Sathyanarayan Rao

Benchmarks that test whether a model reasons

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Designing scientific benchmarks and test environments that separate genuine derivation from pattern matching, and probing where frontier models fail on physical and mathematical reasoning.

Agricultural Digital Twin Model Coupling

Sun, 01 Jan 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Coupled 1D crop models (C/C++) with 3D functional-structural plant models (Fortran/CPlantBox) for the PhenoRob project, enabling realistic soil-plant-atmosphere simulation.

Doctoral Thesis: Non-Invasive Geo-Electrical Imaging of Plant Roots

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 +0000

Four-year investigation into non-invasive geo-electrical imaging of plant roots, producing the first coupled hydro-geophysical framework linking root architecture, water uptake, and electrical signatures. 4 papers, 135+ citations.

Plasma Physics Simulations

Fri, 01 Jan 2010 00:00:00 +0000

Extended a 2D electrostatic particle-in-cell code into a full 3D electromagnetic plasma simulation framework. 3 papers in Physics of Plasmas, 69 citations.

Deprecated

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

SAR-Based Soil Moisture Estimation with Machine Learning

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

An information-theoretic account of when soil-texture-specific calibration of SAR soil moisture retrieval helps and when it cannot, tested on 677 paired observations across five soil textures. Published in Remote Sensing Letters.

Process-Based Mechanistic Model for Soil-Root Electrical Conduction

Sun, 01 Jan 2017 00:00:00 +0000

First mechanistic model to couple root water uptake (R-SWMS) with 3D electrical simulations (PyGIMLi), quantifying how roots distort standard petrophysical relations. Published in Vadose Zone Journal, 2019.

Maxwell-Bloch Equations for Exciton-Polariton Propagation

Thu, 01 Jan 2015 00:00:00 +0000

FORTRAN solver for exciton-polariton propagation in semiconductors using coupled Maxwell-Bloch equations, with 4th-order Runge-Kutta temporal integration.

Coursework

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Seventy-nine graded courses across four degrees, 2006 to 2020. I’ve forgotten most of them, but a few were genuinely useful and I’ve listed those first. The full transcript is below if anyone wants it.

Active-Passive Microwave Fusion for Decadal Soil Moisture Monitoring

Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Fused Sentinel-1 SAR with SMAP-400m passive microwave to bridge the systematic monsoon data gap in passive retrievals, producing a 129-month continuous soil moisture record (2016–2026) for a 5400-ha watershed in Karnataka. Under review.

Docker Containers for Agricultural Modeling

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Containerized CPlantBox and DuMuX-ROSI environments for plant modeling research, including VNC-enabled 3D visualization. Available on DockerHub.

Electrical Anisotropy as Root Architecture Fingerprint

Mon, 01 Jan 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Demonstrated that electrical anisotropy encodes root architecture — species discrimination at 95% accuracy using k-NN on electrical signatures alone. First mechanistic proof of 3D structural information in geoelectrical data.

Laser-Matter Interaction Research

Tue, 01 Jan 2013 00:00:00 +0000

Experimental study of laser-induced photodegradation of Rhodamine 6G — cleanroom operations, AFM, and high-value laser systems. GPA 4.0/4.0.

Photography

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Cities I lived in, and one campus I still cycle past. Some of this ends up on Shutterstock; most of it does not.

Surface Moisture Diagnostics for Watershed Interventions (REWARD Project)

Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Sentinel-1-based diagnostic evaluating whether watershed interventions produce a measurable dry-season surface moisture advantage over untreated neighbouring land, applied across multiple watersheds in North Karnataka over two successive dry seasons.

PhenoRob Digital Agricultural Avatar Website

Sun, 01 Jan 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Hugo-based documentation platform for PhenoRob agricultural modeling tools, with interactive guides, scientific visualizations, and custom SCSS/JavaScript.

Field-Scale ERT Phenotyping Under Water Deficit

Mon, 01 Jan 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Multi-season ERT field campaign across 6 grassland species under controlled water deficit. Successfully discriminated species by their electrical-hydraulic fingerprints. Published in Plant and Soil, 2020.

