ABOUT IIT BOMBAY

Established in 1958, the second of its kind, IIT Bombay was

the first to be set up with foreign assistance. The fund from
UNESCO came as Roubles from the then Soviet Union. In
1961 Parliament decreed the IITs as ‘Institutes of National
Importance’. Since then, IITB has grown from strength to
strength to emerge as one of the top technical universities in
the world.
The institute is recognised worldwide as a leader in the field
of engineering education and research. Reputed for the
outstanding calibre of students graduating from its
undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, the institute
attracts the best students from the country for its bachelor’s,
master’s and doctoral programmes. Research and academic
programmes at IIT Bombay are driven by an outstanding
faculty, many of whom are reputed for their research
contributions internationally. IIT Bombay also builds links
with peer universities and institutes, both at the national and
the international levels, to enhance research and enrich its
educational programmes. The alumni have distinguished
themselves through their achievements in and contributions
to industry, academics, research, business, government and
social domains. The institute continues to work closely with
the alumni to enhance its activities through interactions in
academic and research programmes as well as to mobilise
financial support.
Over the years, the institute has created a niche for its
innovative short-term courses through continuing education
and distance education programmes. Members of the faculty
of the institute have won many prestigious awards and
recognitions, including the Shanti Swaroop Bhatnagar and
National Geoscience awards.
Located in Powai, one of the northern suburbs of Mumbai,
the residents of the institute reap the advantage of being in
the busy financial capital of India, while at the same time
enjoying the serenity of a campus known for its natural
beauty. A fully residential institute, all its students are
accommodated in its 16 hostels with in-house dining; the
campus also provides excellent amenities for sports and
other recreational facilities.
 ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT

The Department of Earth Sciences constituted in 1982 from the

erstwhile Geology Section of the Department of Civil Engineering
(where it used to run the M. Sc. programme in Applied Geology
since 1964) offers academic programmes leading to M.Sc. (Applied
Geology), M.Sc. (Applied Geophysics), M.Tech. (Geo-exploration),
M.Tech.(Petroleum Geoscience) and Ph.D. The Department draws
strength from the reputation of its faculty from their research
contributions in reputed international scientific journals and
interaction with international and national scientific organizations.
The faculty have been bestowed with awards such as the S.S.
Bhatnagar prize, National Geoscience award, IGU Krishnan medal,
Von Humbolt Fellow, ICTP Fellow, TWAS award for Earth Sciences,
TWAS Visiting Professor and the INSA Young Scientist award in
recognition of their contribution to Earth Sciences. The
department is well equipped with the state-of-art laboratory &
research facilities including three major national facilities -
40Ar/39Ar Mass Spectrometer for geochronology, the EPMA for
mineral chemistry and the X-Ray Fluorescene laboratory.
 ABOUT PROTOLITH

Coming from the amalgamation of two Greek words – ‘protos’ for first and
‘lithos’ which means rock, Protolith means the original rock from which the
current existing rock was created. It signifies a beginning, the dawn of
something new and exciting.

And it is with this belief that we, the students of IIT Bombay, are continuing
the legacy started in 2015, presenting the third edition of the national level
technical symposium of the Department of Earth Sciences, IIT-Bombay -
Protolith 2020. The field of Geology is rarely known outside the circles of
those who deal with the mysteries of the Earth. Protolith is aimed at
bringing this science to the fore and motivating the youth of our country to
embark upon careers in it. This year Protolith will be held on 28th, 29th and
30th of December 2020, witnessing participation from students across the
nation. It will provide an opportunity to current students to showcase their
skills in various competitions and challenging tasks as well as interact with
their peers from the participating institutes. This festival is also intended to
bridge the gap between the industry and academia by increasing the
interaction between them. Most importantly, the participating students will
be benefitted by various workshops organized by different laboratories of
the department. Further, Protolith is envisioned to provide a platform for
young minds to mingle and come up with ideas that we believe can
revolutionize this amazing branch of study.
Events of Protolith’20
 Workshops

