Rao, Chintamani Nages Ramachandra

C.N.R. Rao is the National Research Professor as well as Honorary President and Linus Pauling Research Professor at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research. He is also an Honorary Professor at the Indian Institute of Science. His main research interests are in solid state and materials chemistry. He is an author of over 1400 research papers and 41 books. He received the M.Sc. degree from Banaras, Ph.D. from Purdue, D.Sc. from Mysore universities and has received honoris causa doctorate degrees from 49 universities including Purdue, Bordeaux, Banaras, Delhi, Mysore, IIT Bombay, IIT Kharagpur, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Novosibirsk, Oxford, Stellenbosch, Uppsala, Wales, Wroclaw, Caen, Khartoum, Calcutta, Sri Venkateswara University and Desikottama from Visva-Bharati.
Prof. Rao is a member of all the major science academies in the world including the Royal Society, London, the National Academy of Sciences, U.S.A., the Russian Academy of Sciences, French Academy of Sciences, Japan Academy as well as the Polish, Czechoslovakian, Serbian, Slovenian, Brazil, Spanish, Korean and African Academies and the American Philosophical Society. He is a Member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, Foreign Member of Academia Europaea and Foreign Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. He is on the editorial boards of several leading professional journals and is a distinguished visiting professor of the University of California and Cambridge University.
Among the various medals, honours and awards received by him, mention must be made of the Marlow Medal of the Faraday Society (1967), Bhatnagar Prize (1968), Jawaharlal Nehru Fellowship (1973), Padma Shri (1974), Centennial Foreign Fellowship of the American Chemical Society (1976), Royal Society of Chemistry (London) Medal (1981), Padma Vibhushan (1985), Honorary Fellowship of the Royal Society of Chemistry, London (1989), Hevrovsky Gold Medal of the Czechoslovak Academy (1989), Blackett Lectureship of the Royal Society (1991), Einstein Gold Medal of UNESCO (1996), Linnett Professorship of the University of Cambridge (1998), Centenary Medal of the Royal Society of Chemistry, London (2000), the Hughes Medal of the Royal Society, London, for original discovery in physical sciences (2000), Karnataka Ratna (2001) by the Karnataka Government, the Order of Scientific Merit (Grand-Cross) from the President of Brazil (2002), Gauss Professorship of Germany (2003) and the Somiya Award of the International Union of Materials Research (2004). He is the first recipient of the India Science Award by the Government of India (2005) and received the Dan David Prize for science in the future dimension for his research in Materials Science. He was named as Chemical Pioneer by the American Institute of Chemists (2005), "Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur" by the President of the French Republic (2005) and received the Honorary Fellowship of the Institute of Physics, London (2006) and Honorary Fellowship of St. Catherine’s College, Oxford (2007). He received the Nikkei Asia Prize for Science, Technology and Innovation (2008). He was awarded the Royal Medal by the Royal Society (2009) and the August-Wilhelm-von-Hoffmann Medal for his outstanding contributions to chemistry by the German Chemical Society (2010).
Prof. Rao is Chairman, Scientific Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, immediate past President of The Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS) and Member of the Atomic Energy Commission of India. He is Founder-President of both the Chemical Research Society of India and of the Materials Research Society of India. Prof. Rao was President of the Indian National Science Academy (1985-86), the Indian Academy of Sciences (1989-91), the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (1985-97) and the Indian Science Congress Association (1987-88). He was the Director of the Indian Institute of Science (1984-94), Chairman of the Science Advisory Council to Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi (1985-89) and Chairman, Scientific Advisory Committee to the Union Cabinet (1997-98) and Albert Einstein Research Professor (1995-99).

