chemistry

Yamuna Krishnan

Yamuna Krishnan is a chemistry topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Yamuna Krishnan rather than just read about it. In short: Yamuna Krishnan (born May 25, 1974) is a professor at the Department of Chemistry, University of Chicago, where she has worked since August 2014. She was earlier a Reader in National Centre for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Bangalore, India.

Key takeaways

Yamuna Krishnan belongs to chemistry; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Yamuna Krishnan to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Yamuna Krishnan from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Yamuna Krishnan (born May 25, 1974) is a professor at the Department of Chemistry, University of Chicago, where she has worked since August 2014. She was earlier a Reader in National Centre for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Bangalore, India. Krishnan won the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for science and technology, the highest science award in India in the year 2013 in the Chemical Science category. In 2024, she was named the Louis Block Professor of Chemistry and the college.

Early life and education Krishnan was born to P.T. Krishnan and Mini in Parappanangadi, in the Malappuram district of Kerala, India. She grew up in Chennai, India. As a child, she met S. Krishnaswamy, Vice Chancellor of Madurai Kamaraj University, who fostered her interest in science. From a young age, she conducted her own informal home expiriments. Krishnan earned her Bachelor's in Chemistry from the University of Madras, Women's Christian College, Chennai, India in 1993. She secured a Master's of Science in Chemical Sciences in 1997 and a PhD in Organic Chemistry in 2002, both from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. Krishnan worked as a postdoctoral research fellow and an 1851 Research Fellow from 2001 to 2004 at the Department of Chemistry at the University of Cambridge, UK.

Professional experience Krishnan was a Fellow 'E' at National Centre for Biological Sciences from 2005 to 2009, at the TIFR in Bangalore, India, and then tenured Reader 'F' from 2009 to 2013 at the National Centre for Biological Sciences, TIFR, Bangalore, India. In 2013, she was promoted to Associate Professor 'G' at the National Centre for Biological Sciences, TIFR, Bangalore, India and moved to University of Chicago as a professor of chemistry in August 2014.

Research Krishnan's current research interests are in the areas related to structure and dynamics of nucleic acids, nucleic acid nanotechnology, cellular and subcellular technologies. Her lab tries to understand the functions from DNA beyond that of its traditional role as genetic material. They develop versatile, chemical imaging technology using self-assembled DNA nanostructures to quantitatively image second messengers in real time, in living cells and genetic model organisms.

Awards and recognition 1851 Research Fellowship, Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851, 2002 RNA Society Fellowship, 2012 Fellow of Wolfson College, University of Cambridge, UK, 2003–2005 Innovative Young Biotechnologist Award, DBT Indian National Science Academy's Young Scientist Medal Associate, Indian Academy of Sciences Editorial Advisory Board, ChemBiochem, Wiley VCH, 2010 BK Bachhawat Award, 2010 YIM-Boston Young Scientist Award, 2012 Wellcome-Trust-DBT Alliance Senior Research Fellowship, 2010 Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award, Chemical Sciences, 2013 AVRA Young Scientist Award, 2014 Cell's 40 Under 40, 2014 Member of Faculty, 1000 Prime, Chemical Biology, 2014 Chemical Sciences Emerging Investigator Award, Royal Society of Chemistry, 2015 Infosys Prize 2017, Physical Sciences NIH Director's Pioneer Award, 2022 Louis Block Professor of Chemistry and the college, University Of Chicago, 2024

References

External links Women in Chemistry — Interview with Yamuna Krishnan Give It All You've Got – Professor Yamuna Krishnan, University of Chicago, IL, USA Finding their way into worms – DNA Nanomachines Yamuna Krishnan – The University of Chicago Department of Chemistry Archived 1 August 2020 at the Wayback Machine Krishnan Group – The University of Chicago

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Yamuna Krishnan

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Yamuna Krishnan claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In chemistry, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Yamuna Krishnan before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Yamuna Krishnan ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Yamuna Krishnan

In research: Yamuna Krishnan appears in chemistry research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Yamuna Krishnan in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Yamuna Krishnan is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1974 births, 20th-century Indian chemists, 20th-century Indian women scientists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Yamuna Krishnan outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Yamuna Krishnan in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Yamuna Krishnan means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Yamuna Krishnan out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Yamuna Krishnan in simple terms?

Why does Yamuna Krishnan matter?

Because it connects several chemistry ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Yamuna Krishnan?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Yamuna Krishnan.