Stay curious

A pioneer in the field of chemical engineering, Prof. M. M. Sharma asks inventors to think laterally and investors to encourage blue sky research

‘Increasing use of technology has caused rapid development in the world’. It is not difficult to find some version of this line in almost every school textbook. But how has technology lead to development, asked last Tuesday’s guest speaker Prof. M. M. Sharma. Speaking to Rotarians on the Role of Innovation in Success, this Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan awardee simplified the equation down to: ‘Technology is Science that Makes Business’.

He said, “Innovation never comes without invention and invention never comes without blue sky research.” Prof. harma, who has advised some of the top companies in the world including Dow, DuPont, Reliance and Sabic, pushed for more acceptance of blue sky research which is a scientific approach in itself. Instead of being goaloriented, blue sky science is more curiosity driven.

Prof. Sharma said he appreciated China’s progress due to its out-ofthe- box research methods and encouraged greater
provision for such research in India. Research is the most important part in any invention, he said, as, equally, is chance or coincidence. Prof Sharma astonished Rotarians with several examples of serendipity in invention.

He said, “While invention is an idea, innovation is when the idea is converted in to commerce.” The spectrum of application for any invention can be broad; one can never know how far the invented product will go. For instance,
laser technology is now used in both surgery and the cutting of diamonds. The keystone behind such invention is fundamental research. Success comes when inventions become money spinners.

Amongst the world’s foremost experts in chemical engineering, Prof. Sharma threw a little chemistry at the members while explaining the impact of high science and inventions in MRI machines and its functioning. One of the main elements for the functioning of MRI machines is Helium which, after a massive shortage, is now produced in Qatar’s LNG plants at a very large scale, at about minus 100 degree Celsius. Thus, high science converted to business makes
a big impact on society.

LED technology was born out of curiosity, said Prof. Sharma. This kind of curiosity came from crazy individuals obsessed with invention. He appealed to corporates to support inventions even if not immediately profitable. A climate of invention is necessary. Another appeal he made was to the families of young, innovative minds: encourage them instead of curbing them. One cannot invent without failure and more the failure, more the curiosity, better the
innovation.

Prof. Sharma, a highly decorated UDCT (now known as Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai) alumnus, said he believes that the future of plastic is bright. It is a material used in more than half of our daily life’s needs, from communication to transport. Thus, to conclude, Prof. Sharma believes that unless we invent and innovate, our
growth will be economically slow.

If India is to make rapid economic progress, it is not going to be on borrowed technology. We need to develop our own tech, and to not forget that innovation is not a one-time activity, it is a process that is continuous.