Ashoka Reflections_DECEMBER 2023
Welcome to interactive presentation, created with Publuu. Enjoy the reading!
DECEMBER 2023
ASHOKA
REFLECTIONS
A S H O K A U N I V E R S I T Y ' S M O N T H L Y N E W S L E T T E R
Ashoka University is India’s premier interdisciplinary research and
teaching university located in the National Capital Region, New
Delhi. It is built on the finest global best practices of institution and
university
governance.
Accomplished
leaders,
philanthropists,
thinkers, and academicians with expertise in varied fields have come
together to create the university. It brings the best contemporary
values and practices in higher education, in the tradition of the
world’s leading universities, to India. With a strong emphasis on
multi-disciplinary learning, development of skills and leadership
attributes for the 21st century, Ashoka is preparing students to be
critical thinkers and ethical leaders in an increasingly diverse world.
A B O U T
Ashoka University
A S H O K A R E F L E C T I O N S
03
06
38
70
86
Table of
Contents
ASHOKA REFLECTIONS
December 2023
Feature Story
In Focus
Latest Happenings
In Other News
In the Media
Ashoka Reflections | Page 03
Feature Story
Ashoka University
partners with Carl Zeiss
India to establish a
state-of-the-art
‘Core Imaging Facility’
It is the first such facility in India and the first
collaboration between Carl Zeiss India and a private
university in the country
Ashoka Reflections | Page 04
Ashoka University is expanding its horizons in terms of research and academic programmes in the sciences.
In the run-up to elevating ‘Sciences at Ashoka’ and as a leading destination for scientific research in the
country, on November 18th, 2023, the university entered into an exclusive collaboration with Zeiss Research
Microscopy Solutions (Carl Zeiss India [Bangalore] Pvt. Ltd), a global leader in optical systems and
optoelectronics. This collaborative venture, solidified through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)
between Ashoka University and the Research Microscopy Solutions (RMS) division of Zeiss leads to the
establishment of ‘Ashoka-Zeiss Core Imaging Facility’, the state-of-the-art centre equipped with the latest
cutting-edge microscopy technology, including High Resolution, Super Resolution, and High Content
microscopes. This is the first such facility in India created by ZEISS and its first-ever collaboration with a
private university in the country. This facility is intended to provide students and researchers with physical
access to highly sophisticated microscopes that can offer spectacular research support in fields such as cell
biology, biophysics, soft condensed matter studies, and structural biology. The facility is planned to start
operating with four different microscopes from Zeiss, namely Lattice Lightsheet 7, Elyra 7 LS (Lattice SIM2),
LSM 980 NLO, and Cell Discoverer 7 with LSM 900 Airyscan.
As an added benefit, under the agreement, Zeiss will station Expert System Operators at the facility to assist
researchers in adequately utilising the equipment during their scientific explorations. Furthermore, the two
partners will work together to create awareness and provide opportunities to the Indian research community
through the facility. This includes periodic microscopy courses, conferences, and workshops for STEM
students.
Speaking on the development, Amarjeet Singh Tak, Head of RMS Division for India and Neighbouring
Countries stated, “The partnership with Ashoka University signifies a momentous union between ZEISS’s rich
legacy in microscopy solutions and the academic prowess of the university. ZEISS has been at the forefront of
microscopy innovation for over 175 years, and this collaboration is a testament to our commitment to
bridging the gap between industry and students’ community while advancing scientific research in India. The
Core Imaging Facility by ZEISS at Ashoka University will not only showcase ZEISS’s cutting-edge technology but
also serve as a testament to our enduring heritage in microscopy solutions. We believe that by combining our
expertise with the academic excellence of Ashoka University, we can create a platform that fosters
groundbreaking discoveries and sets new standards in scientific exploration”.
“We are delighted to establish the Core Imaging Facility in partnership with ZEISS, providing researchers and
students access to highly sophisticated microscopic technology and know-how, which are a critical bedrock
for explorations and discoveries. Notably, the Facility will have the latest microscopes that only a handful of
labs currently possess in the country. This partnership is a step in Ashoka University’s mission to make India a
hub and global leader in cutting-edge scientific research”, said Somak Raychaudhury, Vice Chancellor,
Ashoka University.
“Much of today’s science—from materials research, biological sciences, medicine, all the way to astronomy—
require the collection of quality images and their analysis. The Zeiss facility at Ashoka University is a
pioneering step that will scale the use of cutting-edge microscopy in the country. Through teaching, training
and research, I am sure that this collaboration strikes a new, and much-needed, path at the frontier of
research,” K VijayRaghavan, Former Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India and
Chairperson, Ashoka University’s Science Advisory Council added.
For more details about the microscopes, please visit this link.
Ashoka Reflections | Page 05
In Focus
ASTRONOMY SOCIETY
In Focus
Building an Undergraduate
Astronomy Programme at
Ashoka University
Ashoka Reflections | Page 07
Dipankar Bhattacharya
Sunanda and Santimay Basu Chair Professor in Astrophysics |
Ashoka University
With the enthusiasm, support, help and technical expertise at all levels,
Ashoka provides a very special ecosystem where it has been a privilege
to grow the Astronomy programme
Ashoka Reflections | Page 08
“An Astronomy Minor,” said the Vice Chancellor Prof. Malabika Sarkar, about what she wished to see being
offered at Ashoka and soon. “The enthusiasm is immense.”
