ABSTRACT
In 1955, Janaki was deputed by the Indian Government to attend a four-week course, beginning early May, in radioisotope or tracer atom techniques at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), in Tennessee. Using radiation, new disease-resistant as well as high-yielding plant varieties could be ‘made to order’ not only within a short span of time but also cheaply. After completing her training at ORNL, Janaki would travel to Ann Arbor, Michigan, where in early June, she was to receive a Legum Doctor from her alma mater, the University of Michigan, in recognition of her seminal contributions to botanical science. She was thrilled but disliked publicity of any kind, much like her coeval McClintock; her excitement stemmed more from the thought of reuniting with old friends at Ann Arbor, and walking about the botanic gardens, than anything else. Leaving Ann Arbor, Janaki travelled to Princeton to attend the landmark international symposium on environmental history under the aegis of the Wenner Gren Foundation. Janaki fitted the requirements of the symposium perfectly: her substantial work in the field of cytosystematics was historical (evolutionary) and geographical in its approach and matched Carl Sauer’s own approach to landscape. Janaki was not only the sole invitee from India but also the sole woman participant at this landmark international symposium.
