By Dominick Dauni Roising Rymbai
The basic necessities for human beings – air, water and food. Air and Water Purification processes, that’s Science. Food, agricultural sciences. Mining and environment regeneration, engineering and technology. Good health, that’s Medical Science. Mathematics has applicability across the Natural, Life, Physical and Social Sciences. STEMs – Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, are important. Of course, the Liberal Arts and Humanities cannot be less important. Imagine, how can a coder or scientist serenade a doctor or an engineer, without words, poems and songs? And for the next level of social contract called marriage, Economics, Sociology, Anthropology, Geography, History and Political Science will certainly come into play. What defines human civilisation? Culture, music, the fine and performing arts, parks and museums, architecture and engineering marvels, science and technology, or just being there for one another, the common-good ecosystem? What is Nature but poetry in motion (Newton’s three laws of motion). The films’ range of the acclaimed James Cameron is interesting; from the Terminator series (early warning signs of AI’s sentient and decision-making capabilities) to Titanic (a non-scientific love story) and the two Avatar films on the latest “Scramble for Africa” (colonisation of the last frontier Space), with sub-themes of indigenous people’s rights and environment.
In the 1990s and 2000s, after parents, teachers were (hope, still are) highly respected. Their words were literally the gospel truth.
At Khliehriat (Don Bosco) High School, the Maths teacher (Late) Babu Louis Swer (fondly called Bu-Lo), would simplify the mathematical equations in the students’ common language, Pnar. He would also make it a point that the weaker students were always helped by the better students, during breaks and after-school hours; actually a form of peer-to-peer learning. The classes of the Science teacher saar Shakti would always be filled to the brim; major explanations were in Pnar too. Dr. Star Pala MD, the present HoD of Community Medicine at NEIGRIHMS, was the star (ok, benchmark) student in school back then – in academics, football and, also regular attendance at Catholic Mass.
In Kiddies’ Corner High School then, the classes of (Late) Miss (Mrs. Urmila) Basu, a post-graduate from IIT-Kharagpur, were always interesting. Not to forget the extra classes with (Late) Bah Rahman sir.
There are still educationists like the former long-time Principal of St. Anthony’s College Shillong, Reverend Fr. Stephen Mavely SDB (the founding Vice Chancellor of Assam Don Bosco University). To be summoned for a talk, by such individuals like the soft-spoken and well-mannered Fr. Mavely, was always dreadful. From experience, being whacked is way better, the physical pain will go away in a day or two. The short talk ended. Now, it is one thing to assert with coal-truckloads of confidence and, another to prove it right. So, how does one score 80%, then the high-level percentage, in the upcoming HSSLC (Science) Board exams?
In Physics classes, there was the affable but ‘don’t-talk-much’ professor, (Late) Bah James Blah sir. He could simplify most concepts, very simplistically. Not really a big fan of coaching but had to excuse oneself for the learned professor. In tuition classes, the professor would even simplify the concepts more, in the language most Hynniewtrep people understand, Khasi. Colleges in Shillong are a democratic level-playing field, with students from Meghalaya’s periphery as well as Shillong’s elite schools, in the same class and campus; also from other states of India’s North-East. And for those raised in the semi-urban areas and rural outback, English can be a difficult language. The Physics problem, solved.