X-ray fluorescence X-ray Diffractometer

Ar-Ar Mass-
Rock Eval Pyrolyzer Spectrometer

Digital-Seismograph Gravimeter
 Pyrolysis gas
Electron Probe chromatograph–
Micro Analyser mass spectrometry

Differential Global Micro Laser Raman

Positioning System Spectrometer

Multi Electrical
Resistivity Imaging
System
Scanning Electron ADU 07 MT
Microscope with Instrument with
Energy Dispersive Electric and
Spectrometer Magnetic field
sensors

Magnetic
susceptibility
measurement
systems and
magnetometer
 3 minutes talk
Eligibility

Ph.D.
Rules

1. It's a 3-minute speech competition called the 3 minute Talk.

This 3-minute speech competition challenges research
scholars to effectively communicate their technical research
through a short speech.
2. Active Ph.D. Candidates who have published at least one
paper or whose publication is in the press are eligible for
the event.
3. Round 1 is the shortlisting round. Each candidate must
submit their abstract in not more than 300 words by 22nd
December (11:59 p.m.). Abstracts from the candidates
would be shortlisted and only the best 15 abstracts would
be carried forward for the second round
4. Round 2: The final round, where selected participants from
the previous round, will showcase their research in 3
minutes talk. Not more than one PowerPoint slide is
permitted. They should be ready for the counter-questions
by the judges after the talk. Competitors exceeding 3
minutes will be disqualified.
5. Presentations are considered to have commenced when a
presenter starts their presentation through either
movement or speech. No additional electronic media (e.g.,
sound and video files) are permitted. The decision of the
judges shall be deemed final.
6. Any form of nuisance will result in disqualification.
7. Awards will be provided to the top 3 talks.
 InQuiZitive

Eligibility
B.Sc. 3rd year/ M.Sc. / M.Tech. / PhD

Rules

1. InQuiZitive is the flagship quiz event comprising questions

from different facets of earth sciences.
2. Open for all geology and geophysics students.
3. Participation can be done in teams of a maximum of 3
members.
4. The participant should currently be a student enrolled in a
recognized school/college.

Rules of the quiz will be further updated on 26th December

 CROSS-CUT

Eligibility
B.Sc. 3rd year/ M.Sc. / M.Tech. / PhD
Rules
1. A debate competition that involves a formal discussion about an allotted
Earth Science topic to challenge the participant's knowledge, critical
thinking, awareness, and verbal skills.
2. Only 1 team (of max 2 participants) is allowed from a college/institution.
3. The debate topic and all other necessary details (slot and meeting link)
shall be conveyed only after the team registers.
4. A team has to prepare both FOR and AGAINST the motion but has to
speak on only one of the two. The stance to be followed will be conveyed
at the start of the debate itself.
5. In ROUND 1, each team will get 5 minutes to speak, during which other
teams will keep their mics and cameras OFF. Other teams may jot down
the 'speaker's points during this time.
6. In ROUND 2, each team will get 2 minutes to challenge the teams of the
opposite motion.
7. The judgment will be made by a panel of experts. It will be based on your
content, its relevance, and your presentation.
8. Each round will be of 10 points. The team's score in each round will be
calculated by the average of points given by the panelists active at that
time. The final score equals the sum of scores from each round.
9. Penalty shall be levied on overshooting the time. Please note that the
judges are free to impose whatever penalty they deem fit. This is done to
allow judges to use their discretion in case of any technical obstruction
from the 'participants' end.
10. A member may choose to speak in both the rounds or in any one round,
BUT only one member will get to speak at a time. In case of technical
issues with a speaking member, the other member shall be asked to
continue.
11. Any attempt to challenge the opponent should be respectful. Stage
decorum should be maintained at any cost.
 Improviso

