THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Two of the big names in scientific circles, Nobel Laureates Roger Y. Tsien and John C. Mather, will be attending the 97th Indian Science Congress opening in the city on January 3, the organisers said.
An American astrophysicist and cosmologist, Mather shared the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2006 with George Smoot for his work on the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) project.
A satellite used to study Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation, COBE contributed significantly to the development of cosmology and provided supporting evidence for the Big Bang, a widely accepted theory of the beginning of the universe as we know it.
An attraction at the Indian Science Congress this year is a Global Space Galleria showcasing various space agencies across the globe.
Roger Y. Tsien, a biochemist, has revolutionised our understanding of cell biology and neuro-biology. He shared the 2008 Nobel Prize for Chemistry with Osamu Shimomura of Boston University and Martin Chalfie of Columbia University for the discovery and development of the Green Fluorescent Protein.
Tsien, 57, is a professor at the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, California University.
Organised by the Indian Science Congress Association, the event this year is hosted by the Indian Space Research Organisation and the Kerala University at the latter’s Kariavattom campus. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will inaugurate the Congress on January 3. It will conclude on January 7.
trivandrum@expressbuzz.com