Science Quest
IIT Palakkad conducts a residential science camp in memory of Late Prof. M. C. Valsakumar, former Professor of Physics and Dean Student Affairs at IIT Palakkad. Prof. Valsakumar, Valsa to his friends, was an excellent researcher, an extraordinary teacher and above all a humanist. Spreading his passion for science is our way of continuing the journey with him.
The goal of the camp is to instil a spirit of inquiry and critical thinking, and love for science and mathematics in students. This camp also provides a platform for interactions between students from various regions and researchers at IIT Palakkad. There will be interactive sessions on various topics in science, engineering and mathematics, and several hands-on sessions in labs where scientific concepts will be introduced through experiments. For further queries please send a mail to sciencequest@iitpkd.ac.in.
About Valsa (Prof. M. C. Valsakumar [1952-2019])
Prof. M. C. Valsakumar was born in Pinarayi, Kannur district in Kerala. He was an alumnus of Government. Brennen College, Thalassery and Department of Physics, University of Calicut. Soon after his M.Sc (1975- with gold medal) he joined BARC Training School, Mumbai. Since then he worked at IGCAR, Kalpakkam till he superannuated as Outstanding Scientist and Head of Materials Physics Division, IGCAR in 2012. Soon after he retired from IGCAR he was invited as a Distinguished Professor at School of Materials Engineering/Science, University of Hyderabad. In June 2015 he accepted the invitation to join IIT Palakkad where he served until March 2018.
Prof. Valsakumar was a versatile researcher. He published more than 160 research articles in reputed journals. Many scientists and various university students completed their PhD under his able guidance. Some of his seminal works on open quantum systems and statistical mechanics became landmarks in those areas. His research interests spanned across quantum field theory and computational materials science. He was also an expert in high performance computing and was instrumental in developing dedicated computational facilities at IGCAR.
Prof. Valsakumar was an inspiring teacher with a deep understanding across various disciplines. He was adored by his students.