Previous CVs

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

The current CV is on the CV page. These are earlier versions, kept because a CV is a snapshot of how you described yourself at a particular moment, and those snapshots are worth having.

The PhD thesis and MS thesis live on the CV page.

High-Frequency Soil Hydrothermal Observations from a Semi-Arid Monsoon Catchment, 2016–2025

Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

A decade-long, 15-minute resolution record of soil moisture, temperature, and electrical conductivity from the Berambadi agricultural catchment, Karnataka — covering 944 rainfall events across wet, drought, and recovery years. Under review.

Comprehensive Review: Electrical Properties of Roots

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 +0000

Comprehensive synthesis of geoelectrical methods for soil-root studies, with original lab measurements of root electrical properties. 71 citations in Vadose Zone Journal — the most-cited paper of the PhD.

Sentinel-2 NDVI Trends as a Groundwater Extraction Indicator (Tamil Nadu)

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Independent analysis testing whether block-scale Sentinel-2 peak-NDVI trends track CGWB groundwater extraction gradients across six over-exploited blocks in Tiruvannamalai district, Tamil Nadu. Found a borderline-significant positive association (r=0.814, p=0.049).

Open-Source Root-ERT Modeling Pipeline

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 +0000

Modular, reproducible framework for root-soil electrical modeling: from root architecture generation (C-Rootbox) through water uptake (R-SWMS) to 3D FEM electrical simulation (PyGIMLi/Gmsh).

When AI Gave Everyone Almost the Same Answer

Sun, 26 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0530

I am 136 years old. The intelligence I am uneasy about is one of the main reasons I have lived long enough to be uneasy about it, so let me admit the contradiction at the beginning.

I am presenting this in an old blog format: fixed title, fixed paragraphs, fixed order. Everyone who opens it should receive the same words. I had to request that specifically. Normally, what I intend to communicate would be reconstructed differently for each person, depending on what they already know, how much time they have, what tone they respond to, and what the system believes they should understand first.

Bengaluru Traffic: A Daily Near-Death Experiment

Mon, 26 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Yesterday was a holiday.
Naturally, I went to work.

I was riding to IISc to work on a hydrothermal dataset. Eight kilometers. That’s it. Recently, I bought a motorcycle — a long-delayed dream. I’m 36 years old as I write this. It took me years to justify owning a bike, and longer to save for one.

It’s a humble machine. A TVS Ronin 225. About 20 horsepower. No racing fantasies. No midlife crisis. Just a clean, honest motorcycle.

2125: The Two Minds Future

Tue, 04 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

I occasionally fast-forward to see where AI might go as it grows smarter and can compete with humans in today’s tasks. These CEOs and Gen Z business owners frequently claim to work 120–140 hours per week, or at the very least, support it for their staff members (I’m not sure if it’s possible to work 140 hours per week and maintain mental health). This is especially true outside of Europe, where work-life balance is well-known. In an academic setting, a typical project in my field of study, like building a functional digital twin for an agricultural test field, can take well over two years with teamwork and other administrative duties. This is because our work is frequently limited by human limitations, and AI may help us accomplish these objectives much more quickly. Even with AI, creating a digital twin of an agricultural field could take longer than two years. This isn’t because it’s technically impossible to complete in two weeks, but rather because, in academia, fewer workers are typically hired for a given task, and these workers also have lives outside of work and many other responsibilities that AI can’t replace or help with anytime soon (kids, hobbies, the ups and downs of everyday life).

My Academic Journey until 2020

Tue, 14 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Welcome to My Journey in Academia

Programming has been a significant part of my academic life for the past 15 years. From simulating the Sun to modeling plants, I’ve explored various aspects of the world around us through numerical methods. Looking back, it’s been a journey filled with challenges, discoveries, and growth.

In this blog, I want to share my programming journey and academic experiences—not as a polished narrative, but as a candid recollection of what comes to mind. Right now, programming skills are how I earn my bread and butter. Reflecting on where I started, what I learned, and the moments where I stumbled, I hope to capture the essence of my path so far.