From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: JC Bose and his contributions
Mains level: NA
Central idea
- A recent discovery by researchers from Tel Aviv University in Israel, that plants make distinct sounds in the ultrasonic range when faced with stress, made headlines around the world.
- However, Indians who had grown up hearing about Jagadish Chandra Bose’s work, more than a century ago, on plant physiology and their ability to feel pleasure and pain, were not surprised.
| Details | |
| Who was JC Bose? | – Born in 1858 in Mymensingh, Bengal.
– A polymath who made significant contributions to physics, biophysics, and plant physiology – Graduated from Calcutta University with honors in physics and studied in London and Cambridge. |
| Notable works | – Developed sensitive instruments for wireless telegraphy and demonstrated the first-ever wireless transmission of microwaves in 1895.
– Showed that plants produce electrical signals in response to stimuli and made significant contributions to biophysics. |
| Recognition & Controversy | – Despite his contributions, he was not awarded a Nobel Prize, which many believe he deserved.
– Refused to obtain patents for his work and rejected the idea of making money from science. – Claimed that even inanimate inorganic matter could respond to stimulus and regarded plants as intermediates in a continuum between animals and non-living materials, which was not easily accepted by his contemporaries. |
| Legacy and Significance | – Founded the Bose Institute, a premier research institute in India.
– The crater Bose on the Moon is named after him. – Regarded as one of India’s greatest scientists, and his legacy continues to inspire future generations of scientists. |
| Significance | – Bose’s work on plant physiology and biophysics was ahead of his time and not fully understood by his contemporaries.
– However, over the years, much of his work has been confirmed. |
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