Eligibility
B.Sc. 3rd year/ M.Sc. / M.Tech. / PhD

Rules

1. This event aims to test students' ability to deliver an

impromptu speech on randomly selected topics related to
Earth Sciences backed by facts and figures.
2. Only up to 2 participants per college will be allowed.
3. The medium of the event will be English only.
4. Participants must strictly dress up in decent attire and have a
good background view.
5. There will be separate topics for Geology and Geophysics,
and the participant will be assigned a topic picked on a
random selection wheel.
6. Each participant will get a preparatory time of 4-5 minutes
and a speaking time of maximum 3 minutes. There will be
particular emphasis on maintaining the time limit. A
warning bell will be rung after 2 minutes. Participants
exceeding the time limit will be penalized.
7. All the participants except the one speaking are to keep
their mics and cameras OFF.
8. In the case of internet problems, while speaking, the timer
shall be paused, and the participant shall be informed. The
timer shall be resumed if the issue is resolved in a minute. In
case it isn't, the participant will get to speak at the end again
with a new topic.
9. The decision of the judges will be final and the winners will
be announced later.
 e-poster presentation

Eligibility
M.Sc. / M.Tech./ PhDs

Rules

1. The online rendition of the classical poster presentation

competition.
2. The poster topic must be related to some aspect of Earth Science,
which must include one of the following: Research papers,
dissertation, or project work done by the participants.
3. Participants must submit the abstract describing their poster in
200-250 words along with their name and other necessary details
before 20th December. Late & multiple submissions will not be
taken into consideration.
4. It is advised to limit the text to about one-fourth of poster space,
and use "visuals" (schematics, graphs, images, etc.).
5. Consent form from all contributors of the project and letter of
approval from respective college HODs/supervisors is compulsory to
participate in this event if you are not an active student in any
institution. The poster must include the Title and name of the
author(s) and the affiliated organization(s).
6. Shortlisted Participants will be informed by email about their
selection.
7. Shortlisted participants will have to upload a video of about 5-10
minutes duration explaining their poster before 26th Dec 2020; the
screen must have their poster along with their voice over.
8. The videos will be exhibited on Protolith’s website.
9. On the final day, participants will be provided a time slot where they
will have a live interaction with Judges. They will be asked to
elaborate their e- poster followed by a question & answer session
by the panel of judges.
10. The decision of Judges shall be deemed final.
 Shutter Earth
Eligibility

B.Sc. 3rd year/ M.Sc. / M.Tech. / PhD

Rules
1. This is an online photography contest that aims to see the Earth
through an earth scientist's spectacles.
2. More than one student from an institution can participate, and
each student can submit only one colored photograph. In case more
than one photograph is submitted, only the first entry will be
considered.
3. Images should be clicked by the student, on or after 1st November
2018. The image metadata shall be checked to confirm this.
4. The photograph should be related to some topic of Earth Sciences
and must not contain any objectionable content.
5. There should not be any watermark or writing on the photograph.
The picture must not be edited.
6. The picture should have a proper caption, within 50 words. The
photograph must have some scale, even in mega-scale images (a
human for instance).
7. Students have to submit their photograph before 23:59 hours,
25 December 2020. The photograph shall then be posted on the
Protolith’s Facebook page by our team.
8. Students will have from 00:00 hours, 26 December till 23:59 hours,
28 December 2020, to obtain maximum likes on their photographs
(likes on shares of the post won't be counted). The final results will
be announced on 30 December 2020.
9. Images will be exhibited on Protolith’s website.
10. Two awards are offered: Most Scientific Photograph ('Judges'
choice) and Most Popular Photograph (selection based on Facebook
likes).
 Miniature Earth

