Profile

• Time Zone

  Central

  
  
• Organization

  Louisiana State University

  
  
• Role

  Scientist Mentor: I will mentor teams of students online

  
  
• Research Interests (300 words)

  Photosynthesis, Respiration, Plant Development, Plant diseases

  
  
• Profile Question 1

  Do you have advice for students about preparing for a science career?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 1 here (300 words):

  For a successful career in any field, you have to be passionate about what you do. In a science career, it is probably a little more important since it needs creativity and dedication. Very often, it is labor of love and finding answers to your questions may be the best reward you can expect.

  
  
• Profile Question 2

  Can you describe your attitude toward science when you were in high school?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 2 here (300 words):

  I grew up in a small village in India. Our high school science teacher was one of the best in terms of preparing us do well in tests. Although there was no direct emphasis on hands-on research, it helped us to appreciate science and foster our curiosity. Many of us began to realize that we should not stop at learning facts but ask questions that have no ready made answers.

  
  
• Profile Question 3

  What is the coolest thing you have discovered or learned about plants?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 3 here (300 words):

  I made a few cool discoveries in my career and hope to make more. One of my earliest discoveries was that pollen germination is critically dependent on osmotic pressure. Until then, sugar was considered mostly as a nutrient, although there were anecdotal evidence for its role as an osmoticum. I showed that inert osmotica such as polymers of ethylene glycol can replace and support pollen tube growth better than sugars alone. This is also relevant in the growth regulation of other plant cells.

  
  
• Availability

  I am NOT available, please temporarily remove me from the available mentor list

  
  
• Capacity: How many teams at a time are you comfortable working with?

  2

  
  

Recent Posts

Table #6 Subbaiah Chalivendra Nov 29, 2017

said

You can check if dead leaf discs float to the surface. You can kill the discs in boiling water to make sure that they are dead and see if they come up.

Table #4 Subbaiah Chalivendra Nov 29, 2017

said

True, Dr. Murphy made a great point that high salt solution can make leaf discs buoyant even if photosynthesis was inhibited at this salt concentration (3.5% salt is close to sea water salinity). So we have to be careful in interpreting the results…

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True, Dr. Murphy made a great point that high salt solution can make leaf discs buoyant even if photosynthesis was inhibited at this salt concentration (3.5% salt is close to sea water salinity). So we have to be careful in interpreting the results that come out of a single method. Just like medicine, there is no single method that works for all experiments. That is why we have to use alternative methods (of measuring photosynthesis) to cross-check the results before we draw conclusions.

Table #2 Subbaiah Chalivendra Nov 29, 2017

said

I look forward to read your lab report.