Science in silence: How research and innovation endure when society trembles

Dr Raj Singh
I attended the recently concluded Manipur Science Congress 2025 at Manipur University, Imphal, with emotions more layered than I had anticipated. In a state weighed down by political uncertainty and an unresolved ethnic  conflict that  seeps  into daily conversation, one expects anxiety to be the dominant  mood. Yet, what  unfolded inside  the halls of the Congress was a striking counter-reality: calm, purpose, curiosity, and an almost  stubborn  commitment  to knowledge.
Nearly 300 research papers were registered for presentation. Scholars from within Manipur and from outside the state converged not to debate politics, but to debate data; not to trade accusations, but to test hypotheses. The Hon’ble Governor, visibly impressed by the enthusiasm and seriousness of the researchers, seemed to sense what many of us felt intuitively - that something profoundly stabilizing was at work here. I, too, felt a deep sense of satisfaction, not only as an attendee but as an award donor and Co-Chair of the Young Scientist Award Competition. It felt like participating in a quiet but consequential act of civilizational continuity.  My thoughts carried me further.
Science as a Cultural Force, Not a Casual Activity
Science is often described as a profession, a discipline, or a career path. That description is incomplete. At its core, science is a cultural force - one that survives regimes, outlasts conflicts, and quietly safeguards the future even when the present looks bleak. When societies fracture, science does not shout slogans; it keeps notes. When institutions falter, science continues to experiment. When hope thins out, science keeps asking, what if? History offers powerful reassurance. The two most destructive episodes of modern civilization - World War I and World War II- did not extinguish scientific pursuit. On the contrary, some of the most foundational advances in physics, medicine, engineering, and computing occurred during or immediately after those global catastrophes. Even as cities burned and ideologies clashed, laboratories continued to glow late into the night. Human beings, it seems, refuse to abandon the search for understanding, even when understanding one another fails.
The famous American Computer Scientist Donald Knuth once observed that science is “what we understand well enough to explain to a computer; art is everything else we do.” In times of chaos, society desperately needs both, but science provides the scaffolding upon which recovery is built. The silent perseverance witnessed at the Manipur Science Congress echoes a universal truth: science does not wait for peace; it prepares the ground for it. Manipur’s Scientists: Working Against the Current What makes the Manipur Science Congress especially meaningful is where it happened and when. Manipur today is not an easy place to think calmly, let alone innovate boldly. Narratives of loss, grievance, and uncertainty surround young minds. Infrastructure struggles, institutional trust is eroded, and opportunities feel scarce.
Yet, the scientific community demonstrated something remarkable: intellectual resilience. The presence of young researchers presenting work with clarity and confidence, senior scientists mentoring without cynicism, and participants traveling from outside the state despite its troubled image - all of this signals that science in Manipur is not dormant. It is quietly defiant. This is not escapism. It is endurance. Innovation as Moral Responsibility However, celebration alone would be incomplete without a challenge. Science does not exist in a moral vacuum. As Albert Einstein cautioned, “Concern for man and his fate must always form the chief interest of all technical endeavors.” In other words, scientific excellence that remains socially indifferent risks becoming irrelevant. Manipur today is a living laboratory of complex problems: conflict resolution, trauma healing, resource sharing, environmental stress, youth alienation, misinformation, and governance failures. These are not problems for politicians alone. They demand innovative thinking across disciplines - psychology, data science, public health, environmental studies, communication technologies, and social engineering. The scientific community must ask itself difficult questions:
- Can data help rebuild trust between divided communities?
- Can technology support transparent governance and service delivery?
- Can scientific methods be applied to conflict early-warning systems?
- Can innovation turn scarcity into a shared opportunity?
The Nobel laureate Amartya Sen reminds us that development is freedom - not merely economic growth, but the expansion of human capability. Science, when aligned with social purpose, becomes a powerful instrument of that freedom. Hope, Not as Emotion, But as Method Hope is often mistaken for optimism. Science teaches us something subtler: hope is a method. It is the disciplined refusal to accept ignorance as final, failure as permanent, or conflict as destiny. The Manipur Science Congress conveyed this method quietly but convincingly. While public discourse outside may be loud with despair, inside the Congress halls, progress was being measured in microns, datasets, algorithms, and models. That is how civilizations endure - not always through grand speeches, but through steady inquiry.
The sociologist Robert K. Merton, who articulated the norms of science (Mertonian ethos) - universalism, communalism, disinterestedness, and organized skepticism - would have found reassurance here. These norms are antidotes to prejudice, parochialism, and emotional excess. In a polarized society, they are not merely academic virtues; they are social stabilizers.
A Call to the Young Scientists of Manipur
To the young scientists of Manipur, the message must be both encouraging and demanding. You are custodians of a tradition that has survived wars, plagues, and collapsed empires. Your pursuit of knowledge is not detached from society; it is one of society’s last lines of defense against regression. You inherit not only the privilege of inquiry, but the responsibility of application.
Innovation does not always mean invention. Sometimes it means reframing problems, bridging silos, and designing systems that reduce conflict rather than intensify it. The state does not merely need more degrees or publications; it needs scientific minds willing to engage with real- world complexity.
Beyond the Obvious
The obvious narrative of Manipur today is crisis. The less obvious, but far more important narrative, is continuity - the quiet continuity of thought, research, and imagination. The Manipur Science Congress 2025 reminded us that even when society trembles, the foundations of progress can remain firm. Science, pursued with integrity and social conscience, is indestructible. It waits patiently for society to catch up. And when it does, Manipur’s scientists must be ready - not just with answers, but with wisdom.