Shreya Tapaswi | School of Life Sciences (2016-2020)
Every year 28th February is observed as the National Science Day in India. The purpose of the day is to pay a tribute to the discovery of the Raman effect by Sir C V Raman and promote science.
The theme for this year was “Science and Technology for a sustainable future.” Enthusiastic school children of 6th, 7th and 8th standard in and around Manipal, Udupi and Mangalore gathered with their innovative models at the science exhibition. Starting from the use of bio-remediation to clean water to building up Smart Cities in India was how children saw the way to build a sustainable future.
VSO volunteers, had the opportunity to take some of the students out for a Campus tour on 28th February 2018.
Our first stop was at Manipal Museum of Anatomy and Pathology, where the students were fascinated by the preserved specimens of humans and animals. In follow-up was the visit to Science Day celebration at School of Life Sciences. The cell room, photo booth, the OSA dark room and the chemistry magic room were amongst the must visits. They stopped by the models put up by their own friends at the exhibition. It was as difficult to take them out of SLS as bee from honey. The enthralling documentary at the planetarium gave them a glimpse of the ever-fascinating Space science.
The MIT mechanical workshop geared them up to pose questions like how different bulbs light up to what coolants are used in a CNC!
Visits to end point and the Marena Sports Complex were also part of the tour and the children also got a dental check up at the Manipal College of Dental Sciences and with that the campus visit drew to an end.
The lunch break was followed by the Award Ceremony, where our Chief Guest, Dr. Y S Rajan gave an inspirational talk to ignite the young minds. Looking at the number of awardees and the questions they posed to our Chief Guest, one thing was clear, that is, the flag of India will be held really high in the scientific community in near future.
In words of Sir C V Raman “Ask the right questions, and nature will open the doors to her secrets”. With this in mind we bade adieu to the young enthusiasts and wished them the very best for their journey down the boulevard of their life.
Volunteers at Manipal 