Jagadish Chandra Bose
- Jagadish also spelled:
- Jagadis
- Born:
- November 30, 1858, Mymensingh, Bengal, India [now in Bangladesh]
- Died:
- November 23, 1937, Giridih, Bihar (aged 78)
- Subjects Of Study:
- stimulus-response behaviour
Who was Jagadish Chandra Bose?
What were Jagadish Chandra Bose’s contributions to wireless communication?
What is the crescograph?
What did Jagadish Chandra Bose’s research in plant physiology demonstrate?
Jagadish Chandra Bose (born November 30, 1858, Mymensingh, Bengal, India [now in Bangladesh]—died November 23, 1937, Giridih, Bihar) was an Indian physicist and plant physiologist who worked on radio waves and studied plant responses to external stimuli. He invented the crescograph, an instrument that used clockwork gears to measure plant movements and growth. With it he was able to detect how plants react to external stimuli, drawing a parallel between animal and plant tissues. In 1895 his experiments with short radio waves led to improvements in the coherer, an early form of radio detector, contributing to the development of solid-state physics.
Early life and education
Bose was born into a family who were followers of the Brahmo Samaj (a theistic movement within Hinduism). His father was a deputy magistrate under British rule and believed that Indians should be well versed in their local language, culture, and traditions before being introduced to foreign influences such as the English language and British culture. He enrolled Bose in a school whose primary medium of instruction was Bengali. This school, in Faridpur, Bengal (now in Bangladesh), had students from different castes, classes, and religions studying together. This shaped Bose’s egalitarian outlook and instilled in him a disregard for social hierarchies. His love for nature also grew as he made friends with children of farmers, fishers, and others. Among his early influences were stories from Indian epics, particularly the Mahabharata. He was drawn to the character Karna, whose perseverance in the face of exclusion would later be reflected by Bose during his experiences of racial discrimination under colonial rule.
In 1875 Bose moved to Calcutta (now Kolkata) and enrolled in St. Xavier’s College, where he studied physics. Five years later he traveled to England to study medicine at the University of London, but he left the program early because of health issues. In 1881 Bose joined Christ’s College at the University of Cambridge, where he studied chemistry, physics, and botany as part of the Natural Sciences Tripos, graduating with a B.A. in 1884.
Research and contribution
Bose returned to India in 1885 and joined Presidency College in Calcutta (now Presidency University, Kolkata), as a professor of physics (1885–1915). Although he faced racial discrimination in the form of unequal pay compared with his British colleagues, he remained committed to both teaching and research. As a form of protest, he taught without salary for three years, until his position was made permanent and his salary was raised to match that of his colleagues. He then received the full arrears for the unpaid period.
Wireless communication
Between 1894 and 1900 Bose conducted research on radio waves, demonstrating their generation, transmission, and reception. He showcased wireless transmission of millimeter waves at 60 gigahertz over 75 feet (23 meters) at Presidency College, in 1895. His experiments demonstrated reflection, refraction, and polarization of electromagnetic waves. Bose developed early semiconductor detectors, laying the foundation for wireless communication and solid-state physics. In 1901 his mercury coherer was used by Italian physicist and inventor Guglielmo Marconi to receive the first transatlantic radio signal, demonstrating the global impact of his work. Bose was among the first scientists to show practical applications of radio waves, and in 1904 he became the first person to receive a patent for a solid-state diode detector, built using a galena crystal to detect electromagnetic waves.
Plant neurobiology
By 1900 Bose expanded his research into plant physiology, applying physical principles to biological studies. He developed the crescograph, an instrument that used clockwork gears and a smoked glass plate to measure plant growth in increments as small as 1/100,000 of an inch. His experiments showed that plants respond to external stimuli such as light, temperature, chemicals, and anesthetics through electrical and mechanical changes, similar to nerve signals in animals. Bose demonstrated that plants experience fatigue, excitation, and a death spasm (a final electrical impulse at the moment of death), proving that they have a sensitive nervous system. His work influenced what is now recognized as plant neurobiology. His contributions were compiled in Response in the Living and Non-living (1902) and The Nervous Mechanism of Plants (1926), influencing future research in cybernetics, plant communication, and environmental adaptation.
Leadership
Did You Know?
Bose founded the Bose Institute as “not merely a laboratory but a temple” dedicated to scientific advancement and learning. The institute’s emblem depicting the double vajra (Sanskrit: “thunderbolt”) as a symbol of spiritual strength and purity was sketched by educator Nivedita, and the establishment was funded by writer Sara Chapman Bull. The institute’s anthem was composed by poet and polymath Rabindranath Tagore, and spiritual leader Swami Vivekananda inspired the vision of the institute.
In 1917 Bose founded and served as the first director of the Bose Research Institute (now Bose Institute) in Calcutta, and he was knighted for his contributions to science. In 1920 he became the first Indian in the field of science to be elected a fellow of the Royal Society. Scientists at the institute have made contributions across disciplines including cosmic rays, environmental radioactivity, biotechnology, and plant molecular biology. Notable achievements include the first recording of mu-meson tracks, pioneering research on cholera toxin and its role in microbial pathogenesis, and the identification of multiple RNA polymerases in plants.
