Grammarly is the worst thing to have happened to writing. It is too intrusive. It will tell you to change words and restructure sentences even though they are absolutely grammatically correct. That is because Grammarly is fixated on certain writing styles; it will change anything that does not fit Grammarly’s template. It will eventually rob your confidence and turn you into a clone of itself.
Good writing is about developing an individual identity, which Grammarly absolutely hates. Of course, you can use Grammarly for basic grammar checks by disabling the functions that take care of style-related changes. Then remember, you have paid for those functions. You can do basic grammar checks for free using Google Docs.
As someone who cannot write a single paragraph without making some errors like spelling and punctuation, particularly while writing LinkedIn posts, I needed a tool that can fix basic issues like spelling errors and comma splices. After a few months of trying unsuccessfully to customize Grammarly as per my needs, I decided to remove it permanently. A couple of months post Grammarly, I feel much better these days while writing.
These days I mostly use Google Docs. It lets you be what you are. Of course, Google Docs is not for someone who is still learning grammar. It will not bother to check contextual issues. In fact, Grammarly too misses contextual errors sometimes.
In doubt, mostly when I am in a hurry, I use ChatGPT for fixing grammatical issues. Remember, ChatGPT will work pretty much like Grammarly, that is, modifying sentences unnecessarily. I also do not like ChatGPT’s excessive use of em dashes (—). (If you see someone’s post having too many em dashes, safely assume that ChatGPT is heavily employed.)
If you want to use ChatGPT for fixing basic grammatical issues, use prompts like “Fix spelling and grammatical errors without doing unnecessary changes.” Find a prompt that works for you. Remember, ChatGPT will forget the prompt even within the same window due to limited memory. So, you will need to use the prompt again and again.
Of course, the best thing you can do is buy a book on advanced writing. There are many you can find in the market; choose one that is easily available and you are comfortable with.
Friday, 25 April 2025
Want to improve your writing? Stop using Grammarly
Lack of skills in Indian academia? Blame the CEOs too
Indian CEOs often complain about the low skill levels among students graduating from technical institutions. They should realize they are actually part of the problem. The problem? Heavy reliance on written aptitude tests for campus recruitment. I am not sure if companies in any other major country follow this type of hiring process.
How is written test-based hiring the main issue? Consider an average IIT MTech student. After the coursework in the first year, the student is given one full year to work on a project. One year is sufficient to gain meaningful skills for real-life challenges. But what does the student actually do? A large percentage of the available time is spent preparing for written tests, and the project work takes a back seat. After a student is selected by a company, motivation for the project work further declines, as the student does not know how it will be helpful in the future.
Written aptitude tests are quite redundant. They only evaluate a candidate’s quick puzzle-solving skills, which have already been assessed by JEE or GATE. Needless to say, the campus recruitment process gives a very misleading picture of what constitutes a well-rounded personality suited to real-world challenges.
What can companies do? Strengthen your internship programs. Not only can you help participating students develop skills, but you can also create recruitment channels. Focus more on industry-academia collaboration. Visit academic institutions and give talks -- students should know what skills industries are actually looking for. Also, more importantly, academic institutions can play a key role in helping industries develop future technologies.
Publishing is becoming increasingly difficult for Indian scientists
The two main causes:
1. The open-access trend.
While the number of journals is increasing due to the widespread use of the internet, the number of journals accessible to Indian scientists is actually decreasing at a rapid rate due to the trend of publishing in open-access journals.
A few days back I asked my student to submit our manuscript to the Journal of Flood Risk Management. "It is an open-access journal," he said. I then figured out that the journal switched to open access in 2020. EGU journals have always been out of reach for us, and now all AGU journals have also taken the open-access route this year.
In case you are wondering why open access is a challenge for Indian researchers: Indian funding agencies do not provide funds for publication fees (nor should they, in my opinion).
2. Unlimited power of editors for desk rejection.
Editors are not required to provide any justification for desk rejections, as high rejection rates are often a bragging point for journals. Indian scientists are particularly disadvantaged, as the number of Indians on editorial boards is proportionally very low. Worse, an Indian editor may not necessarily be sympathetic to an Indian author, as we lack a strong culture of cooperation.
What could be an effective solution?
Indian scientists should come together to establish their own journals, as it is difficult to find a single Indian journal in many subject areas. For example, there is no credible journal on hydrological sciences from India. Moreover, publishing in an Indian journal is often viewed negatively within India itself.
