Science, Technology and Human Welfare International Workshop at JNTU Kakinada

After Chandrayan it is ultra-cheap laptop. India is doing great. It will do more for human welfare.

Advances in technology make a completely different contribution to the Indian economy. It is technology that transforms our daily lives. Moreover, not only does technology continue to advance irrespective of the economic cycle; harsher times may actually speed up its application. 

World wars have proved this view point. Amidst the general economic gloom, there has been a surge in interest in the ways in which technology is driving forward and the possible consequences on our lives.

JNTU Kakinada is way ahead in this technology drive by offering new and innovative programmes.

The world is now at the stage when the full benefits of the communications revolution are being felt. There is a normal pattern. A 

set of new technologies are developed, but it always takes several years to figure out quite how these should be applied and then develop the 

infrastructure that permits these applications. Just as it took 30 years from the development of the motor car for it to become a popular consumer 

item, it has taken the best part of a generation for the developments in communications technology to move into every home. The parallel is close. For 

the motor revolution to sweep across the world there had to be advances in technology, in particular Henry Ford's moving production line, advances in 

infrastructure, in particular proper road networks, and advances in human competence, like large masses learn to drive.

For the communications revolution to transform the world there had to be advances in both hardware and software like faster 

computers, email, Google, etc, advances in infrastructure like routers, broadband, etc and competence like learning how to use the stuff. The world is 

now at the maximum speed of advance in communications technologies, equivalent to the motor industry in the 1920s and 1930s.

There has been the scheme whereby the mobile phone companies give away a notebook computer as part of the contract to access 

their broadband networks. There have been figures showing that China now has more internet connections than the US. Last year the 10 largest markets 

for new mobile phone sales were all in the emerging economies: there were more mobile phones sold in Bangladesh than in Germany.

As a result of advanced technologies, virtually all manufactured products are much cheaper now in real terms than they were a 

generation ago. Thanks again to advanced technologies the Quality has improved too: cars don't break down as often as they used to.

One of the great challenges is to improve the efficiency of government services in India with all this hungama. This can only come 

through the application of new technology. Increasing living standards over the next decade will be really tough. It will also be tough because of 

longer-term trends, in particular the ageing of the population throughout the world. The principal weapon to meet the challenge is technology, and in 

particular, technology that is already known but not yet properly applied.

In another 20 years' time it would be sensible to expect radical changes in our energy provision and use. We will probably know 

which technologies will help us replace the oil-driven economy of the 20th century. We will have found practical applications for nano-technology. 

The whole stem-cell area will be bringing results that will improve our welfare. Google and NASA were combining to found an institution called the 

"Singularity University". It will offer courses on bio-technology, nano-technology and artificial intelligence, and is based on the presumption that, in 

another half century, computers will be cleverer than people.

21st century is a century dominated by science and technology. None of us could disagree with this statement. We could feel the 

role played by science and technology in our daily lives. Till recently the life expectancy was about forty-five years; today our lifespan exceeds 65. 
We need to work for a disease free society by taking full advantage of technological advances. We are constantly being frightened by the so-called 

cancer epidemic, supposedly due to environmental pollution. At the turn of the century, when most people did not live until the age of fifty-five, 

cancer was obviously less common. If we examine the age-adjusted cancer death rates since 1930, we find that the incidence of cancer of the stomach 

has fallen more than fivefold, cancer of the liver threefold, and cancer of the uterus fourfold. This is all because of advancements in Science and 

Technology. This is what Science and Technology doing for the human welfare.

People attribute the idea of a cancer epidemic to the changes in our environment as a consequence of science and technology which 

is a myth. 

Let us consider the fear of "toxi-genic bacteria". Although it is possible to alter bacteria by genetic engineering, is there reason to 

believe that these altered bacteria would be more toxic than the multiplicity of bacteria that Nature has provided -- particularly in view of the ability of 

bacteria to mutate continuously so as to produce new antibiotic-resistant strains? Recently our greatest concern has not been bacterial disease but 

rather those diseases caused by infection with retroviruses.

The world is now confronted with a major health problem, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), which affects people in 

the most productive portion of their lives and increasingly is being transmitted to children by infected mothers.

