Birth of the Boson Panel Discussion

Immediately following performance.

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Quantum Revolution

The paper by Bose was the fourth and last of the revolutionary papers of the old quantum theory (the other three being, respectively, Planck, Einstein and Bohr).
Abraham Pais, Subtle is the Lord
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Max Planck (1858 - 1947)
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Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)
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Niels Bohr (1885 - 1962)
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Satyendra Nath Bose (1894 - 1974)

Respected Sir...


Thus began one of the most iconic correspondences in the history of modern physics. Satyendra Nath Bose (1894 to 1974), then an unknown, thirty year old mathematician working in the periphery of the British Empire as Reader at Dacca University (in what is now Dhaka, Bangladesh), sent the world famous Albert Einstein in Berlin Germany a letter. It was 1924, in the midst of revolutions in science and the birth of the quantum age in Europe.

Accompanying the letter was a short, four page paper titled Planck's Law and the Light-Quantum Hypothesis, and boldly asking the great scientist's opinion, and even more boldly asking Einstein to have it published in the leading scientific journal of the day Zeitschrift für Physik.
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"Respected Sir" Bose's first letter to Einstein (1924)
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"A beautiful step forward" Einstein's reply to Bose (1924)
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"Plancks Gesetz und Lichtquantenhypothese" (German) by Bose, translated by Albert Einstein (1924)
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"Planck's Law and Light-Quantum Hypothesis" (English) by Bose, translated by publisher Springer (1924).
Bose had derived the famous Planck's constant using a completely novel approach, a new way of counting particles, address the question of whether light is a particle of a wave. It was this approach that Einstein found revolutionary, calling it a "beautiful step forward", and readily translated the paper himself and had it published, commenting that he would extend Bose's ideas himself.

Another revolution in quantum theory, in a time of great change and discovery. Einstein wrote three additional papers based on the new Bose Statistics (also referred to as Bose-Einstein Statistics). Amongst Einstein's predictions was if particles obeying Bose Statistics (later eponymously called Bosons) were cooled to a low enough temperature, the particles would form a new type of matter eventually called the Bose Einstein Condensation (BEC) phenomenon.
Seventy years later in 1995, scientists working at the University of Colorado, Boulder and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), using advanced laser technology, created BEC and validated Einstein's prediction based on Bose's work. For their efforts of finding what the New York Times called the Holy Grail of Physics, the scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2001. 

Since the time of Bose's work, and Einstein's extensions, much work has been done using Bose's theory, and many scientists have been awarded honors, including numerous Nobel Prize awards, and have made remarkable breakthroughs in the area of low temperature particle physics, super conductivity, quantum computing and more. Many of which will be discussed on this website!
Falguni Sarkar Interview on S.N. Bose and the Higgs Boson (BBC). Originally broadcast in 2012.

Radio Broadcasts on Bose 

The Indian Particle Man, by Sharon Ann Holgate. Originally broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on 12 January 2005. Information about the program available on www.SharonAnnHolgate.com 
Talat-Farooq Awan interviews Falguni Sarkar, grandson of Professor Satyendra Nath Bose discoverer of the Boson. Originally broadcast 12 February 2023.

Recent SN Bose Project Blog Posts

Films on Bose

Dear Master
A Film by Subha Das Mollick

When a young Physics teacher from a fledgling university in a colonized nation received a postcard from Einstein in appreciation of his paper on black body radiation, it brought a sea change in the young man’s world and in the world of physics. Bose gave a theoretical foundation to Planck’s formula of black body radiation by applying Einstein’s light quantum hypothesis.
 
Later Einstein was critical of Bose’s statistical approach to matter energy interaction, but Bose remained unwavering in his reverence for Einstein. Dear Master traces this unique relationship in the history of science.

Quantum Indians
A Film by Raja Choudhury

In the early part of the 20th century and over 20 years before India’s independence, three remarkable Indian scientists revolutionized the worlds of Physics and Science. Satyendra Nath Bose, C.V.Raman and Meghnad Saha gave the world three remarkable discoveries and theories that would change Physics and India forever. 

In this National Film Award (2014) winning film audiences will explore their individual biographies, their collective impact on the world of physics and their legacy in Indian science and world history. 