Eligibility
B.Sc. 3rd year/ M.Sc. / M.Tech. / PhD

Rules
1. This event will provide participants the platform to bring out the
Geological or Geophysical phenomenon from books and showcase
them using animations or simulations
2. Participation can be done in teams of up to 3 members. There is no
limitation on the number of teams per college.
3. Round 1 is the shortlisting round. The teams are required to submit
their entries (up to 2 min. long) along with a writeup (in pdf format)
containing the topic of their model and a caption for it (within 100
words). The entries can have an explanatory Voice Over.
4. The submission should be made latest by 26th of December 2020,
for shortlisting. Entries beyond that won’t be considered. The mode
of submission shall be informed after registration.
5. Shortlisted entries will proceed to Round 2(final round). These
entries will be posted on the Protolith’s Facebook page by our team
and put up on the website as exhibits. It is the responsibility of
participating teams to gather as many likes on their entries as
possible.
6. For this round, teams will interact with judges, where the judges
can ask anything related to the animation. Time and link for the
same will be conveyed via email.
7. The decision of the judges shall be deemed final.
8. Two awards will be given: Best Model (Judges' choice) and Most
Popular Model (selection based on Facebook likes).
9. No likes on the shared posts will be considered.

P.S. – There is no strict rule on what counts as a model. Feel free to

submit animations/simulations/videos etc. If it follows point 3 and
is NOT objectionable, it will be shortlisted.
 Riddzilla
Eligibility
B.Sc. 3rd year/ M.Sc. / M.Tech. / PhD
Rules
1. This is a fun event to communicate various Earth Science
related features in multiple rounds of Jigsaw puzzles in which
participants rearrange images, as in Jigsaw board games.
2. It is an individual event
3. The event will be organized in two stages, the elimination
round, and the final round.
4. In step 1 of round 1, the participants will be given a fixed time
to solve a question. Correct answers will lead to the puzzle for
step 2, and incorrect answers will lead to disqualification.
5. For step 2 of round 1, the participants will have to rearrange the
puzzle in the given time and upload the full window screenshot
of the puzzle with their progress. If not completed, then the
percentage of puzzle completion and time-taken will be
considered.
6. For round 2, only the top 25 individuals will be selected.
7. The second round will also be done in two steps, just like the
elimination round. In step 1 of round 2, the finalists will be
given a fixed time to solve a question. Correct answers will lead
to the puzzle for step 2 and incorrect answers will lead to
disqualification.
8. For step 2 of round 2, the participants will have to rearrange the
puzzle in the given time and upload the full window screenshot
of the puzzle with their progress. If not completed, then the
percentage of puzzle completion and time-taken will be
considered.
9. Winners will be announced on the last day. In case of any
ambiguity, the decision of the organizers shall be final.
 Pirates of Protolith

Eligibility
B.Sc. 3rd year/ M.Sc. / M.Tech

Rules

1. A virtual treasure hunt designed to put participants' knowledge of

Geoscience to test, with the help of clues to reach their
destination by marking the location on Google Earth.
2. There will be 1 team per college, and each team can have 3-5
participants.
3. It will be conducted in two rounds.
4. The first round which is an elimination round will be of 1.5-hour
duration. This will include four questions (clues). Participants need
to mark the location deciphered from the clue on Google Earth.
5. All questions are compulsory to qualify for the final round. There
is no negative marking for incorrect answers.
6. Only the first submission by any of the team members will be
accepted. Hence it is advised to re-evaluate answers at least once
before submitting.
7. Submissions exceeding the given time limit won't be considered.
8. Time is extremely critical in this event. In case of a tie, the team
that took the least time will be shortlisted.
9. Teams shortlisted from the first round will proceed ahead. The
second round will be similar to the first round.
10. The decision of the judges will be final.
11. Any form of nuisance will result in disqualification.
 Wordception

