Large Hadron Collider at CERN in the village of Saint-Genis-Pouilly near Geneva in Switzerland.
Collider physics studies the results of high-energy collisions between microscopic particles such as protons or electrons to learn about the fundamental constituents of our universe. If one mentions this subject in the Indian context, Rohini Godbole’s name will be one of the first to pop up. Prof Godbole died on October 25 after a brief illness. He is 71 years old.
Born into a middle-class Pune family devoted to education and learning, he became an internationally renowned theoretical physicist. Her parents supported her career choice, but she faced condescension and gender bias from professional colleagues at an important stage in her career. But it is not in his nature to be discouraged. He went through difficult times with energy and determination, with a passion for research and an ability to inspire students. In time, he gained global recognition as a researcher, educator, policy maker, and science administrator.
Paving the road
A graduate of SP College in Pune, Prof. Godbole obtained his master’s degree at IIT Bombay and went on to do his PhD at the State University of New York at Stony Brook (now Stony Brook University) in the US During the 1970s, the physics department. under the leadership of the Chinese-American Nobel laureate CN Yang has developed a top-class doctoral program. Unlike the Ivy League colleges that could be prejudiced against students from India at the time, Stony Brook was more open-minded. In fact, it quickly became enthusiastic about Indian students, largely due to the success of early recruits such as Prof. Godbole.
Thus he helped pave the way for many others (including me) to study at the same institution, which I joined a few years later. Our small contingent, newly arrived from India and quite nervous, were lucky to meet him when we entered the department on the first day. His warm welcome was in stark contrast to the standoffish attitude of some other senior Indians. In the years that followed, he continued to offer advice and encouragement with characteristic enthusiasm.
Prof. Godbole is popular with faculty members and students at Stony Brook and is considered one of the most talented students. However, when he completed his doctorate in 1979, he turned down postdoctoral offers from the US and Europe and returned to work at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai. I remember the day his first publication from India reached us at Stony Brook. They can continue to do quality research that is sure that many careers at home are the right choice, and we will be inspired to come back.
Times are tough
His beginnings in India were not easy. Despite his good work, he was told he lacked the talent to be a quality independent researcher. He joined Bombay University where he had a heavy teaching load despite the system’s indifference to research, although he acknowledged the support and guidance of several senior colleagues.
After days of teaching, he still has the energy to commute across town to TIFR and conduct research with the faculty there. Without a small desk to work with, she remained focused on her research and did not complain about what she saw as gender-based discrimination. In 1995 he was offered a faculty position at the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, where his work as a researcher became less stressful and he was able to recruit and guide doctoral students. At this stage, his career took off and he became a celebrity.
A Cut above the other
Rohini Godbole is a classic “fundamental particle phenomenologist” – a scientist who studies the phenomena observed in particle collisions. His research papers interpret experimental observations at laboratories like Fermilab in the US and CERN in Geneva, and propose so-called experimental signatures for theoretical models that are used to test their validity. He co-authored a textbook on the supersymmetric model of particle physics, whose evidence is currently being looked at in colliders.
They are often invited to sit on panels and working groups. For example, in 2012 he was the most senior among only four Indians in a study group commissioned by CERN that produced a 600-page report on the possibility of upgrading the Large Hadron Collider to include electron beams.
At this time, he was personally known to all leading particle physicists around the world, and was often invited as a keynote speaker at international conferences on high-energy physics. He is a fellow of the national academy and has received many awards, including awards from the governments of India and France. As a visiting professor at a European university, he teaches postgraduate courses on the theme of research work.
At some point it became apparent that he had outgrown other Indian colleagues in his field, including those who had discouraged him decades earlier. He spoke openly about the obstacles he faced in the past, but never resented the experience – nor was he particularly happy after achieving worldwide success.
Always with a smile
Prof. Godbole at this time is well placed to be a role model for young researchers, especially female scientists who struggle – as she once did – against gender bias and negative attitudes. She happily takes on this responsibility and becomes an advocate for women in science. While continuing to conduct high-quality research, she founded the ‘Women in Science Panel’ of the Indian Academy of Sciences and served as its first Chairperson. She was a plenary speaker at the International Conference on Women in Physics, in Paris in 2001. In a brief autobiographical note, she wrote about the experience:
“I was invited to speak about my experience as a female physicist in India who has achieved some measure of success, and resonated with the audience. Women from Ghana, Mauritius, Egypt came to me and said that Western women speak, we feel that we come from different cultures, but when listen to you, we feel – if they can do it, so can we!
This experience led her to edit the now famous compilation of career profiles of nearly a hundred Indian women scientists, ‘Lilavati’s Daughters’, and she gave many lectures and wrote articles on gender-related issues in science.
On several occasions I had the opportunity to sit in committee meetings with him, and observed a very good style of functioning. Although a talker in public, he is a careful listener in meetings and will only express his opinion after thoroughly absorbing the facts. His words are direct and pointed and he fights hard for what he thinks is right, but always in constructive language and with a smile.
Let me conclude with a quote from an email circulated at CERN just a few hours after he passed away in Pune. “It is with great sadness that we learn of the passing of Rohini Godbole. A brilliant phenomenologist and visionary leader, Rohini has inspired students and researchers around the world.
Sunil Mukhi is a theoretical physicist at IISER Pune doing research in quantum field theory and string theory.
Published – 31 October 2024 05:30 IST