Nanotechnology – Digitally learn

France-based company Atos signed agreement with Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) for designing, building and installing Bull Sequana – the supercomputer in India.

About BullSequana

Atos will supply Bull Sequana XH200 supercomputer to India to create a network of over 70 high-performance supercomputing facilities with a cumulative computing power of more than 10 petaflops, for various academic and research institutions across India.
BullSequana will be set up in India under the National Supercomputing Mission (NSM).

Challenges to Supercomputing in India:

Limited funding: Limited investments and delayed release of funds have held India back. Even after launching NSM, only 10 percent of its total budget has been released at the end of three years.
Hardware development: India’s stronghold is in software development, it has to depend on imports to procure the hardware components required for building supercomputers. Cutting edge technology in hardware components is difficult to procure as supercomputing is a niche field. Even a large part of Bull Sequana will only be assembled in India.
Brain Drain: Large Multinational Corporations (like Google) have also entered the supercomputing field. Competing with such MNCs to retain talent for developing and maintaining supercomputers proves difficult for Government.
Actual chip design and manufacturing is difficult to achieve (due to many factors like high initial investment needed, limited availability of rare earth metals).
However, India has software skills and personnel base which can be effectively leveraged to propel innovation on the software components of supercomputer technology. Also, Exascale system, which is now used in supercomputers, may reach its speed barrier soon. Thus, India could focus its research on new approaches like Quantum Computing and Optical Computing.

Some facts about supercomputing in the World

China is global leader in supercomputing with more than 225 out of top 500 supercomputers in world.
Currently India’s fastest and 39th fastest supercomputer in the world, Pratyush is installed in Pune’s Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology. It is used for simulating and predicting ocean and atmospheric systems.
India has become the only country worldwide to have an Ensemble Prediction System (EPS), running weather models at a 12-km resolution due to Pratyush.

What is C-DAC ?

C-DAC was setup in 1988 under Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, for indigenous development of Supercomputers.
C-DAC developed India’s first supercomputer – Param 8000.
It was established after denial of import of Cray Supercomputer (dual use technology which could be used for nuclear weapon simulation), due to arms embargo.

About National Supercomputing Mission – National Supercomputing Mission was launched in 2015 with following objectives:

To make India one of the world leaders in Supercomputing capability.
To empower our scientists and researchers with state-of-the-art supercomputing facilities.
To minimize redundancies and duplication of efforts, and optimize investments in supercomputing
To attain global competitiveness and ensure self-reliance in supercomputing technology
It is spearheaded by Department of S&T and Department of Electronics and IT.

Under NSM, 70 supercomputers will be installed in India. These machines will be part of the National Supercomputing grid over the National Knowledge Network, aimed at establishing a strong network for secured & reliable connectivity between institutions.

Neutrinos its Misconceptions and Significance | UPSC – IAS

What are Neutrinos particles ?

The elusive neutrinos are second most abound particles in the universe, yet a lot more is to be understood about them.
They interact very little with anything and pass through everything that’s why it’s hard to detect them.
They carry no electrical charge and nearly massless.
It occurs in 3 different types/flavors, separated based on mass (electron-neutrino, muon-neutrino, tau-neutrino).
It is produced in the core of the sun & millions of them roam around in the solar system.
They are key to understanding the evolution of universe and energy production in the Sun and the stars.

Misconceptions related to neutrinos | UPSC – IAS | Pib

Several misconceptions related to neutrino research led to common opposition to the project

Harmful to the human body: They are least harmful of elementary particles, as they hardly interact with matter. In fact, trillions of solar neutrinos pass through our body every second without doing any harm to us.
Effect of the associated radiation: No radiation is involved as INO only studies atmospheric neutrinos produced by cosmic rays in the atmosphere.
Potential uses in weaponization: They are often confused with neutrons, which can be used to produce nuclear weapons.

Other neutrino study projects

LAGUNA (Large Apparatus studying Grand Unification & Neutrino Astrophysics) in Europe
Hyper Kamiokande Detector at Kamioka Observatory in Hida (Japan)
DUNE (Deep Underground Neutrino) project in South Dakota (US)

Significance of India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO) | UPSC – IAS | Pib

It will give a boost to scientific studies in India and encourage students to take up Science and Research as profession.
It has been gaining urgency in the recent years with China announcing the construction of a similar neutrino observatory in Jiangmen province.
Nicknamed the ‘blueprint of nature’ by scientists, neutrinos are an important tool for mankind to learn how matter evolved from simple particles into more complex composites, creating everything around us.

How neutrino research is useful ? | UPSC – IAS | Pib

Messengers of cosmic information, as they travel large distances without much interaction. Can revolutionize the existing understanding of astrophysics, astronomy and communication
Basic building blocks of matter, along with quarks and electrons. Enhance understanding of basic physical laws
Role in nuclear non-proliferation through remote monitoring of nuclear reactors, where neutrinos are produced in abundance
As they change their direction and spin based on the medium, they can be used to map natural resources inside the earth
Helpful in understanding of dark matter (which constitute 95% of earth), as they are one of the few particles that can pass through it
Rapid analysis of geo-neutrinos (produced by radioactive decay of uranium, potassium and thorium in the earth’s crust) by the monitoring systems, called Neutrino Tomography, could provide vital seismographic information & may help us detect early defect inside the earth
Neutrinos can pass right through the earth and thus, neutrino-based communication systems are better than round the earth communication through cables, towers and satellites. No data transmission loss as they rarely interact with other particles. If there is any extra-terrestrial life, most effective way to communicate with them

India based neutrino observatory | Potential ecological concerns | UPSC – IAS | Pib

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) upheld the environmental clearance granted to the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO), a major research facility proposed in Theni district of Tamil Nadu.

Contamination of ground water due to leaching of chemicals
Negative impact on the aquifers and nearby dams due to the vibrations caused by blasting the rocks
Tectonic fracturing may make geological structure unstable, increasing vulnerability of already ecologically sensitive Western Ghats
If INO moves from studying atmospheric neutrino properties to probing accelerator-produced neutrinos, it would require precision underground facilities to contain radioactivity