<u>Dying Fundamental Physics and Rising Digital Era of Engineering </u>

From a study based on personal teaching experiences and one-to-one and in-group interaction with a large number of students (9^th to 12^th Grade and UG levels), teachers, research scholars and lab-experts across India, we found that most of the students in the science stream no longer “view” Physics as a branch of science to study the nature, rather Physics for them is a giant toolbox to design more sophisticated devices and medicines for “social use”. To most of them, knowing physics means becoming smarter at handling electricity, electronic gadgets, computers, smart-phones and apps. Most of the science students were found not driven to learn physics as a way to understanding and relishing the hidden deeper beauty of nature; for them the new wonderland is the “on-line” world.
Given the trend in students’ attitude towards physics in current time, theoretical physics might severely suffer in near future. In this talk, I discuss the issues we found and the possible course of action to better cement the foundation of tomorrow’s fundamental physics.