Indian funding agencies have the power to change this trend by making it mandatory to publish in Indian journals. In this age of the internet, the location of the journal’s office should not matter.
Is desk rejection peer review?
Desk rejection is largely a perversion of peer review. Why am I saying this? Because journals call it peer review. Peer review demands that a manuscript be reviewed by subject experts or peers. Desk rejection, by definition, means the manuscript has not been sent to peers for review.
Can an editor be a peer reviewer? Yes. But, most of the times, we only see vague comments in the desk-rejection letter, which are absolutely unhelpful to the authors. Needless to say, the arbitrary power to desk reject provides a fertile ground for personal, racial, and other biases. This is exactly how desk rejection negatively impacts people from developing countries. It leaves them in a state of confusion and helplessness.
Journals often claim they are receiving an overwhelming number of submissions. That is an excuse. If the number of submissions increases, increase the number of editors. It is as simple as that. I am not saying there cannot be valid grounds for desk rejection. Desk rejection can help journals improve their impact factors by selecting articles, likely to be cited more.
However, it is wrong to label it peer review.
We don't need a centrally controlled education system
Trump has pledged to shut down the Department of Education. I support any move to reduce the role of central authority in framing educational policies. Education is too important to be left in the hands of a few bureaucrats at the center.
India would also benefit from downsizing the Ministry of Education. Excessive regulation has damaged our education system. Our students go to even Ukraine and Bangladesh for education. On the other hand, a relatively less regulated healthcare market has made India’s healthcare both high-quality and affordable, attracting patients from advanced countries.
A few days back, I came to know about Swaraj University, whose aim is to provide practically relevant education. Because its curriculum is very unconventional, it is not recognized by any authority. Without regulation, many more such experiments will happen.
However, we need to exercise caution in interpreting what politicians say. Politicians often mean something that is different from what they are saying. Modi, before the 2014 election, promised to downsize the central government. The central government actually has grown bigger in the last decade. I would like to hear what Americans have to say about the matter.
(On LinkedIn, November 2024)
Kartik Purnima: a celebration of globalization
Globalization is nothing new, and sea trade has always played a significant role in connecting people. About four thousand years ago, the Indus Valley had extensive sea trade links with the Middle East. The attached picture of an Indus seal shows a boat. Sailors followed coastlines for navigation, and you can easily spot two birds on the boat, which were used in emergencies. If a boat inadvertently lost sight of the coast, the sailor would release a bird to get back to a safe distance.
While the Indus Valley and its trade declined, possibly due to climate change, sea trade began booming along the coastlines of Kalinga (now Odisha). Merchants from Kalinga (called Sadhavas) dared to venture into deep seas because of advancements in astronomy. Their ships were large enough to carry together more than 700 merchants, along with the crew and even elephants, to distant locations in Indonesia and China (see the attached map). Of course, cultural exchange is always an unintended consequence of trade.
It is unfortunate that we now know so little about the methods they used for navigation and shipbuilding. Perhaps there is still time to recover some of this knowledge. I remember a fisherman who gave us a boat ride in Chilika Lake a decade ago, mentioning that they tracked stars and the sun for navigational purposes.
Contrary to the popular notion that the Dutch East India Company was the first to introduce large-scale financial institutions that accelerated global trade, temples in India actually served as financial hubs. They drafted contracts and provided other financial services to merchants. That is why they became prime targets of Turkic armies starting in the 13th century. Indians then gradually withdrew from the seas, and eventually, crossing seas became a taboo in India.
Nevertheless, the old memories have not faded completely. People in Odisha celebrate the sea-faring tradition of Kartik Purnima each year by floating boats on the water. Bali Jatra (voyage to Bali, Indonesia) is celebrated in a grand way in Cuttack. So, early this morning, we went to Powai Lake to float boats made of banana stems.
(On LinkedIn, Kartik Purnima, 2024)
Should we work for 70 hours a week?
Narayan Murty reiterates his view that Indians should work 70 hours a week. First of all, I have immense respect for Murty et al. for bringing the IT revolution to India. It has undoubtedly changed crores of Indian lives for the better. Nevertheless, I understand the backlash against his view.
Smruti Sarangi on LinkedIn makes a very important point. "In Delhi, a good UrbanClap employee (plumber/carpenter/electrician) does indeed work for more than 60-65 hours... Many IIT Professors start their day at 8 AM and are active till 11 PM (easily 12 hours of work time). If you consider a senior person like an IIT Director or a bureaucrat, you will find his/her calendar to be officially booked for about 50-60 hours per week.
