Ms. Veera P. Menon and Ms. Srisanthi C, along with thirty students from Grade XI and XII students of Ekya School ITPL spent three days at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore on account of the International Conference on Surface Engineering, INCOSURF-2018. Ms. Veera and a few students wrote to our ITPL editorial team, sharing their personal experiences at the conference.
“We woke up to a chilly windy Thursday on 9th August 2018. The planning had been meticulous and so the execution was impeccable. IISC or the Indian Institute of Science for the uninitiated is the premier institute for scientific research and is ranked first in our country and tenth in the world. It has been a second home to me having presented research papers there and being a member of the illustrious ECSI ( Electrochemical Society of India). This year my innovation employing carbon paste biosensor whose surface was modified with Ni (II) phthalocyanine for the facile detection of Morin in Psidium Guajava leaf extract was selected to be presented in front of an august scientific audience.
Reaching IISC was gargantuan in efforts but the experience the students were going to have at renowned institute paled everything. Mrs. Srisanthi C. from the Department of Biology, Ekya ITPL, was my companion for these three memorable days and we had with us, 30 impressionable, witty, curious XI and XII Graders! After the ceremonial inauguration, plenary and invited talks from eminent scientists, it was time for oral and poster presentations. My oral presentation was well received and had a house full attendance. The rebuttal saw some very pertinent, valid and stimulating questions which I managed to respond to, with much enthusiasm. Since the organizing committee was apprised in advance, and the discussions which are generally highly technical, saw most of the eminent scientists tweaking their presentation to suit our students! And it was much appreciated by them!
In between these lectures, the students rented cycles and at a languid pace explored the campus. Early morning visits to the IISC canteen for a quick economical bite became a routine soon. Sojourn to the famous library where the curator personally took us around and explained the chronicled facts about the place to the picture taken at the iconic TATA Memorial will be etched in our minds.
The students soaked in the beautiful ennui picked up valuable academic energies and have gained much. Their mere presence for three days in a scientific community made them realize what they can also strive for. I invite you to read up some thoughts put on by our students here. Harsh Dudhe from Grade XII also got the opportunity to interview Dr. Dwarakadasa, Chairman, and Director of IISC.
A big shout out to Ms. Tristha Ramamurthy, Ms. Jyothi Menon, Ms. Rajini, Ms. Mahua and Ms. Renuka for having faith in me and allowing this scientist to be a part of this organization. Thanks a ton! Thanks to Ms. Srisanthi and all my students who made every moment memorable.”
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