This was August 2021, when I was offered the task. I knew little about what this meant but was sold on the
idea. While it would take me nine more months to join the University, I did visit the campus in September
2021. On my way back, Prof. Bikram Phookun accompanied me to Delhi on a car ride, which turned out to be
a defining one. Heavy traffic slowed our progress, allowing a long, uninterrupted discussion on the
undergraduate Astronomy programme. Much of what followed has been built on the plans we hatched that
day.
Astronomy today is one of the most heavily funded research disciplines worldwide and is widely covered in
the news and popular articles. There needs to be more opportunities for undergraduate education though,
the current focus being mainly on the post-graduate level.
We wished for a curriculum that would be contemporary, informative and fun. The goal was also to put the
advanced student in touch with research skills. We came up with a bouquet of at least nine courses for the
students to choose from. The courses would span the full range of levels from introductory to advanced.
The Physics programme at Ashoka places a strong emphasis on laboratory work. Astronomy was going to be
no exception. Like in Physics, we decided that the introductory gateway course to Astronomy Minor would
also be hands-on. What could be better than to gaze up at the sky to start with?
That meant that we needed to first build an Astronomy laboratory. Thanks to the enthusiastic and generous
support of all concerned, we were able to acquire some equipment quickly. Several others we built from
scratch (and in fact from scrap)! For the supremely talented Pradip Chaudhari, senior technician at the Physics
Laboratory, this was a labour of love. By the end of 2022, we were ready with a set of truly unique astronomy
experiments.
The Astronomy Minor was launched in Spring 2023. In the first batch of the gateway laboratory course
Observing the Cosmos, we had students spanning all years and from diverse majors such as Physics, Computer
Science, History and Political Science. Over the semester, they learned how to navigate the sky and estimate
distances and motions. They engaged in astrophotography, obtained spectra and determined the
temperature and composition of stars.
That was just one of several new courses. Among the others was The Physics of the Universe, which described
how everything around us came to be, starting from the early days of the Big Bang. The Violent Universe talked
about energetic sources and phenomena, including pulsars, quasars and explosions like supernovae. A
course on Cosmic Messengers delivered in two parts—theory and laboratory—dealt with the origin,
propagation and detection of radiation at all wavelengths, from radio to gamma rays, as well as gravitational
waves and energetic particles. Students learned to handle, analyse and interpret data from cutting-edge
professional astronomical observatories. Also in the mix were advanced courses such as Astrophysical and
Geophysical Fluid Dynamics, Computational Astrophysics and Geophysics and General Relativity and Cosmology.
Teaching this array of courses was always going to be challenging, particularly as there was no suitable
teaching material readily available. We needed additional faculty members with a rare combination of
breadth, depth and a sense of adventure. It was our great fortune that Prof. Kandaswamy Subramanian, a
renowned astrophysicist, readily agreed to our request to join Ashoka University as a visiting professor to help
with the programme. That was a key moment.
In Monsoon 2023, we had Prof. Sujan Sengupta visiting us as a guest faculty to teach a course on The Earth
and Other Planets. Prof. Sengupta is India’s top expert in the rapidly developing area of Exoplanets and has a
unique perspective to offer on planets in and outside the solar system, habitability and extraterrestrial life.
Ashoka Reflections | Page 09
The first round of the full complement of current Astronomy Minor courses is just about to be completed. It
has been an exciting time putting the programme together, but this is only the beginning. Based on this
experience, the courses will be improved and fine-tuned. Astrophysics research is already being carried out by
several Ph.D. and ASP students, this component will expand to involve more undergraduates. New courses of
an interdisciplinary nature, drawing on the diverse strengths of Ashoka, are also under discussion.
What has been wonderful to see is the student enthusiasm both in and outside the classroom. Astronomy
activity in the campus has picked up greatly. The Astronomy Club has now become a fully functional Society
and is organising frequent programmes, often jointly with other student societies. Astronomy content has
made its way into the Young India Fellowship, the Young Scholars Programme and the Lodha Genius
Programme. An increasing number of Ashoka students are now engaging in Astronomy internships at other
institutions.
Students have also helped shape the astronomy programme to a great extent. Over two summers,
exploratory projects undertaken by Ashoka undergraduates have contributed to the final design of laboratory
experiments. A special mention is due to Philip Cherian, Ph.D. scholar in Physics, who has been intimately
involved and has had an immense role to play in all these activities.
With the enthusiasm, support, help and technical expertise at all levels, Ashoka provides a very special
ecosystem where it has been a privilege to grow the Astronomy programme. Thanks are due to many,
including the Physics faculty, the Board of Studies, the Academic Council, all the Deans, the Board of
Management and the constant encouragement by the Vice Chancellors, both past and present. We look
forward to the times ahead.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92