Yes: The moral of the story is that many Indians, on their own volition, do indeed put in really long hours."
Let's take a deeper dive. Works can be classified into two broad types.
T1: The number of work hours is proportional to the value it adds. A security guard works at the gate for 6 hours. If the working hours increase to 12, it can be assumed that the value added has doubled
T2: The correlation between the number of work hours and the value it adds is very weak. A scientist spends 6 hours a day in the lab. It would be difficult to predict productivity if 12 hours per day were spent instead.
It makes sense if Narayan Murthy is talking about T1 work. However, the problem with Murthy's view is that it is silent on the compensation aspect. Yesterday, at 9 pm, I met a security guard in our housing society whose duty was supposed to end at 8 pm (8 am to 8 pm). He stayed on because the person in charge was absent. However, the main reason he took up the additional responsibility was that he would be paid for the extra 12 hours.
Extra work hours will not be seen as an issue in the context of the discussion here if, for example, Infosys decides to compensate financially.
There is no point in increasing the work hours if we are talking about T2 work. I never specify the number of work hours for my PhD students. It simply does not make any sense. All I can do is motivate them to work.
People give extra work hours when they see a purpose. For T1, the purpose is mainly financial compensation. For T2 work, the purpose is generally non-financial. Many politicians work extra hours because they genuinely believe the work they are doing cannot be done by anyone else. A few climate activists even risk going to jail because they think the planet will not be worth living without their work.
If Narayan Murthy is talking about our nation's development, his view is not only vague but also misleading. No nation attends greatness by treating its people as manpower suitable only for T1 work. Our IT companies have earned thousands of crores. How many products have they developed? How much have they invested in R&D?
(On LinkedIn, November 2024)
Shopping malls can explain the low scientific productivity of India
Why cannot India produce great science? Let me start with a simple observation. Last Sunday we were in the crowded eating zone of a large shopping mall. After we picked food, I told my friend that I had to wash my hands. Well, there is no wash basin in the entire eating zone. You have to go all the way to the toilet room to find a wash basin. This is interesting because, in Indian tradition, not washing hands before eating is considered unhygienic and uncivil. Yet, most of the expensive restaurants in India do not provide a basin for washing hands. Why? Because designers simply copy-paste ideas from the USA or Europe. They do not muster the courage to even add a wash basin. Or perhaps a designer once tried to include one but was rebuffed due to fear of losing peer approval.
This is the exact same reason why we cannot produce great science. If you have a great Idea, it is very difficult to get approval from your Indian peers because the idea has not been approved by peers in the West.
Before you decide to argue that science does not work in the same way, let me tell science is not as objective as most people think. As Max Plank once said: "A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents eventually die, and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it.” Objectivity is a scarce resource in scientific discourses. You cannot even prove that 1 + 1 = 2 objectively if your peers are determined to prove you wrong.
Reynolds transport theorem and the Sputnik crisis
I have been teaching Reynolds transport theorem (RTT) for more than a decade as part of the courses related to fluid mechanics and hydrology. I always find students struggling to understand the concept. A couple of years back, I started wondering if there was any real value in teaching the theorem since I didn’t see anyone using RTT to tell what was not already known.
To those who are unaware, RTT can be used to derive the mass, momentum, and energy conservation laws. However, the three laws were derived much before RTT was formulated. What purpose does then the RTT serve? We need to understand the historical context of RTT.
In 1957, the USSR launched the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, creating fear of a communist takeover of the USA. American educators and policymakers thought the Russians had an edge due to their superior mathematical skills. The RTT was thus introduced by Shames in 1962.
What is the difficulty with RTT? RTT is an attempt to do what is commonly termed formal mathematics. Formal mathematics attempts to minimize the emphasis on observations. You will be referred to some axiom that is hard to relate to your real-world experience. That is exactly why students find RTT difficult. If this is not clear, let me cite the popular example 1+1=2. You can put two apples side by side and prove the statement. But formal mathematics would not accept it. This is why Russel took about 370 pages to provide proof, which anyway is not valid for all cases.
So, if you are finding a concept difficult to understand. Don’t put all the blame on yourself. Read the papers that provide a clear picture of something without introducing mathematics unnecessarily. In the context of fluid mechanics, you can just imagine a bucket draining water to understand the mass balance principle.
