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                                                                       L Sivasankaran

 

Sivasankaran L- He has over 30 years’ experience in the I.T industry having worked in senior management positions at NVIDIA, Oracle, Sun Micro Systems and Silicon Graphics. He is passionate about transforming young minds and constantly engages with academia to help young students realize their power and purpose in life.  He is considered an exemplary leader who is able to transform vision into action. Do join us in welcoming him to Pragyan where he will speak on the topic of ‘standing out in the crowd with high quality job ready talent’.

Time: 4:30 pm, March 9 at eee auditorium

 

 

 

V Ramgopal Rao

 

 

 Biosensors that can detect a cardiac arrest before it takes place, electronic sniffers that can detect traces of explosives like RDX, a locket that can slip into your pocket to monitor your ECG, cheap solar cells made of organic polymers- these are some of the amazing technologies that are being developed on home soil, at the Centre for Excellence in Nanoelectronics (CEN), IIT-Bombay. 

 

 Prof Ramgopalrao is a Principle Investigator at the CEN, which is a multi-disciplinary research project involving the departments of Chemistry, Physics, and Electrical Engineering of IIT, Bombay and IISc, Banglore. His research on nano-scale electronic and mechanical devices has been recognized the world over. 

 

 To quote Pradeep Khosla (renowned computer scientist and chancellor of UC, San Diego)- “His work has insightfully combined chemistry and mechanics with nanoelectronics, and we believe his work is the way of the future and will make a tremendous impact.” 

 

 Prof Rao is the Institute Chair Professor of Electrical Engineerinpg at IIT-B and is part of research collaborations with the Georgia Institute of Technology, USA, Applied Materials Corporation, NTU-Singapore, Cambridge University, UK, IBM, Intel and other international organizations of repute. He is 

also the recipient of The Infosys Prize 2013 for Engineering and Computer Science. 

 

 If you wish to learn more about the promising fields of nano- electronics and nanomaterials, you won’t get many better opportunities. Be there at EEE Audi on 7th

 

Time: 9:30 am,
7th March (Friday)

 

 

 

T V Narendran

 

 

"Threat and opportunity are two sides of the same coin"

 

 The above maxim proved to be good for TV Narendran, Managing Director, TATA Steel and the lesson this business executive has learnt is to stick on even when the situation gets sticky. This Pragyan be there as he delves into more of such parables, experiences and the philosophy these have helped refine, which will eventually reveal the nuances of how future leaders are created. Narendran is a Tata loyalist, who has spent 25 years in the company. Yet, he is young enough to spur new ideas to take the 106-year-old company forward. At 48, he is the youngest to take over the reins of TATA Steel in more than 100 years of the company's history. Known for his charisma and grit, Narendran was the unanimous choice to head the company. In spite of taking up the position at a time of economic uncertainty, Narendran has ensured stability in the company with his acumen and corporate wisdom. A mechanical engineering graduate from REC, Trichy, he joined Tata Steel in 1988 after completing his MBA from IIM, Calcutta. 

 

 This acclaimed alumnus of NIT Trichy returns to his alma mater for Pragyan 2014. Dont miss an opportunity to hear him speak, as he shares with us his experiences of heading one of the world's largest companies.

 

Time: 5:00 pm, 6th March (Thursday)

 

Valerie Wagoner

 

 

 Her resume is varnished with silicon valley sheen, twice graduated from Stanford University, she has worked for social networking company Ning as well as eBay. But her biggest success story came from the unlikeliest of places, Banglore and in the unlikeliest of sectors, ‘missed call marketing’. ZipDial Mobile Solutions Pvt. Ltd., a company that was born from a brainstorming session between Wagoner and her co-founder, today boasts of having the likes United Brewries, Hindustan Unilever Ltd, P&G and both the BJP as well as UPA amongst it’s clients. Wagoner has already led ZipDial to an annual revenue of over a million dollars and now has her sight set on transforming ZipDial into an Indian MNC by setting up a new base in Singapore for South East Asian operations. Pragyan Guest lectures presents the woman behind this unique entrepreneurial success story.

 

Time: 3:30 pm on 8th March (Saturday)

 

Dr. Marcus du Sautoy (OBE)

 

 

 Simple ideas such as playing with numbers can create magic, far beyond the grasp of many. The results are capable of changing the way view look at the world. Unfortunately, a students's relationship with mathematics has been either love or hate, with many missing out on the beauty and power that these trivial elements could hold. Prof. Marcus du Sautoy, will certainly help change that.

 

 Dr. Marcus du Sautoy (OBE), is a Professor of Mathematics at the Univ. of Oxford. He is known for being a popularizer of Science to increase the appeal of mathematics to the masses. His research interests include understanding the world of symmetry using zeta functions, a classical tool from number theory.

 

 Prof. du Sautoy is a well known figure, especially in the UK having presented & appeared in various documentaries and TV shows on BBC, most notably hosting the show "Mind Games" in 2004-05. He has also written a few popular mathematics books such as "Finding Moonshine" and most notably "The Music Of The Primes". He also writes regularly for the The Guardian & The Times.

 

Come to Pragyan 2014 for an opportunity to get mesmerized by the world of numbers, whether you've ever loved them or not!

 

Time: 2:30 pm, 7th March (Friday)

 

Jamie Hyneman

 

 

• The inventor - He designed and built Blendo, a combat robot so strong that it would throw pieces of its opponents over the arena walls during robot wars competitions. 
• The chef - He created his own dish, called ‘the 444’, called so because it has 4 fruits, 4 vegetables and 4 grains and is claimed to be one of the most healthy, instant-energy-giving foods ever made.  
• The entrepreneur - He founded M5 Industries, an SFx company, now diversifying into toy prototyping and R&D in areas such as electronic cars and lifesaving devices.
• The certified dive master, wilderness survival expert, linguist, concrete inspector, pet shop owner, animal wrangler and machinist.