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Next, the burning issues of Chemistry and Maths. Oh, to trouble oneself so much, by breaking the head and understand the concepts. Also to watch out for the watchful eyes and keen ears of another soft-spoken, well-mannered, well-meaning, ever-loving and very supportive relation, the local guardian Beiheh New Rymbai. The winter break commenced, a few months left. The Queen’s hit, Under Pressure (feat. David Bowie) became a personal favourite. Last resort: clarion calls went out to God and His Only Son Jesus Christ (specifically, the consecutive nine evenings before His upcoming birthday) and, venerations to Mother Mary and, call-outs to the clan’s female ancestress for divine assistance – in hard work, focus and discipline. Previous five years’ exams’ question papers were minutely examined and analysed. There was this Biblically-thick aquamarine-covered book called Maths Tutor to manoeuvre; ok, challenge accepted. The Chemistry books by the Assamese professor MD Purkayastha of St. Edmunds’ College were very helpful. Using the English professors’ classes’ running notes as reference, Notes were made for the English and Additional English papers. With anxiety levels running high, the burning of midnight-oil took place with music in the background – from Khasi-Pnar songs (expected), Hindi classics of Latajee & Ashajee, Kishoreda and the inimitable RD Burman, Jagjit Singh to Irish popular acts, Brit-rock/pop, 2Pac and Boyzone and of course, Megadeth, Metallica, Dream Theater and Iron Maiden.
Common salt is Sodium Chloride (NaCl). Like normal human beings (or is it trolls) on social media, the element Sodium is highly reactive in nature; also it can rarely stay alone (without being in an ionic chemical compound). No wonder, either excessive intake of edible salt or deficiency of it can mess-up a human’s physiology. The solution for excess salt is drinking water (two proportions of Hydrogen plus one proportion of Oxygen). But then, why do milk-producing cows need so much salt? Let’s not get into sugar, that carbohydrate of an organic compound.
One hears a lot about the fear of Mathematics from many. However, when it comes to money, the same set of people always get their numbers exact, to the last rupee/paise plus GST. Strange but true. With parking challenges in Shillong, sub-conscious geometrical knowledge is necessary for parallel parking.
Today, newly-minted private-owned Toyota SUVs on Meghalaya’s roads characterise debutante to high society. Toyota cars: the preferred automobiles for both state and non-state actors from the equatorial Africa, the deserts of North Africa and West Asia to Afghanistan, Balochistan and, the tropical rain-forests of South-East Asia. Something about Japanese technology, yes. The automotive symbols of luxury: under colonial rule, it was the British-manufactured Rolls-Royce cars; today, in a free sovereign country, they are German-made sedans and Italian supercars. Growing up in Jaintia Hills, one was always filled with a sense of wonder at the automotive beast called ShaktiMan (fondly called StiMan), a symbol of German engineering matched to topography of India’s North-East.
Why can’t Nobel Prize and Fields Medal winners be also treated like rockstars and pop icons? Why can’t we make Maths and Science cool and interesting? Why should they only be the bastion of high school toppers? Or like the non-democratic practices of the alchemists and Brahmins of old times, is it the present aam aadmi made to feel, force-fed with false narratives of insurmountable obstacles, that the STEMs are not meant for them? When the barriers are soaring and access points are few, far and between, and career guidance almost nil, even the best of driven curious minds can be frightened off the STEMs. Like the Nordic countries, and also sounding utopian, but can one imagine a highly technological-advanced society with liberal social democratic roots, for our children?
A beautiful story, not a sob one. Two cousins from some back-of-beyond village in our Meghalaya hills. One in Class-XI (Science) and the other B.Sc. (Physics Honours), studying in a prominent college in Shillong. With Practicals’ classes, part-time jobs are difficult to attend to. Every Saturday and holiday, they work in a car-wash centre. Augmented by government scholarships, the paid-up commissions from each washed-car plus generous tips from interested and big-hearted customers, is enough to push through the week and eventually the month – food, rent and an ASPIRATION.
PS: From being the college topper in HSSLC (Science) Examination 2000, the writer struggled and somehow managed to graduate in Economics from the same college (Morning section) in 2006. There was help from Beiheh New Rymbai and family, the (Late) Miss (Mrs. Sheila) Wallang and Bah Brian sir, Reverend Fr. Ioannis Warpakma SDB, Interested College Professors, Good Friends and Ka Bei; along with a Ford Foundation sponsored scholarship and part-time jobs.
The writer can be reached at dauni.roising@gmail.com
(Disclaimer: Views expressed are strictly personal, indeed.)
