Mathematical prodigy Shakuntala Devi died at a hospital in Bangalore on Friday following respiratory problems. She was 83. Hospitalised a couple of weeks ago for critical respiratory problems, she passed away at Bangalore.
In 1977, in Dallas, she competed with a computer to give the cube root of 188138517. She won. At an US university, she was asked to give the 23rd root of a 201-digit number. She answered in 50 seconds. On June 18, 1980, she demonstrated the multiplication of two 13-digit numbers 7,686,369,774,870 x 2,465,099,745,779 picked at random by the Computer Department of Imperial College, London. She answered correctly in 28 seconds. The feat found a mention in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Later on, she began to develop an interest in astrology as well as vaastu shaastra.
What was remarkable about Shakuntala Devi was her memory. If one asked her what day was August 15, 1947 or August 15, 2080 would fall on what day, she would answer in seconds. Her memory was very sharp.
She wanted all of us to be good at maths. Once I was handling an accounts-related matter and asked her for some help. She shot back, saying everyone should learn maths. She made me work on the problem and gave solutions.
Shakuntala Devi was one of the hardest working women I have ever known. She would start her day early and work till late in the night. She was not only a good astrologer, but also a wonderful cook who has even written books on cooking.
Her dream was to script a movie. In fact, she was working on a script. It was about a girl who was weak in maths, or rather, afraid of maths. Her dream was to start a mathematical research institute.
She was a keen observer who would react to situations. Once, she was passing by her school. On finding the building in a poor state, she went to the school the next day and gave money for taking up repairs.
In 1977, in Dallas, she competed with a computer to give the cube root of 188138517. She won. At an US university, she was asked to give the 23rd root of a 201-digit number. She answered in 50 seconds. On June 18, 1980, she demonstrated the multiplication of two 13-digit numbers 7,686,369,774,870 x 2,465,099,745,779 picked at random by the Computer Department of Imperial College, London. She answered correctly in 28 seconds. The feat found a mention in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Later on, she began to develop an interest in astrology as well as vaastu shaastra.
What was remarkable about Shakuntala Devi was her memory. If one asked her what day was August 15, 1947 or August 15, 2080 would fall on what day, she would answer in seconds. Her memory was very sharp.
She wanted all of us to be good at maths. Once I was handling an accounts-related matter and asked her for some help. She shot back, saying everyone should learn maths. She made me work on the problem and gave solutions.
Shakuntala Devi was one of the hardest working women I have ever known. She would start her day early and work till late in the night. She was not only a good astrologer, but also a wonderful cook who has even written books on cooking.
Her dream was to script a movie. In fact, she was working on a script. It was about a girl who was weak in maths, or rather, afraid of maths. Her dream was to start a mathematical research institute.
She was a keen observer who would react to situations. Once, she was passing by her school. On finding the building in a poor state, she went to the school the next day and gave money for taking up repairs.
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