Voice from Technical Institutes: Building starts from bottom to top while destruction reaches at the bottom from the top. Technology is adopted either to build or to break. This technology is reviewed and renewed in a periodic manner depending on the requirement or compulsion or thrust. Each time a new technology is emerged with a brand name “Emerging Technology”. In recent days this has taken the name of molecular engineering or molecular manufacturing following the dictations of noted scientists having their bags filled with controversies. Nanotechnology is the most appropriate name though it tags nano – scale, a term more favorable to physicists. While Dr. Feynman wrote and read the introductory note long back, Dr. Eric Drexler is the man who coined the name Nanotechnology. The practicality involved in it lead to Molecular Nanotechnology following the second generation demand covering almost all branches of science, engineering, technology and behavior science. This embeds all sorts of development, from the process taking place in life to out side life for the decoration and restoration of life. This message was fueled in 1959 from CALTECH but seems to have engulfed the whole world in recent days. Life needs energy and nutrition plus a security cover to enjoy under it. Molecular Nanotechnology means all from the same platform. An unbiased understanding and thorough discussion on the matter of relevance is a matter of national concern for all time to come. A risk free environment is a must for uninterrupted development as this technology is hard to attain but once attained it’s easy to grow for good or bad the way once the baby is born it’s easy to use in one way or other in long run.

Administrative Matters: Achievements are always associated with emotions but administration tackles all moments in balanced state. When a scientist achieves something he fails to balance himself and in this row Dr. A. P. J Abdul Kalam is not an exception. Great people commit mistakes but they won’t go for blunders. Simple people like us too commit mistakes and blunders on daily basis. Gentleman is he who regrets after commiting mistakes and takes every care to avoid blunders in his life. Nanotechnology entered in India because of the generosity and interest of Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam. He delivered his first radio talk on this subject on 28th February 2004. In that talk he invited scientists to join the race. Thereafter Nanotechnology meet was organised in Rashtrapati Bhavan on 29th April 2004 but people from only one group or their associates in India or abroad were invited. True a scientific discussion can’t take motion in Rashtrapati Bhavan for Nanotechnology is a subject of threadbare discussion and subsequent hot debate to avoid junk entry from valnerable gates. However the matter was aired in right direction later on by Dr. Prasad, Director IITD by declaring that nanotechnology was a subject of concern people from all streams of science and technology. Subsequently two important seminars were held and nanotechnology was placed on right track. The present deliberation and assembly, jointly organised by FICCI and DST, is sure to avoid junk leadership and mouth peace quality of one scientist directly or indirectly attached to Govt. of India or the policy making body. A fruitful discussion and also healthy debate are certainly in the pipeline and that must not be allowed to derail. Young and enthusiastic budding scientists from all fields must be given chance to speak out their mind and seniors like Dr. Kalam may like to moderate their feelings and findings for better footings remembering at each and every step that nanotechnology is not nanoscience and in that breath a simple discovery of IITM is far richer than several papers published in crystal engineering.

Linking the delink: Nature governs itself because of the existence of “force” that always exists in pair. Sequence of events that can be paired have life and longevity. Thus day and night, left and right, top and bottom, husband and wife, brother and sister, mother and father etc. are though man made pairs but they have life and longevity. The entire system of heavenly bodies exists because of centripetat and centrifugal forces. For Nanotechnology to exist for ever or to have life and longevity must have paired sequence to guarantee events in it and that pair is Precession and Control. This pair appeared in the august talk of Dr. Feynman at CALTECH in 1959 and it is still continuing. Because of this pair, often called life of Nanotechnology, Dr. Feynman remains Father of Nanotechnology though the name was fully established by Dr. Drexler only in 1986. It is not the name but the game played within by the genuine players is more important.
With the emergence of second generation nanotechnology as molecular nanotechnology the pair is slightly refined to precise – control. The third generation would be Precisely – Controlled. It is easy to understand this pair of word in three forms:‘Precession and Control’ 1959 – 1999, ‘Precise – Control’ 1999 – 2009, ‘Precisely – Controlled’ to be continued from 2009.
A log of wood is taken by carpenter and he moves his skilled hands to produce either a chair or a table. There is precession and control otherwise he will not be in a position to distinguish between the two different requirements. However the fallen wood never returns to the remaining wood – here lies the difference. Dolly was made out of curiosity of scientists. This was a case of precise – control but she could not survive for long – the reason was simple – the fusion of male and female elements of recognition prior to fertilisation were not precisely controlled. Cloning is simple but the cloning of monkey like naughty animals will determine whether the system under consideration is precisely controlled or not. The importance of nanoscience is here – to understand the future course of action before hand. Nanoscience is not a new science but the modes and forms of existing sciences under the code ‘interdisciplinary approach’ that commands the incoming action plan.

