She considers sexual assault a disease which needs an immediate cure. But instead of waiting for someone else to help the ‘damsels in distress’, she took up the cudgels herself. Meet Manisha Mohan, an Indian origin female researcher at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and her weapon for self-defence is technology. The 25-year-old caught everyone’s attention when she developed a wearable sensor which alerts victim’s friends and family by sending them the victim’s location details. The hydrogel sensor strip, which can be attached inside any clothing, sends a message to the user’s phone, which can be forwarded or stopped by the victim herself if she is conscious or be sent automatically to her friends if the victim doesn’t respond within a time frame. Basically, the sensor detects the difference between one voluntarily taking their clothes off and someone else forcibly doing so. If it’s by force, one of the persons listed on the victim’s safety circle gets a call, and when that friend takes the call, he or she can listen to the noise and the conversation gets recorded as evidence of the crime. Named Intrepid, the strip works like a sticker, is washable, short-circuit proof and leaves no residue.
It took her almost two years to develop it. What really inspired her to take it up? Talking about how she conceived the idea of creating it, she says, “I had a very liberal upbringing in Chandigarh but when I went to SRM University in Chennai for my graduation, I was not allowed to visit the library after 6.30 pm and was told to be in my dorm. In the name of safety, women were not being allowed to do what they had the potential to do. I used to hide beneath a desk during my laboratory hours because I wanted to do research on robotics. There were few times that I got caught and barely saved myself from getting thrown out of the college. Men were allowed to do their research and women were not, while we all used to pay the same fee. But the real trigger was the Nirbhaya rape case. I realised I needed to do something for women safety. At MIT, I had a discussion with my professors and did lot of research on the subject.”
Born in Bihar and brought up in Chandigarh, she was always a science buff. “The first time I attended the Indian Science Congress in 2007 when I was in grade eight, I discovered my inclination towards automobile engineering and research. I was quite headstrong about my dreams and ambitions. I knew I had to get into research. One of my worst days after my graduation was when I sat for my placements and I got through a very famous company. I was so disappointed because I thought it would be the end of my learning process. People were trying to cheer me up but it wasn’t helping. After that I moved to Sweden for my internship. When I got through MIT, I was really happy because I could do what I wanted,” says Manisha.
We wonder how the shift from automobile engineering to wearable technology happened? “I have been very flexible and have experience working in different fields. Thus, over the years, I have learnt what I like and what I don’t. At MIT, through several interactions with fellow researchers and professors attracted me towards wearable technology, which I believe will play a huge role in the future. That’s the prime focus of my research. My major domain is computer interactions,” she explains. Both her parents are academicians and her younger brother is also an engineer and she has always received great support from family.
She hopes that since the technology has been developed, companies working in wearable technology sectors will use the product and make it available for the masses. “Sexual abuse occurring in India is very different from what is happening in USA and we have studied these differences. We wanted to create something more universal and there’s a lot of room for improvement that can address all kinds of sexual abuse. It’s just the beginning for us,” says the young scientist who interacted with several sexual assault survivors to improve factors like design, functionality and sensitivity. Before signing off, she adds, “Tomorrow the clothes will do the talking for us and they will understand us better than we understand ourselves.”
