Meera Nanda

Meera Nanda is a Visiting Professor of the history of science at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Mohali since 2009. She is associated with the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science (MPIWG) in Berlin and focuses on the cultural history of science in India from 1600–2000. Her research critically examines the hybridization of Western scientific theories (e.g., Copernican astronomy, Darwinism, quantum physics) with Hindu spiritualist-idealist traditions, exposing contradictions and the politicization of science in the context of Hindu nationalism.

• PhD in Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT-Delhi), India
• PhD in Science and Technology Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, USA (2000)

Her work spans disciplines such as history of science, philosophy of science, science and religion, and postcolonial critiques of science. At MPIWG, she contributes to research groups like Astral Sciences in Trans-Regional Asia and Premodern Sciences of Soul & Body.

Her publications and talks address themes like pseudoscience, secularism, and the role of Enlightenment values in contemporary India. She has lectured at institutions including Aarhus University, University of Vienna, and the Government College for Women, Trivandrum.