Seminar of Physics of the Living State
(The Applied Physics Scientific Section)
2011 Academic Year
Wednesday, 12 October 2011
Time: 15.30
Oppenheimer Meeting Room, Second Floor, Leonardo Building
How seeds retain the memory of exposure to
micro- and hyper-gravity
Pandit Vidyasagar
Department of Physics, University of Pune, India
(*) Summary.
Microgravity and hyper gravity stimuli have been shown to affect the
growth of plants and bacteria. Here we report recent results including
a collaboration with the Indian Space Agency ISRO. The effects of
gravitational conditions (similar to those existing on various bodies
of the Solar System) on seeds and bacterial growth will be discussed.
Biodata. Professor
Pandit Vidyasagar is currently a professor and head of the Physics
Department, Pune University, India. He has been working in the area of
biophysics for last thirty years and has several publications in
international journals to his credit.
His current area of interest
is the effects of micro- and hyper-gravity on plants and bacteria. He
has developed a new significant method to study effects of
hyper-gravity on seeds, with evident implications for the science of
astrobiology. He has guided 16 students for a Ph. D. degree, including
students from Bangladesh, Iran and Indonesia.
Professor Vidyasagar
has contributed in the science and society interface to take science to
the layman, having written thirteen books in Marathi and English, which
include a translation in Marathi of "One Hundred Reasons To Be A
Scientist", published by the Abdus Salam ICTP. He has been awarded
Regular and Senior Associateships by our Centre. He has many additional
awards to his credit for his multiple contributions to science.