Watch Bose Related Videos on the 
​SN Bose Project YouTube Page​

Dear Master the Film

Special showing at The Ohio State University
Department of Food Science and Technology
A screening of "Dear Master", a film exploring the nuanced relationship between Albert Einstein and Satyendra Nath Bose that altered our understanding of light, matter and the universe!
Watch the event On-Demand

View the pre- and post-show discussion with the filmmaker and special guests, and then watch the filme and give us your feedback!
Meet the Director and Bose Einstein Family Members
Sriloy Dey
Host Chondimondop Podcast
Subha Das Mollick
Award Winning Director
Dr. Thomas Einstein
Great Grandson Albert Einstein
Falguni Sarkar
Grandson
​SN Bose

Special Thanks

Film Reviews of Dear Master

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Bose's lifelong achievement, not quantifiable in terms of results, accolades and recognitions (which he certainly received) was that he lived a generous and beautiful life in the community and country he was born in, and was a very positive influence on the lives of many young students and friends who regarded him as their Master.  In this sense, Bose's Master (Einstein) could have learned a lot from his "student"  but was unable to, perhaps because of his own cultural influences and personal characteristics.  As my own teacher and mentor (Leonard Mandel) used to say,  "Idols have clay feet."  

lasynch

Professor
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East Coast University

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A very well researched and well made documentary film on Bose and his association with Einstein. It brings out the exceptional quality of Bose's mind and touches upon his varied interests beyond Physics. I noticed a photograph in which my mother Purnima Sinha is seen with her colleagues and Bose when she worked towards her PhD. in the area of X-ray crystallography of clay minerals.

Ed.note: Read Dr. Sinha's remembrance of Professor Bose on the Blog. 

Supurna Sinha

Professor (Retired)
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Raman Research Institute (Bangalore)

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Thank you for a thoughtful review of concepts of quantum theory as well as a view into the life and times of Bose and Einstein. It seems Bose idolized Einstein with the same reverential respect given to gurus and Masters in Indian tradition. It also seems Einstein though initially appreciative of Bose's work, was grappling with his later unified field theory and not communicative with Bose beyond bringing up objections to his theory.

​Still given the times and the distance separating them they did have a collaboration. In today's age perhaps they would have enjoyed a faster and closer contact and perhaps Bose would have been a stronger proponent of his own work and influenced Einstein as much as he was influenced by him.

Arti Kumar

Yoga Teacher
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Company

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The film was wonderful. It brought the story to life. I loved that it got into the technical aspects of the physics, but I wanted to understand it a bit more. I saw that there were "subtitles" in English that appeared in a strange text box to the right. But if you could add English subtitles on the bottom of the video (with option to turn them off) that would help. The accents make it hard for me to follow the already challenging concepts (and I don't want to miss a word!). The use of the Indian music (is this the instrument Bose played?) placed us emotionally in India - very effective.

Darcie Whelan-Kortan

President
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Whelan Group

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South Asia Gallery
Manchester Museum​

S.N. Bose featured in

Science & Innovation Exhibit 
The South Asia Gallery, a British Museum partnership, presents a compelling, contemporary take on South Asian and British Asian culture. It is the first permanent gallery in the UK to celebrate the experiences and contribution of the South Asian diaspora, and it displays world-class material from the British Museum alongside the best of South Asian collections in Manchester.

​This multilingual gallery has been designed and built with the South Asia Gallery Collective, an inspiring group of community leaders, educators, artists, historians, journalists, scientists, musicians, students and others from South Asian diaspora with a unique spirit of collaboration and co-production.
Never accept an idea as long as you, yourself are not satisfied with its consistency and logical structure on which the concepts are based.

Study the Masters...the people who have made significant contributions to the subject. Lesser authorities cleverly bypass the difficult points.

The Man Who Counted Light

The Life

(coming soon)

The Science

(coming soon)

The Passion

(coming soon)

SN Bose Blog

Follow the journey of the S.N. Bose Project. ​Includes stories, news, and posts from special guests. 

SN Bose Project Guest Contributors

There are many many people, many of whom sadly have passed, whose life Bose has touched in many ways. While most did not put their stories on paper, many people have, and some still want to do so. The SN Bose Guest Writers Series showcases the stories, the science, and and the personal memories of the lives Bose had touched either directly or indirectly through the his legacy in science, but more so through a human connection that affected so many. 

Ranadhir Mitra

Dr. Ranadhir Mitra, known as Gogol among most Bengalis who know him, was a college student when he became a friend of Satyen Bose and the Bose family. Here he shares memories of his youth and his interactions with "the great man". (Part 1)
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Contact Us

If you are a scientist, artist, writer, historian, musician or simply an admirer of Satyendra Nath Bose, and you have a story to share, advice to give or just want to share some encouragement, we want to hear from you! 
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