Eligibility

B.Sc. 3rd year/ M.Sc. / M.Tech. / PhD

Rules
1. The event involves participants solving Earth Science themed
crossword puzzles to boost their brain and test their knowledge
in both geology and geophysics.
2. There is no bar on the number of teams from a college.
3. Participation can be in teams of up to 3. But only 1 submission
per team will be considered.
4. The crosswords will be floated on Days 1 and 2 of the Protolith.
The registered participants can access the crossword between 7
PM and 10 AM, on both days.
5. Contestants have to finish their tasks as soon as possible and
upload their solved crossword documents on the same platform.
The crossword will be in word file format. The participants need
to type in the word document itself and submit in PDF format
only. Handwritten entries WILL NOT be evaluated.
6. The submissions need to be made within the above time
duration itself, on both days.
7. Even partially solved puzzles can be submitted. For each correct
answer, 04 points shall be awarded. In case of incorrect entry, 01
points shall be deducted.
8. Tie-breaking: In case of a tie in top score, the first one to submit
will be the winner.
9. Winners will be announced for both days. So, a participant has
the chance to win twice.
10. Both accuracy and timing shall be the criteria to declare the
winner. In case of any ambiguity, the decision of the organizers
shall be final.
 Petro-byte
Eligibility
B.Sc. 3rd year/ M.Sc. / M.Tech. / PhD

Rules

1. Participation can be done in teams of a maximum of 3

members.
2. The participants should currently be registered in a recognized
school/college.
3. The team needs to make a Kaggle account (it is free of cost) to
access the competition. The team can keep whatever
ID/username on Kaggle.
4. The problem statement will be published on 23rd December.
5. A team is free to make any number of submissions in a day.
6. A team may be asked to submit their algorithm for cross-
checking.
 GAME OF STONES

Eligibility
B.Sc. 3rd year/ M.Sc. / M.Tech
Rules

1. An exciting quiz game that aims to test the participants' knowledge

and qualitative reasoning in mineralogy, petrology, and paleontology.
2. This event will be in 3 stages, and teams with maximum 3
participants each will be allowed to participate. There will be no
negative marking in any round.
3. The first stage will be an Elimination round, in which the participants
will face a question-and-answer session. The top 25 teams scoring
the highest points shall proceed to the next round.
4. In the second round, the teams will have to identify the hints given
in the form of pictures or videos of photomicrographs. There shall
be no eliminations in this round and all teams will proceed to the
third and final round.
5. In the third round, the teams will have to identify the hints given in
the form of pictures or videos of megascopic features such as
sedimentary & deformation structures, crystal wooden models, or
ichnological features.
6. The cumulative addition of the points in the second and third stages
will be used to declare the winners. The decision of the judges will
be final.
7. The platform and other details shall be conveyed after registration
 Geo-Pitch

Eligibility

Open to all (earth sciences-based start-up idea)

Rules

1. Geo-pitch provides the participants with a platform to pitch

their geoscientific entrepreneurial ideas before investors.
2. Participants with entrepreneurship ideas, irrespective of their
age, professional background are welcome (provided the idea
is related to earth sciences.)
3. Participants must upload an abstract of their pitch deck
presentation in 200-500 words.
4. There is no bar on team size.
5. The participants will submit a photocopy of the Aadhaar card
and a one-page resume during the registration process.
6. The shortlisted teams will be informed through an email.
7. The final participants will have a one-to-one conversation with
the investors in a virtual closed room.
8. Each participating team will be given a minimum of 7 minutes
to pitch their ideas and 15 minutes to interact with investors
and take questions.
 Geo-prenuers
Eligibility

Entrepreneurs only (as speaker); Audience (open to all)

Rules

1. A series of talks by entrepreneurs and businessmen who

have created breakthroughs and employment opportunities
in the field of Earth sciences
2. In this event, you can participate in two ways. One as an
audience and another as a speaker.
 speaker:
▪ Prerequisite
● You should be engaged with a start-up
● Your start-up must be registered on
startupindia.gov.in
● You should have Pan Id for your start-up
▪ Process of registration:
● Register on Protolith's website
● Abstract submission: explaining your start-
up within 300words
● Final registration will be done after
reviewing the abstract
 Audience:
▪ Registration is mandatory to attend the talk
Protolith’20