The atmosphere this evening is very different than what one experienced during the day at this very Inselhalle, venue of the 63rd Lindau Nobel Laureates Meeting on green chemistry that opened on June 30. Gone are the casual T-shirts and jeans of the young crowd of researchers from across the globe, their chilli red satchel slung across their shoulder, tablets in hand. This evening, they are all togged up, many in their national costumes and others in Bavarian dresses, looking pretty and un-nerd like! And the Nobel Laureates? They are wearing their usual suits, accompanied by their wives and readying to enjoy a relaxed evening of music, dance and Bavarian beer and food. But not before a brief presentation made by Bavarian state minister of sciences, research and the arts, Dr Wolfgang Heubisch who informs the audience that Bavaria is a great destination for those who wish to do high-end scientific research.
Bavarian ensemble, Lindau 2013
After a folk dance performance, two students from Bavaria, Nadja Bertleff and Thomas Hopf each make a short presentation of their respective projects - Nadja on the link between cancer and Galectin-1 and Hopf on the promise of molecular biology and they were cross-questioned by Bavarian Nobel Laureate Prof Robert Huber who won the Prize in 1988.
There is more music and dance before we are invited to partake of a Bavarian meal. Meanwhile, I spot a very young lad in Nepalese dress complete with cap. He is Khagendra Acharya, just turned 19. "I live alone in Kathmandu," he says beaming with pride. "I am doing my second year chemistry after which I shall apply to the US to do a PhD." He is one among the 200 candidates selected by the Lindau Council from direct applicants.
Khagendra Acharya, St Xaviers, Nepal and Aniket Magarkar, Univ of Helsinki at Lindau 2013
Khagendra is one of seven children - he has three brothers and three sisters. His two older brothers are school teachers. One brother is in government service. The three sisters are married and are homemakers. His parents? They are farmers and grow padd y in the Terai region of Nepal in Biratnagar, very close to the border with India. "Although my father does not understand what this Lindau meeting is all about, he is happy for me that I am able to do what I like to do," says Khagendra, grinning from ear to ear. He is thrilled to be here - he was also a participant last year at the Sixth Asian Science Camp in Israel where he heard from his peers about the Lindau meetings with Nobel Laureates and so he applied. And got selected!
Khagendra Acharya has made several friends here - he is seated next to 28-year-old Aniket Magarkar from Mumbai, who is doing his PhD in computational nano-medicine at the University of Helsinki, Finland. He too applied directly to the Lindau Council.
Fatima Ijaz, Samia Saleemi, Hina Naeem, Pakistan at Lindau 2013
As I prepare to leave - the youngsters are in no hurry to call it a day, busy as they are, networking - I bump into two Indian students, Venuka Durani Goyal from IIT Mumbai and Tripti Aggarwal from University of Delhi in animated conversation with their Pakistani counterpart, Adnan Mujahid from the University of Punjab, Pakistan. The girls are in their traditional clothes - sari and salwar kameez while Adnan has opted to wear a western suit. As I click their picture, all three in unison say, "Ma'am will you send us the photograph?"
Tripti Aggarwal, Adnan Mujahid and Venuka D Goyal at Lindau 2013
http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/treasurehunt/entry/a-bavarian-interface-with-bright-young-researchers-from-nepal-pakistan-and-india
