Dating for techies?

Now, this one really amused me.

Sometime back while we were reinventing the Nature India website and inviting suggestions from our readers, someone said it would be a great idea to introduce a dating/matrimonial corner for scientists. Though we did not take up the suggestion on grounds that it might not gel with our core objectives, it looks like the idea has been bounced around. And some enterprising youngsters have actually created a social dating site for students of the country’s elite technology and management schools — the IITs and IIMs!

So when I saw DateIITians, I didn’t bury my curiosity. I browsed around to find that the site was still under construction in parts. In the age of social networking, it does not come as a surprise that someone has tailor-made a dating site for techies and management graduates. What I could not understand though was why a site meant for Indian students should have European-looking models! The objectives and privacy policy of the site are very well laid out. And apparently, there’s a waitlist running for enrollment!

Do you know of more such networking/dating sites for scientists, tech graduates? Write in. It would be interesting to track this new social trend.

Doing science in India

This week I was rummaging through data to understand what it means to be a scientist in India. I poured into fresh government policy documents, funding proposals and announcements. I read again the Prime Minister’s address to the Indian Science Congress. I pursued with interest the angry voices of post-docs and scientists in the Nature India forum. I spoke to women scientists who have their share of problems. And some more.

All this in a week that saw one of the biggest fights against corruption on Indian soil by Gandhian Anna Hazare and thousands of his followers. The issue of corruption and nepotism in the scientific administration in India has also been a topic of hot debate in the Nature India forum.

The result of this research was a guest blog piece I wrote on invitation from Nature Network. The piece aims to aid the monthly discussion series Science Online NYC (SoNYC) held in New York City where invited panellists talk about a particular topic related to how science is carried out and communicated online. The topic this time would cover, among other things, science in developing countries.

Please feel free to comment on the issue here.