the intricacies of life with the help of scintillating stories from her own treasure trove of experiences.

The team for Zeroing In for this episode included Murala Aman Naveen, Kanthan Narayanan, Kriti Raj, Arun S, Shaun Ethan Chaudhary Phanghcho, Shreya Mishra, Naman Jain and Fenil Shah. Featured season poster by Naman Jain. Zeroing In season’s theme song featured herewith, 'Kuikkukisu', created by Ethan Phangcho.