We have already begun to appreciate the social and economic costs of this terrible disease whose rapid spread has been a 

consequence of major changes in lifestyle. This complex new disease is not a by-product of science and technology. Let us hope that science will find a 

way to prevent the spread of this modern plague.

The use of coal for electricity production results in an average of 300 accident-related deaths each year, as well as the associated 

problems of acid rain and the "greenhouse effect", i.e. the gradual warming of the Earth due to the burning of fossil fuels. Due to advances in Science 

and Technology pollution free nuclear energy is being produced. In France, nuclear power accounts for 70 per cent of electricity generated. Equivalent 

figures are 67 per cent for Belgium, 39 per cent for Sweden, 30 per cent in Germany, 25 per cent for Japan and 17 per cent for the United States. 

However India is very slow to catch up with other countries. I am very proud to announce that JNTU Kakinada has already introduced M.E in Nuclear 

Energy Engineering to harness the advantage of Science and Technology.

The new convergence of science and culture will give scope for advanced technologies. Science and Technology should be our 

religion. A new naturalism is emerging and we are aware of a new sense of solidarity between man and other living creatures, indeed, with 

the entire biosphere. Moreover, this transitional phase in science coincides with a period in which mankind itself is going through an age of transition. 
The rapid phase of development on which we are now embarked bears with it the danger of the creation of a rift between those with knowledge and 

those deprived of it, and between those who are taking part in and benefiting from the current scientific and economic revolution and those who have 

no share in it. The scandals of disease, famine and the inequitable distribution of wealth have been referred to on several occasions during this 

Conference. Nevertheless, science has made possible the emergence of a kind of society in which individual responsibility is greater than it has ever 

been, and has created a universal language by means of which men can communicate.

The importance of knowledge, at all levels, has to be stressed to fight against illiteracy. Reform of elementary education, 

restructuring of research systems in India to make them more oriented towards the man/Nature interface is highly essential. Support should be given to 

programmes such as Global Change and Human Frontiers programme. All these efforts should lead to the establishment of a worldwide network of 

scientific collaboration. In the same spirit, it is vital to press for pooling of the resources of the oceans, of space and of information.

Science today has the potential to improve the overall situation of the world; what is still needed is the political will to do so. The 

science of today promotes a pluralistic outlook. We must henceforth combat reductionist ideologies within the human sciences, and in culture in 

general.

We need a school where students learn about and research the high technology to be applied to ensuring human welfare and 

happiness. With keywords such as "Information," "Life," "Medical Care," and "Environment," the school should aim to foster persons who will be able 

to handle the scientific technologies that we will be using in the near future. Through cooperation between the University and industry, we should 

organize practical education such as observation tours, internships, and joint research.

JNTU Kakinada is planning to setup the following schools with the approval of AP Government.

Perceptual Human Interface Design to pursue the education of new creative talent. Graduates of the program will go on 

to the production of computer graphics, images, and the design/production of articles. Based on the basics of IT systems, subjects including 

human-computer interfaces, sensible digital design, and business creation are offered.

Information and Communication Technology (ICT): While in Information Technology (IT) the students study both the 

"Information" field (such as software) and the "Communications" field (such as networks), in this new programme students learn multimedia 

technology, network technology, software technology, etc., leading to a new breed of Information Processing Engineers.

Materials Chemistry will be involved in the development of the new materials that are indispensable to solving the global 

environmental issues that human beings are facing.

Biological Science and Technology: Biological science and technology can be broadly divided into four areas: molecular 

bio-engineering, biophysics, biological system engineering and bio-production engineering. Study of genes and biological molecules and their 

application to engineering, and consider the structures of organisms such as nerves and cells, as well as engineering methods for efficiently producing 

organisms.

Bio-Medical Engineering to train engineers and researchers specializing in biomedical engineering by striving to achieve a 

balance between practical and ethical aspects. Thus enabling them to play a leading role in medical practice. Study and research the application of lasers 

for medical treatment, remote treatment using robots, brain waves, pain-killing, consciousness, sleep and artificial organs .

I need all your whole hearted support in transforming this University to a world class University.

Jai Hind, Jai JNTU Kakinada