Name that has no justification but importance: Nano attached to technology has no justification for it rides over 1 NM to 100 NM at present but may also drop down to its lower limits in near future depending on progress. Materials obtained between this range are termed as nano – materials. Their micro property differs from their own macro property and may enter into life building process following the law of nature or man made genetic and molecular engineering. Thus the color of birds, reptiles and other attractive creatures bring solace to our senses during our distress. Our behavior would have been different if allowed to have survived in absence of these colorful natural features. The way light and magnetism are the basis of life and attached enjoyment on earth, nano – materials too have roles to play in our daily life and life related processes. BHASMA is a term used in AYURBEDA following which folklore medicines were prepared using metal powder that included gold, copper and iron as major elements. Seemingly bhasma was accepted like today’s nano materials – though least understood at particle level, and was used along with ethnobotanical residues. If mushroom can take color of wood on which it grows, and can change color in changing environment – both from soil and air, there is possibility that nano – materials could have entered body systems of plants, animals and microbes to bring adequate changes pertaining to building process and longevity in association with other biomolecules and biopolymers including genes. However the open experiments and observations on mushroom suggest that all fungal species are not edible – thus care is a must.

Why Molecular Nanotechnology:Control is applied in both the systems of science and society for peace, tranquility and development. A system full of potential and resource may end up in gambling and chaos from north to south, east to west and top to bottom in the want of proper understanding of this subject in the field of frontier research. Control of nano particles, referred in this context, is something like controlling vibration. True, one can control vibration but then the very definition will be changed. The informations setting in brains and getting out tangentially to time from cognitive centers of brain may be cited as example. Information is tagged with light but light is electromagnetic radiation and comprised of wave and particle nature in it. It is a matter of debate for physicists but information may be carried forward even when wave nature is blocked to pass on. It is the magnetism associated with the particle nature that helps to generate wave again. Here control is applied to the system by a force – partner embedded in itself. Self judgement, single man analysis, decision making business – all such phenomena that are taking part under the command of self built intelligence are nothing but functionals under control mechanism. Thus even if light captures knowledge from surroundings it is the control of brain vested through magnetism that provides correct direction to move on. Extra magnetic influence is a desire of life to maintain balanced relation with the nature and natural built – thus provisions for friendship and enemity both exist in brain. Personality and personal quality that provides strature in society is an out come of precise – control. Nano is a size on scale; it finds importance in all such fields of life building processes from inside to outside but it can’t be controlled for it has liberty to escape, vibrate, collide and even penetrate from one system to other without permission from either of the sides. A person moving on the road may not disturb you but even then you may not like his movement. A beautiful girl may not like companion of a boy but the lad may still like to approach without any reference. Such behaviors may be explained one day following quantum dot approach.
Molecules can be controlled and thus molecular nanotechnology is a suitable nomenclature for second generation demand. Molecules may be used on switch boards. Thus one form of molecule may serve the purpose to switch on the light and the other form may help to switch off even without touching the board assembly by employing a kind of ray or air or even wish through eye balls. Advancement in nanotechnology may be allowed to take place unhindered only when brains from STEM culture function together. S for science, T for technology, E for environment and M for management.

Lab – Industry links – Indian context: On 5th September 2008, teacher’s day, I was riding high on a tree with ears open and eyes wide but after the closure of the meet I found my hands slapping me and allowing me to fall free with both my legs broken in front of my kith and kin for I compared this national nanotechnology meet with the international one. Nanotechnology is a subject of young blood both from lab and industries – captains of industries and scientists of lab should sit as back bencher and listen the agressive brains pouring their findings freely. Govt. of India may like to listen – it is not the 1000 crore but the hundred potential brains of India that will compete along with the world scientists to high light the importance of India R & D 2008:Nanotechnology.