(August 2010)

Prof. C.N.R. Rao (rojen 30. junija 1934, Bangalore, Indija) je nacionalni raziskovalni profesor, častni predsednik in profesor Linusa Paulinga na centru za višje znanstvene raziskave Jawaharlal Nehru. Je tudi častni profesor na Indijskem inštitutu znanosti. Področja njegovega raziskovalnega dela sta trdna snov in kemija materialov. Objavil je več kot 1400 raziskovalnih člankov in 41 knjig. Univerza Banaras mu je podelila naziv M.Sc., univerza Purdue naziv Ph.D., Univerza Mysore pa naziv D.Sc. Častne doktorate so mu podelili na 49 univerzah, med njimi Purdue, Bordeaux, Banaras, Delhi, Mysore, IIT Bombay, IIT Kharagpur, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Novosibirsk, Oxford, Stellenbosch, Uppsala, Wales, Wroclaw, Caen, Khartoum, Calcutta, Sri Venkateswara University. Desikottamo je prejel od Visva-Bharati.
Rao je član vseh večjih akademij znanosti po svetu; med njimi so Kraljevo društvo (London), Nacionalna akademija znanosti (ZDA), Ruska akademija znanosti, Francoska akademija znanosti, Japonska akademija znanosti ter akademije Poljske, Češke, Srbije, Slovenije, Brazilije, Španije, Koreje, Afriška akademija in Academia Europaea. Rao je član uredniških odborov več vodilnih znanstvenih revij, častni gostujoči profesor kalifornijske univerze in Univerze v Cambridgeu (Z. K.).
Med raznimi medaljami, častnimi naslovi in nagradami je treba omeniti medaljo Marlowa, ki jo podeljuje Faradayevo društvo (1967), Bhatnagarjevo nagrado (1968), članstvo Nehru (1973), Padma Shri (1974), inozemsko častno članstvo, podeljeno ob stoletnici Ameriškega kemijskega društva (1976), medaljo Kraljevega kemijskega društva (London, 1981), Padma Vibhushan (1985), Blackettovo predavateljstvo Kraljevega društva (1991), zlato medaljo Heyrovskega Češke akademije (1989), Einsteinovo zlato medaljo UNESCA (1996), Linnettovo profesuro Univerze v Cambridgeu (1998), medaljo ob stoletnici Kraljevega kemijskega društva (London, 2000), Hughesovo medaljo Kraljevega društva (London) za izvirna odkritja v fizikalnih znanostih (2000), Karnataka Ratna vlade Karnatake (2001), red zaslug za znanost (veliki križ) predsednika Brazilije (2002), Gaussovo profesuro Nemčije (2003) in nagrado Somiya Mednarodne unije za raziskave materialov (2004). Je prvi prejemnik državne nagrade Indije za znanost (2005); prejel je nagrado Dan David za znanost v bodoči dimenziji za svoje raziskovalno delo na področju znanosti o materialih. Ameriški inštitut ga je imenoval za pionirja kemije; predsednik Republike Francije pa ga je imenoval za viteza častne legije (2005) in leta 2006 ga je Inštitut za fiziko v Londonu izbralo za častnega člana, leta 2007 pa je prejel častno članstvo v St. Catherine’s Collegeu v Oxfordu. Prejel je nagrado Nikkei Asia za znanost, tehnologijo in inovativnost (2008). Kraljevo društvo mu je 2009 podelilo medaljo. Tudi Nemško kemijsko društvo mu je 2010 podelilo medaljo Augusta-Wilhelma-von-Hoffmanna za posebne prispevke v kemiji.
Prof. Rao je predsednik Znanstvenega sveta predsednika vlade in poprejšnji predsednik Akademije znanosti sveta v razvoju (TWAS) ter član Indijske komisije za atomsko energijo. Je predsednik-ustanovitelj Indijskega društva za kemijske raziskave in Indijskega društva za raziskavo materialov. Prof. Rao je bil predsednik Indijske nacionalne akademije znanosti (1985–86), Indijske akademije znanosti (1989–91), Mednarodne Unije čiste in uporabne kemije (1985–97) in Indijskega kongresnega združenja za znanost (1987–88). Bil je direktor Indijskega inštituta za znanost (1984–94), predsednik znanstvenega sveta predsednika vlade Rajiva Gandhija (1985–89) in predsednik znanstvenega sveta vlade Unije (1997–98) ter raziskovalni profesor stolice Alberta Einsteina (1995–99).

(avgust 2011)