According to the ISRO chief, his father once suggested him to take up Engineering or Mathematics as these subjects would help him become a Teacher or Professor.
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Dr S Somanath has said that he wanted to become a doctor but decided to pursue engineering after his dad’s advice. It is to be noted that Dr Somanath is a Gold medallist in Engineering but he was a high school state-topper in Biology.
Addressing a gathering of budding doctors at Tamil Nadu Dr MGR University in Chennai, Dr Somanath said, “In my home state (Kerala), I was a topper in Biology and aspired to be a doctor. However, my father (a teacher by profession) asked me to take up Engineering or Math, as the medical profession is very tough and demanding.”
According to the ISRO chief, his father once suggested him to take up Engineering or Mathematics as these subjects would help him become a Teacher or Professor. In his address to the students, Dr Somanath said that the medical and the space domains have close links and ISRO scientists are working together with medical professionals to make Gaganyaan astronaut programme successful.
ISRO chairman Dr Somanath said that the medical professionals should gather knowledge about software and AI tools as the use of these technologies would help in providing better healthcare facilities to the people. “In future, it might be possible to have an embedded medicinal kit in the body. As and when detected and required, the necessary drug in the specific quantity can be delivered to the targeted site,” he said.
“There is a need to keep humans alive for a long period of time, without ageing. It is possible to build rockets and spacecraft that can work for several decades and travel into deep space, but can we(as seen in science fiction films) pause human life and resume it when required? There are places that we cannot travel to in one lifetime, so such technologies are required. If a human colony has to sustain itself on another planet, the services of Doctors are most essential,” Dr Somanath noted.
