In her Talk "Patterns from the Past: How Science & Technology aid Archaeology in Unraveling the Mysteries of History", Dr M B Rajani, Associate Professor at the National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore, will introduce us to the recent scientific advancements and technologies that have become invaluable tools for unraveling historical mysteries. She will explain how these tools, data sources, and processes have helped in better understanding archaeological settlements using examples from sites such as Nalanda, Agra, Mahabalipuram and Srirangapatna.
About The Speaker:
Dr M B Rajani is Associate Professor at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), Bangalore. Her research has two inter-related facets: analysing cultural landscapes using geospatial data to identify new features of archaeological interest and advancing the usage of such analysis towards preservation of built heritage in the face of rapid urbanization.
Her primary scientific contribution has been to develop a methodology for detecting tell-tale signs of past human activities on landscapes from satellite imagery and integrating these findings with other spatial data to generate new inferences and novel hypotheses about the past.
Her work has expanded the field of archaeology to include the study of human impact on landscapes. Her recent book Patterns in Past Settlements aims at imparting this knowledge to larger research and academic communities.
Dr Rajani was a member of Indian National Young Academy of Science 2018-2022, a Young Affiliate 2019-2023 of The World Academy of Sciences and recipient of Rachapudi Kamakshi Memorial Young Geospatial Scientist Award 2011 and P.R. Pisharoty Memorial award 2019 awarded by the Indian Society of Remote Sensing.
