Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose: Tribute on His 160Th Birth Anniversary

SHORT FEATURE Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose: Tribute on his 160th Birth Anniversary

Chandan Tilak Bhunia future of J.C. Bose took shape in the company of illustrious professors like Francis Drawin, James Dewar, Michael Foster and an outstanding Bengali Scientist Sir Prafulla Chandra Roy. HYSICIST, Botanist, Biologist, Archaeologist, and Outstanding Scientific Career Radio & Microwave Technologist — Jagadish Chandra In 1885, Bose returned to India. On the recommendation P Bose was all this and much more. His outstanding of Lord Ripon, Director of Public Instructions (DPI) of the contributions in all these fields fetched him several distinctions Bengal Presidency, J.C. Bose was made an officiating Professor like title of “Sir”, title of “Acharya”, Fellowship of the Royal of Physics in the prestigious Presidency College of Calcutta. Society (FRS) in 1920, Knight Bachelor in 1917, Companion Although he accepted the assignment, he was neither offered of order of the Indian Emperor (CIE) in 1903, Companion of full professorship as was given to British Professors nor given the Star of India (CSI) in 1912, among many others. salary at par with British Professors. In protest, he continued Jagadish Chandra Bose was born on 30 November 1858 in his job but refused to accept the salary for three years. Bikrampur of Bengal Presidency (the then undivided Bengal). Ultimately his distinguished service, an uncompromising His father was Bhagwan Chandra Bose, a leader of Brahmo nature towards injustice and an illustrious teaching career Samaj. After schooling in a local Bengali medium school, he virtually compelled the Principal of the College & the Director got admitted to the St Xavier’s school in 1875 and qualified in of Public Instructions to grant him full permanent Professorship entrance examination for the University of Calcutta, from where with salary at par with British Professors. He was also given he graduated in physics in 1879. his three years’ dues too. Bose then wanted to move to England and got admitted to J.C. Bose was disappointed with the research facilities then Christ’s College, Cambridge in natural sciences. He successfully available at the Presidency College. But rather than lamenting completed Tripos in Natural Science and B Sc degree from the fact, he started to develop infrastructure for original the London University in 1884. It was at Cambridge that the research by giving funds from his own pocket.

30 | Science Reporter | November 2018 Bose started doing original experimental work on Through a simple experiment, Bose was the first scientist millimetre & microwave transmission and propagation. He in the world to prove that plants have the ability to feel pain, created the shortest radio waves of 5 mm while working mainly affection and other various stimuli. He proved that plants are on Hertzian waves and designed a radio communication system very sensitive to heat, cold, noise and pain. He developed a in 1895. sophisticated instrument called the crescograph, which could He presented his first work on “the polarization of Electric magnify the plants’ responses to different stimuli by 10,000 Rays by Double Reflecting Crystals” at the Asiatic Society times of the natural response. of Bengal in 1895. His presented work as a research paper On 10 May 1901 in a packed hall of the Royal Society of got published by the Royal Society of London in 1986. In the London, J.C. Bose presented his experiment to prove that plants same year, he met Guglielmo Marconi, an Italian scientist who also have feelings like other living entities. Bose chose a plant reportedly got the idea of radio communication and wireless whose roots were dipped up to its stem in a vessel. Bromide detector from Bose and patented the idea. Bose thus lost the solution, a poison, was added to the vessel. His instrument was credit. plugged in with the plant dipped in the vessel. The response of Bose had done pioneer work in design of radio receiver the plant was noted by a light spot on a screen. The plant died made of galena crystal detector inside horn antenna and due to the poison. galvanometer to detect radio waves. He was the first to use semiconductor junction to detect radio signals. He worked on Administrator & Author quasi-optical millimetre wave too. J.C. Bose left his Professorship and established the famous In 1899, he presented another exceptional work on “iron ‘Bose Institute’ in Calcutta in 1917. Bose was Director of the mercury-iron coherer with telephone detector” before the Royal institute since 1917 unto his death in 1937. The institute was Society of London and rightfully established himself as an established primarily for research on plants. authority in Radio Physics. The world renowned professional Bose authored many illustrious books, namely ‘Niruddesher body, IEEE (Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers), Kahini’ in 1896, ‘Response in the Living and Non-living’ in 1902 USA in its magazine IEEE Antenna and Propagation, Vol 39, and ‘The Nervous Mechanism of Plants’ in 1926. ‘Niruddesher Issue 5, Oct 1997 stated: Kahini” is a science fiction written in Bengali. It was the first book in Bengali on science fiction. Later it was translated into “The pioneering work in the area of millimetre waves, English. performed by J.C. Bose, a physicist from Calcutta, India, during 1894-1900, is reviewed and appraised. Various Recognition measurement techniques and circuit components, developed In honour of this exceptionally great scientist, the Botanical by him a hundred years ago, are still being used. The Garden in Kolkata was named as the “Acharya Jagadish development of the electromagnetic horn, the point-contact Chandra Bose Indian Botanical Garden”. The Department of detector, and the galena (semiconductor) detector of Science & Technology (DST), Government of India instituted electromagnetic waves are attributed to the original research a highly rewarding fellowship after his name – the “J C Bose of J.C. Bose." Fellowship”. A statue of Jagadish Chandra Bose was installed at the Christ’s College in Cambridge, where he was mentioned as a Distinguished Alumnus. Undoubtedly, Sir J.C. Bose was one of the most brilliant scientists in the world and his uncompromising character made him a larger-than-life figure. Bose left us all on 23 November 1937 at the age of 87. He died at Giridih, Bengal Presidency. A respectful tribute to Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose will be incomplete without the mention of what Nobel Laureate Sir Neville Mott said of Bose: “J C Bose was at least 60 years ahead of his time...in fact he had anticipated the P-type and N-type semiconductors.”

Professor Chandan Tilak Bhunia is Former Director, National Institute of Technology (NIT), MHRD, Arunachal Pradesh, Former Professor, HoD, Dean of North Eastern Regional Institute of Science & Technology (NERIST), MHRD, Arunachal Pradesh, Former Boyscast Fellow, DST at Durham University, UK & Former Senior Associate, ICTP, Italy. Address: G 7, Garden Green Apartments, 184, Bansdroni Place, Kolkata-700070; Email: [email protected]

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