How to link Lab and Industry:This problem is related to Indian Mindset. Position and degree holders in science and engineering forget the basics of development in a country like India. They often forget that those who allowed to cut their throat in broad day light in a foreign country were also Indians, went in search of better placing to see their wards not suffering the way they suffered. The whole and sole issue is based on insensitive nature tagged with the Generals of Science in this country. They want everything for themselves – all enjoyment and luxury loaded with glamour for their followers only. Chemists fight with physicists, biologists with agronomists, engineers with technologists and managers enjoy the game from a distance at the cost of Indian Simplicity. If you show them the correct route followed in advanced countries they say – HAM KISI SE KAM NAHI. But when it comes to connecting lab and industry they fall flat and say – we don’t see the way. Why they have taken so much of time to misguide the Parliament of India then -the question in front of them – they will have to answer this question on the streets of India or in the Parliament of India or they will have to allow the youg generation to carve ways for themselves and also for their nation in days to come – the only choice left to free India from the clutches of mental slavery and prejudices of yesterdays. If not, suffereing for india is a must as the lovely brains are preparing to migrate in search of better platforms where neither degrees nor positions but brains are honored first.

How to begin with a problem: Since this is a new subject one must be careful from the beginning. This care starts with the type of problem in hand. It is wise to divide problems in two categories – problems related to biological origin and problem related to materials origin. For biological origin a sound knowledge of cell is a must, likewise for materials origin study of crytals is important. After acquainting self with these two sciences – cell Science and Crystal Science one may like to see whether the problem in hand has some beginning or not. If the problem finds a place in some other subject the details of the problem with respect to that subject should be studied and a debate in self should be initiated as to why this problem should be considered afresh in nanotechnology. In most of the cases researchers forget to distinguish between nanoscience and nanotechnology. All problems related to nano particles are nanoscience and thus their origin is somewhere else in classical sciences but the beauty of nanoscience percolates only when an interdisciplinary approach is applied with this classical science in understanding the problem in hand. The same problem can be initited from a department of physics keeping other subjects in the same ring. Thus when we talk about production of nano particles there may be both physical and chemical and also mechanical and biological methods but to maintain parity physicals may be associated with the mechanical one. In similar manner chemicals may be attached to chemical engineering and biochemical engineering. However these are raw modulations to get grip on the subject in the beginning. To remind further the guide lines forwarded in the beginning in terms of pair of words must not be forgotten. These pair of words will remain guiding torch in dictating refinements in days to come.

Smooth beginning:Lab – Industry links may be established in the line of the developed countries if direct interaction starts between the researchers and the captains of the industries. Pouring money blindly for nanotechnology in Govt. Institutions without Administrative Reforms at the policy making level is something like talking in the line of Indian Politicians during elections. Public – Private partnership may help build base for correct interdisciplinary approach but competition in true sense of the term will land in the hands of Private industries. They have ability to erect bench for basic research, monitoring ability and to harness good out of it in shortest period of time providing encouraging incentives to their scientists. Seemingly the choice of putting a supreme court lawyer as the stearing head of DST was to initiate a change but, as it happens always with politicians near electrion, it has taken U turn in favor of the few that is disliked by most of the frontier researchers – their number is more but hearts are shrunken to compete. Indian choice, in general, is more towards hidding truth rather than putting a ball in front to be played in open for rise or fall. A case history has been sent to us by a group of field observers recently that shows how a big boss writes A for getting fund from the govt. agency, performs B for filling up the pages and writes C to the funding agency back to prove the promise met and the report was subsequently justified too by a second party working for the govt. One may like to appreciate the type of lobby working in this country at the cost of the national interest – no doubt few are struggling hard to bring their card up as global competitors. Assembly of Indian scientists at CERN is an example.
Admittedly it will not be an exaggeration if we conclude by saying -Indian brains are one of the best in the world towards pouring results of all kinds in time pertaining to STEM culture if they are allowed to perform freely in the laboratories and industries and also interact with the policy makers and bureaucrats directly. All hurdles are due to middlemen and lobby networking.
In recent days Govt. Intellectuals have started placing corrective measures on all research fronts including nanoscience and nanottechnology – a good sign indeed.

Regards
Dr. R. Dayal Yadav
Director – Research
Study Group DIM. IUI