The Bangalore-Birkbeck Phosphazene Project 1971-1981 - A Retrospect on This and other International and Interdisciplinary Scientific Research Collaborations

Early acquaintance with the literature on India was followed by service with the British army in the World War II in India and South East Asia Command, where I acquired university entrance qualifications by correspondence course. My invitation in 1969 to become the first university visitor to India under the Commonwealth Education Co-operation Scheme led to a collaborative 10-year (1971-1981) joint research project sponsored by the Indian and British governments with a team headed by A. R. Vasudeva Murthy at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore. The outcome of this collaboration, in joint scientific publications and the subsequent careers of the students trained under it, is now assessed. Brief references to other successful international and interdisciplinary collaborative projects are made and some generalizations for such successful interactions are proposed.