My Romance with Mathematics and STEM
Dr. Vijay Bhatkar: Honoured with Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri, Maharashtra Bhushan and a string of national awards and Honorary Doctorates, Dr. Vijay Bhatkar is best known as an architect of India's first Supercomputer ‘PARAM’ and several pioneering contributions to Information Technology in India. He did his Ph.D. from IIT Delhi in 1972 where he was acclaimed as its Distinguished Alumni and went on to become its Chairman of Governing Council. Currently he is the National President, VIBHA, Chancellor, Nalanda University and guiding India's notable national initiatives in Science and Technology as well as in Arts and Humanities.
In this lecture, Dr. Vijay Bhatkar shares his mystical romance with Mathematics in his long career. After recalling the amazing contributions of Pingala, Aryabhatta, Madhava, Ramanujan, and the contemporary scientists, from the mathematical viewpoint, he jumps to his own unbelievable philosophical entry in Mathematics, where as an engineer, he was called upon to develop India’s electronic industry, that introduced him to computers and information technology. That led to the creation of India’s first supercomputer Param, and its exascale supercomputers of today, and entry into the world of quantum computing. Dr. Bhatkar will highlight the milestones in this long journey, where he has tried to use Mathematics to unify language, science, technology, and engineering.
