Jagadish Chandra Bose's birth anniversary: All about one of the fathers of Radio Science

November 30, 2020, marks Jagadish Chandra Bose's 162nd birth anniversary. The Physicist also known as Acharya Chandra Bose, was born in Mymensingh which is now in Bangladesh on November 30, 1858. Bost was one of the top pioneer intellectuals of pre-independent India. He was also one of the first writers of Bengali science fiction. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) has also named Bose one of the fathers of Radio science for his path-breaking research in the realm of Radio waves.

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Facts to know about Jagadish Chandra Bose 

Jagadish Chandra Bose wanted to appear for Civil Services examination in English but later changed his mind and studied natural science at Cambridge. After graduating from Cambridge, Bose returned to India and was appointed professor for physical science at Presidency College, Calcutta. During his job at the College, the top pioneer intellectual faced racism as his salary was very less in comparison to his British counterparts. In order to end this racism, Bose has registered his protest by teaching without taking any salary for 3 years, after which the college made his appointment permanent and paid his salary arrears. In 1917, he set up the Bose Institute in Calcutta where scientists conducted research on plants.

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Bose in 1901 conducted a famous experiment at the Royal Society of London where he demonstrated that like humans, plants too have feelings. During his experiment, he had placed the plant in a vessel containing a bromide solution, which is poisonous. Then, using his instrument, Bose showed on the screen how the plant responded to the poison. On the screen, one could easily see the rapid to and fro movement after which the plant finally died. While concluding the experiment, Jagadish Chandra Bose said that a similar thing would have happened if an animal was placed in the poison. 

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Most scientists across the world praised Bose's findings. The father of Radio science is known for two books: Response in the Living and Non-living and The Nervous Mechanism of Plants. He also conducted research on radio waves. Based on all his scientific experiments, Bose has also written a science fiction titles Niruddesher Kahini. 

The British government in 1903 made Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose a Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire for his significant contributions in the field of science. Later in 1912, the Brish Government made him the Companion of the Order of the Star. After being knighted in 1917, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1920. Jagadish Chandra Bose on November 23, 1937, died in Giridih which is now in Jharkhand. 

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