For more details on RTT, see: Gray, D. (2008, June). Why the Balance Principle Should Replace the Reynolds Transport Theorem. In 2008 Annual Conference & Exposition.
Peer review does not like novelty very much
Our most important work on streamflow modeling in recent years has been rejected by two leading journals. (The manuscript challenges the widely accepted notion that every landscape is unique.) . The first journal rejected the manuscript mainly because one reviewer had issues with the terminology we used and was not impressed because we argued back. The second journal's editor rejected it for reasons totally unknown to us; there was not a single comment that challenged our conclusions. In fact, among all the comments we have received from the two journals, there was only one comment that required additional analysis, which we did and showed that our conclusions remained unchanged.
Novel works are particularly vulnerable because the peer review system does not appreciate negative comments. How can you ensure there are no negative comments when your work challenges a dominant narrative? The difficulty is increased manyfold. Of course, I don't need to mention the racial and national biases that come into play.
In the meantime, I have put the manuscript in a preprint domain for everyone to review. I have also presented our results in various forums and received largely positive comments. We are pursuing several other projects based on this work. The peer review system allows insecure and incompetent people to hide behind the veil and create obstacles.
All journals should adopt the open review process pioneered by HESS. It is not a great solution, but at least it allows everyone to see the entire discussion.
(LinkedIn, December 2024)
How dark was the medieval dark age?
The medieval dark age (5th–15th century) in Europe was not that dark. The hypothesis that the Catholic Church was against science (search "conflict thesis") is a very simplistic view of the complex realities of the time period.
The Catholic Church, in fact, actively pursued science. It established many learning institutions, including those in Bologna and Oxford. I would go as far as saying that the foundation of modern (European) science was laid by clergymen when they declared that God designed the world according to mathematical principles (see the attached image), though it was not a very original idea. That very idea was, in fact, the main motivation behind most European scientists, including Galileo and Newton (yes, both were devout Christians).
Nevertheless, the conflict thesis holds grains of truth. Science did not progress much during the medieval period. Why? The Church actively discouraged induction or observation-based science because human sensory experience was considered fallible. The only method accepted as valid was deduction or pure logical reasoning based on fundamental laws, of course, approved by the Church.
The Renaissance (14th–17th century) was nothing but a gradual acceptance of inductive reasoning. Early Renaissance scientists did their work cautiously, as evidenced by Leonardo da Vinci’s statement: “It is true that nature begins by reasoning and ends by experience; but, nevertheless, we must take the opposite route: as I have said, we must begin with experience and try through it to reason.” Note that Leonardo never published his works; he was probably very much aware of the consequences. Bruno was burned alive for his views. Galileo’s life was spared only after he agreed to recant his views upon seeing the instruments of torture.
With time, science and Catholicism drifted apart. Today, most people believe that science and religion are mutually exclusive. Most scientists identify as atheists. It is interesting how perspectives change with time.
For more details: Biswal, Troubles in the Newtonian Paradise: Hydrology Responds to no God Equation and the Rise of Machines
The importance of exams
As an instructor, the most difficult task I find is explaining the importance of exams to students. To begin with, I don't believe it is possible to assess someone's potential to perform any challenging task in real life through a 2 to 3-hour-long exam. Then, what is the purpose of exams? I think the only thing that can be evaluated in an exam is someone's ability and willingness to follow instructions.
Nevertheless, I want my students to be leaders and innovators, which requires a lot more skills that cannot be assessed in exams. It is particularly difficult to evaluate critical thinking in an exam, especially when the class size is large. Moreover, students often feel anguished when the assessment is subjective.
All I can say to students is: "The grade does not necessarily reflect your true potential." The correlation between CPI and success in life is quite weak. The attached image shows plots of GPA versus salary. Interestingly, the correlation weakens over time (Zou et al., PLOS One, 2022).
I believe it is possible to acquire skills with strong motivation. The time required may vary depending on someone's background. Should we assess the motivation level of students? Besides the impossibility of such a task, it is also not entirely fair, as motivation is "partly" the responsibility of the instructor and the system.
So, as a student, focus on learning. Grades should be of secondary importance to you.
What purpose will ONOS serve?
