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Leading Science and Technology: India Next?
In a world buzzing with artificial intelligence, gene therapy, 3-D printing, and brain implants, where does India stand? India is not yet a front-runner in creating new knowledge and world-changing inventions. India does not even feature among the top 10 countries in scientific research. In this book, Varun argues that India would risk its economic progress, technology industry, and social development if it does not lead in research and innovation. He deliberates on how we can make India a leader in science and technology and uses a data-based approach to highlight the various limitations of India’s research ecosystem. He demystifies how discoveries and inventions happen through stories and personal experiences. The book provides concrete, well-reasoned steps to build a "Scientific India." This is essential for India’s success and for serving the cause of human progress.
258 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 31, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 22, 2018
To the oft repeated lament that India has great talent but abysmal original research, Varun Aggarwal brings insightful data & analysis. Research matters he says, because world over the bulk of the profits accrue to the owners of the intellectual property (IP).
Indian engineers maybe the cream of the workforce in the world’s best tech companies, but they will be forever doomed to a tiny share of the profits. Research matters and not just because it is an investment for existing or future profits. It brings intellectual stimulation, the thrill of pushing our intelligence and creativity to it’s limits, and of creating new products and services that are useful solutions to practical problems.
The United States and China stand first and second in research productivity ; India lags way behind at No 12. As a MIT alumnus and the founder of employability company Aspiring Minds, Aggarwal tackles this problem head on.
So how do you measure the state of research in India and how do you identify the major problems for researchers ?
Aggarwal looks at world wide data like papers and citations and has conversations with Phd students, professors, the industry and administrators to deep dive into what's holding back research in India. Not surprisingly, these reasons turn out to be everything from lack of equipment to bureaucratic controls , a socialist institutional attitude to high performers and even niggling matters like no budgets for conferences. It's a meticulous investigation which identifies concrete gaps like
"Our performance in nursing, medicine and healthcare is hard to excuse. With our poor record on health care, these fields should be a particular priority" and
" We have hardly any psychologists who are trained to recognise numbers"
The book offers some solutions as well like focusing on universities as places for research, creating centres of excellence which have autonomy and creating incentives. All in all, it's a book academics, policy makers, scientists as well as the layman would do well to read. Highly recommended.
Indian engineers maybe the cream of the workforce in the world’s best tech companies, but they will be forever doomed to a tiny share of the profits. Research matters and not just because it is an investment for existing or future profits. It brings intellectual stimulation, the thrill of pushing our intelligence and creativity to it’s limits, and of creating new products and services that are useful solutions to practical problems.
The United States and China stand first and second in research productivity ; India lags way behind at No 12. As a MIT alumnus and the founder of employability company Aspiring Minds, Aggarwal tackles this problem head on.
So how do you measure the state of research in India and how do you identify the major problems for researchers ?
Aggarwal looks at world wide data like papers and citations and has conversations with Phd students, professors, the industry and administrators to deep dive into what's holding back research in India. Not surprisingly, these reasons turn out to be everything from lack of equipment to bureaucratic controls , a socialist institutional attitude to high performers and even niggling matters like no budgets for conferences. It's a meticulous investigation which identifies concrete gaps like
"Our performance in nursing, medicine and healthcare is hard to excuse. With our poor record on health care, these fields should be a particular priority" and
" We have hardly any psychologists who are trained to recognise numbers"
The book offers some solutions as well like focusing on universities as places for research, creating centres of excellence which have autonomy and creating incentives. All in all, it's a book academics, policy makers, scientists as well as the layman would do well to read. Highly recommended.
February 17, 2021
Not so bad!
Author keeps repeating some word which may not be the best to describe something repeatedly. Though I would recommend to read it once to get an idea of how research papers are published and motivate many more
Author keeps repeating some word which may not be the best to describe something repeatedly. Though I would recommend to read it once to get an idea of how research papers are published and motivate many more
March 28, 2019
An in-depth data driven analysis of the state of research and science entrepreneurship in India. Varun takes a close thorough look at what ails research in India, why we lose our brightest young minds to industry or research institutions in Europe and US. He elucidates what are the corrective measures we must take to make a research career attractive and how the entire higher education system in the country needs an overhaul. The passion for science and innovation that he envisages for India is very clearly seen through his writings. For those who dream of an India that competes with the rest of the world in innovation and would like to see this country again rise and be the jewel of the world, this is a must read.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews