Latest news with #JVN
Indian Express
22-05-2025
- Science
- Indian Express
‘Prof Jayant Narlikar believed in nurturing children with love of science from young age': Educator remembers astrophysicist
Astrophysicist Prof Jayant Narlikar believed children should be nurtured with the love of science from a young age, and he realised his dream to set up a children's science centre at the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) in Pune in 2004, said Prof Arvind Gupta, a science educator and toy inventor. Prof Gupta, 71, a Padma Shri awardee, well known for turning trash into toys that children can make themselves while learning the basic principles of science, recalled his association with Prof Narlikar, who passed away at the age of 86 Tuesday. His mortal remains were kept at the Bhaskara foyer at IUCAA Wednesday morning for the public to pay their final respects. 'He (Prof Narlikar) would often argue that good PhD students did not fall from the sky,' Prof Gupta said on the occasion. 'In 2003, I was invited by JVN (Prof Narlikar) to work in the IUCAA's children's science centre (Muktangan Exploratory Science Centre). Initially, I was reluctant to work in a government institute. But JVN assured me that I could help shape the science centre, and if I did not like it, I could quit after six months. So, I initially joined for six months, but ended up working there for 11 years,' he said. Prof Narlikar was the founder-director of the IUCAA in Pune and was known for his seminal works in cosmology and most importantly, for believing in an alternate model to the popular Big Bang theory for the origin of the universe. In 1988, Prof Narlikar founded the IUCAA within the Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU). Professor Narlikar was India's most celebrated astrophysicist, having received the second highest civilian award, the Padma Vibhushan in 2004. Two decades earlier, he was honored with the Kalinga Award, UNESCO's highest recognition for science popularisation. A large donation from Sunita Deshpande, the wife of his late friend Pu La Deshpande, a cultural icon of Maharashtra, turned this dream into reality and the children's exploratory science centre was inaugurated in 2004 by Prof Yash Pal, a fellow Kalinga awardee who shared his vision of science. 'Right from its inception, IUCAA had an active public outreach programme. Every second Saturday, there was a popular science lecture/demonstration for some 1,000 students and teachers from over 100 schools in Pune. This tradition still continues. JVN started the students' summer internship programme. During summer holidays, children would work with scientists on some projects. That gave children a feel for what goes into doing science,' Prof Gupta said. Prof Gupta also spoke about Dr Vidula Mhaiskar, who is now with Garware Bal Bhavan, Pune; and Ashok Rupner, now with Indrani Balan Science Centre, IISER, who had joined him at IUCAA's children's science centre. 'In 2004, we set up the popular website We started uploading science projects – photographs, videos, and popular books on the website. We made over 8,700 videos in 15 languages and uploaded them on YouTube. We had 3.7 lakh subscribers, and we were the second-largest YouTube channel from India at one stage. Today, 12 crore children worldwide have viewed our 2-minute 'toys from trash' videos,' Prof Gupta said. Dr Gupta also recalled that the anti-superstition activist Dr Narendra Dabholkar often collaborated with Prof Narlikar. 'Prof JVN was a renaissance scientist. He wrote prolifically in his mother tongue, Marathi, and was a pioneer of science fiction writing. He was a rationalist and consistently debunked pseudoscience. Dr Narendra Dabholkar often collaborated with JVN, who was invited widely to give lectures to school and college children,' he added. According to reports, Dr Dabholkar also conducted a statistical test on the accuracy of horoscopes with Prof Narlikar. The report was published in the journal Current Science. Anuradha Mascarenhas is a journalist with The Indian Express and is based in Pune. A senior editor, Anuradha writes on health, research developments in the field of science and environment and takes keen interest in covering women's issues. With a career spanning over 25 years, Anuradha has also led teams and often coordinated the edition. ... Read More
Daily Mirror
02-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Hairdresser-approved Olaplex treatment that is a ‘miracle product' is now less than £20
Looking to revive your bleached or damaged hair? Olaplex's bond building treatment has been praised by shoppers as a 'miracle product' and it's currently less than £20 If your hair's been through a lot, whether that's colour treatments, heat styling, or just general breakage, then a strengthening hair treatment may be just what you need. And we've found where you can shop Olaplex's No. 0 Intensive Bond Building Hair Treatment for less than £20. In a limited-time deal, Amazon has slashed the priced of this 'miracle' product by 30%, bringing the price down from £28 to £19.80. So what exactly does this treatment do? It acts as a hair primer to prep your hair to get the most out of your other haircare products, more specifically improving the efficacy of Olaplex's No. 3 Hair Perfector, which can be used in conjunction with No. 0. Packed with Olaplex's highest concentration of their famous bond-building technology, it helps strengthen fragile strands, reducing the look of damage and leaving your hair looking smoother, healthier, and fuller. With hundreds of glowing reviews, shoppers have been raving about the instant results they receive after using this treatment. One shopper wrote: 'Definitely recommend. I have used the olaplex 0 followed by the 3 then rinsed and shampooed my hair before using the 8 for the first time today. I can visibly see the difference in my hair and it feels healthier. Definitely a product I will be using regularly This product is even loved by the professionals, with one reviewer writing: 'I'm a hairdresser and have used every make and brand of treatments. THIS IS SENSATIONAL.' A third said: "Decided to invest after severe bleach damage (60% broken off hair) and I have to say this has been an absolute godsend. I am using with 3 and also the bonding oil together with twice weekly rosemary oil scalp massage. I don't have a huge amount of shine but I'm not really expecting that for a good while but the main thing to point out is that i have noticed a massive difference on the amount of hair breaking off. I would literally say 80% less hair loss. Would 100% recommend for severely damaged hair." The only criticism a few different shoppers experience was to do with the packaging and nozzle, claiming the spray can cause the product to come out a bit sporadically at times. Another option for reviving damaged hair , and kit that is excellent value for money is JVN's Complete Trusted Trio Set. This retails for £28, and features £42 worth of products, so is a great way to try out a few of the brand's different formulas without committing to the full price.
