Foreword by M. Lakshmanan
Young people often look for a role model to shape their careers. It is more so for
people in the field of science. Professor K. Babu Joseph has been one such towering
personality for many youngsters in the southern part of the country, particularly for
those who are pursuing scientific research. Professor Babu Joseph rose from the
ranks of active young theoretical physicists in the early 1970s to a Professor of
Physics and Head of the Department of Physics and then as a Vice Chancellor of
Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT), Kochi, to reach the
pinnacle of his career. It is very apt that his grateful former research students have
joined together to bring out this very useful festschrift ‘Modern Perspectives in
Theoretical Physics’ on the occasion of his 80th birthday, and they should all be
congratulated for their efforts.
Professor Babu Joseph’s scientific interests have been vast and wide in theoretical physics. He explored deeply many areas such as quantum field theory,
cosmology, nonlinear dynamics including solitons and chaos, mathematical physics
and economics besides other topics and has published more than 150 research
articles in his long academic career spanning more than four decades. He has
trained more than 20 scholars towards their Ph.D. degrees. Many of them have
emerged as leading theoretical physicists on their own and have led or are leading
strong teams of active young researchers in different institutions of repute in the
country. Professor Babu Joseph should be a satisfied person on this count.
Professor Babu Joseph has been a very successful administrator, both as Head
of the Department as well as the Vice Chancellor of CUSAT during1997–2002. His
calmness, uprightness, charming smile and friendly disposition towards all have
endeared him as a great personality, and he is loved by one and all.
I had the good fortune of knowing personally Prof. Babu Joseph quite well since
the late 1970s, and we have mutually visited each other at our institutes (and of
course our homes as well). He has been an excellent host, and our research scholars
had the benefit of visiting each others’ institutions for scientific collaborations.
I highly value his friendship and I am grateful to him for his kindness.
vii
Young people often look for a role model to shape their careers. It is more so for
people in the field of science. Professor K. Babu Joseph has been one such towering
personality for many youngsters in the southern part of the country, particularly for
those who are pursuing scientific research. Professor Babu Joseph rose from the
ranks of active young theoretical physicists in the early 1970s to a Professor of
Physics and Head of the Department of Physics and then as a Vice Chancellor of
Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT), Kochi, to reach the
pinnacle of his career. It is very apt that his grateful former research students have
joined together to bring out this very useful festschrift ‘Modern Perspectives in
Theoretical Physics’ on the occasion of his 80th birthday, and they should all be
congratulated for their efforts.
Professor Babu Joseph’s scientific interests have been vast and wide in theoretical physics. He explored deeply many areas such as quantum field theory,
cosmology, nonlinear dynamics including solitons and chaos, mathematical physics
and economics besides other topics and has published more than 150 research
articles in his long academic career spanning more than four decades. He has
trained more than 20 scholars towards their Ph.D. degrees. Many of them have
emerged as leading theoretical physicists on their own and have led or are leading
strong teams of active young researchers in different institutions of repute in the
country. Professor Babu Joseph should be a satisfied person on this count.
Professor Babu Joseph has been a very successful administrator, both as Head
of the Department as well as the Vice Chancellor of CUSAT during1997–2002. His
calmness, uprightness, charming smile and friendly disposition towards all have
endeared him as a great personality, and he is loved by one and all.
I had the good fortune of knowing personally Prof. Babu Joseph quite well since
the late 1970s, and we have mutually visited each other at our institutes (and of
course our homes as well). He has been an excellent host, and our research scholars
had the benefit of visiting each others’ institutions for scientific collaborations.
I highly value his friendship and I am grateful to him for his kindness.
vii