Indian institutions together are paying Rs. 1,500 crore rupees annually on journal subscriptions. ONOS will cost Rs. 2,000 crore rupees annually (link). The extra Rs. 500 crore rupees for providing access to institutions that lack resources for subscriptions appears to be a good deal. However, the actual benefit (in terms of usage and scientific output) will only be known after the scheme is rolled out. I am a bit skeptical for the following reasons:
1. The number of people given access may not be a very good measure. The actual number of users is hard to estimate. Most undergraduate students do not bother with reading scholarly articles. Institutions with PhD programs may already have access to relevant journals.
2. Under pressure from researchers in developed countries, most publishers are now embracing open-access publishing. About 50% of journals are now open-access, and this percentage is expected to increase in the future. Therefore, it is unclear whether the Indian government or the publishers are benefiting more from the deal.
3. The ONOS cost estimation does not account for the money spent on articles by Indian authors in open-access journals. I guess the cost of publication by Indian authors is significant. Sadly, ONOS does not cover publication in open-access journals.
Personally, I do not support either subscription journals or open-access journals. In this digital age, we do not need intermediaries like Elsevier at all. Individual authors and scientific societies should take responsibility for sharing knowledge. The money can be used for something else.
(December 2024, LinkedIn)
Your personality can make up for lack of skills.
A couple of hours ago, I arrived at Chennai airport. The guy from the hotel who came to pick me up took more than 15 minutes to tell me where he was, even though I was standing right in front of the airport exit gate the entire time! I was surprised by the lack of skills from someone who has been doing this job for four years.
Once we got into the car, I started a conversation with him. Despite being almost illiterate, he has worked hard to learn English and Hindi. He was confident enough to say that he didn’t like Rajinikanth and eloquently explained why he liked as well as disliked Hitler. He said that someone was helping him secure a job in the Middle East because he impressed him with his "good character." A short conversation is not enough to fully assess someone’s character, but I can confirm that he is an interesting person. Before saying bye, I told him to be cautious, as many people get cheated with the promise of foreign jobs.
By the end, I had completely forgotten about the initial 15 minutes of inconvenience I had with him.
(Posted on LinkedIn, December 2024)
Atul Subhash laid the legal system bare
What is the root cause of poor law-making in India? Indians lack the self-confidence to think independently. NGOs controlled by the former colonial powers wield enormous influence on the law-makers in India. The judiciary has not even changed the colonial-era dress code.
It is essential for the general public to be aware of the realities. While Atul's case caught widespread media attention, hundreds of suicides by men for similar reasons are ignored by the media because they do not fit the narratives propagated by NGOs. As a result, most people remain unaware of these issues. A man can be jailed without any evidence simply for ending a relationship with a woman.
Also, this is not a man vs. woman issue. A woman has brothers and a father. A man has a mother and sisters.
(Posted four months back on LinkedIn)
Borrowed ideologies are not not good for solving social issues
The week-long celebration of Laxmi Puja in our village will end today. Every Indian should be aware of this tradition. Why? Laxmi Purana, written by the 16th-century Bhakti poet Balaram Dasa (link), is actually a revolution against untouchability. Here is a quick summary of the Purana:
Goddess Laxmi takes the form of a Brahmin woman and leaves her temple to see how people are celebrating her week. She is saddened to find the opulent residents of Puri disregarding her and decides to wander outside the city. She finds a Chandala (outcast) woman named Sreeya worshiping her with utmost sincerity. Laxmi eats food offered by her and blesses her. When Lord Jagannath and his brother Balaram hear about this, they banish Laxmi from the temple after she refuses to undergo a purification ritual. Angry and hurt, Laxmi leaves the temple (she personifies wealth and prosperity) leaving them in hunger. The brothers soon find themselves starving, unable to get food even as beggars. Eventually, they visit an outcast's house where Laxmi is staying to seek her forgiveness.
Laxmi Puja is performed in every household in Odisha. Apart from reciting verses from Laxmi Purana and performing rituals, it is important to maintain cleanliness and obsere fast.
Changes from within is important for fighting social evils. It is not surprising that society in Odisha is not deeply divided by caste-based issues, and caste is hardly a talking point during elections. Compare this to anti-caste movements in many parts of India fueled by ideologies borrowed from Christian missionaries. Instead of bringing positive change, such movements have often further divided societies.
It should also be noted that Balaram Dasa lived in a period when Odisha was an imperial power, governing one-third of the territories of present-day India. Self-confidence, therefore, comes with political and economic success.
Why is life quality so poor in India?
While per capita income is quite low in India, that is not the sole reason why life quality is poor. Countries with similar or even lower per capita income offer better life quality. The tourism potential of India remains almost untapped due to poor-quality infrastructure. Here is my perspective.
My school-time friend is a village-level politician. His father is the largest landowner in our village. Every time I talk to him when I am on vacation, he tells me about new government schemes for farmers. You dig a pond for fish farming, you get a 50% subsidy. You buy a tractor, you get a similar deal. A few years back, he took me to a technologically advanced cattle farm worth ₹3 crore. The owner of the farm, who has a business in Dubai, received a 50% subsidy. For almost every type of farming, there is a government scheme with very attractive benefits. It should be noted, however, that most of these investments do not help in increasing production or generating employment. A person in our locality took a huge subsidy to set up a cold storage facility, which was never functional.
Do these schemes really benifit farmers? There is a catch, though. For every scheme, there is a set of conditions that need to be satisfied, and it is very hard for a marginal farmer to tick all the boxes to receive benefits, apart from lacking information to approach the right official. The benefits are effectively consumed by large landowners who are already rich. This is not a random outcome of thoughtless policymaking but rather a conscious design by our leaders, who received power from the British. Our current leaders are more than happy to perpetuate this system. After the British left India, feudal landlords who had earlier served the British retained their power and influence. Most of our elected leaders either directly come from this class or rely heavily on them to get votes.
In the last three decades, however, the media has helped elected leaders directly connect with the marginalized sections of the population. Hence, we saw schemes such as the mid-day meal for school children, which have made a positive impact. The health insurance policy of the Odisha government has undoubtedly helped thousands avoid falling prey to loan sharks. Seeing the potential, our leaders are now engaged in competitive welfare. If one party promises NYAY, the other party responds with Ladli Behna.
Essentially, there is a scheme for almost everyone now in rural India now. The budget for such schemes is steadily increasing, which makes sense as our GDP is growing at a decent rate. However, resources have been largely utilized for unproductive activities, leaving important basic aspects of life, like clean air and pothole-free roads, largely ignored. Our leaders are not bothered about the decreasing R&D budget (as a percentage of GDP, see the pic) because they don't see it as a factor in the electoral math.
Kumbh Mela: a relic of the glorious past
The essence of melas or conferences has been lost. The debating tradition is a distant memory, and conferences are seen primarily as travel opportunities. It is not difficult to find a PhD student who has attended more than one international conference but not a single national conference. What you see in the Kumbh Mela is merely a relic of a glorious past.
(Posted on LinkedIn during the Kumbh Mela, 2025)
Nehru's "scientific temper" has little to do with science
If you see someone in India using the term "scientific temper," assume that you have spotted a person completely ignorant of how science works. Safely assume that the person has contributed nothing or almost nothing to science.
“Ever since independence, developing scientific temper was a priority for our country, but that has been changing in recent years and it reflects on such comments being made by an office-bearer of a top engineering institute,” added Anupam, who is also an engineer. (link)
What these people actually say is that nothing is science without approval from the West. They are the toxic by-product of colonialism that still keeps this nation sick. If they have the guts to try to arm-twist an IIT director, imagine what they can do to an individual who is not recognized.
The term "scientific temper" was popularized by Nehru, who tried to be more British than the British and had close to zero knowledge in science. It is the Indian version of the "positivism" movement in Europe started by Auguste Comte. Positivism is nothing but a product of a Eurocentric viewpoint that no other civilization other than Europe contributed to science.
There is no such thing as scientific temper. There is no such thing as "the" scientific method. Positivism is almost a dead ideology. Of course, you will find a lot of people in India who are more than ready to buy even the waste products from the West.
If you are interested in the subject, I suggest to start with "Kuhn vs Popper :The Struggle for the Soul of Science - Revolutions in Science" by Steve Fuller.
A tale of two scientists
Sir Isaac Newton headed the Royal Society, the premier scientific society of his time. He was a man of faith who probably spent more time with the Bible than with physics experiments. He believed in the myth of the "philosopher's stone," capable of turning any metal into gold, and spent a substantial part of his life trying to invent one. He likely developed psychosis due to the substances he used for his alchemy experiments and may have even died because of them.
Prof. Kamakoti heads IIT Madras, one of the premier institutes in India. He spoke about the therapeutic properties of cow urine, citing evidence published in peer-reviewed journals.
Indians carrying the burden of colonialism consider Newton the god of science but want Prof. Kamakoti to resign (link).
