First Quarter - Stay at 2121 Sheridan (The Seminary)

It is Monday the January 3, 1977.

I go and meet Dr. Peterson. Tell him I lost my money. He helps by arranging for an advance from my assitantship. He also suggests that I report to the police

I discuss with him about my course selection. End up signing up for 12 hours (4 courses), which is full load. I sign up for Regional Economics, Multivariate Statisitcs, Operations Research and Special Project.

I need to mail my letter to my wife. I am not able to find a mail box. I ask Dr. Peterson. He walks out of his office and shows me the mailbox just outside the window. No wonder I did not see it - It is blue colored and I have been looking for a red colored box as in India!

Then I go to the Seminary next door with Mr. Mohamed and get our room allotted. We move up and I jump to the bed near the telephone. Soon findout the telephone is not connected and I need to arrange for my own connection.... Decide not to do that.

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It is interesting to see how things move smoothly and efficiently. I am given a key to the main door and Graduate Students' Office of Tech Institute so that I can come in anytime and study or do research or use the computer center! I got my picture taken for my identity card (Pic ID) .

Muthu in 1977


Quarter is progressing and I am feeling the work load. Every night before sleeping I think of my parents and family and feel the separation more every night. It takes 2 weeks for my letter to reach home and 2 more weeks before I receive the reply! Most of my time is spent in the Tech Institute. Most of the research work assigned to me is card punching and duplicating papers.

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My meal these days is two slices of bread from the Students Cafeteria downstairs, supplemented by oatmeal cookies from the vending machine in the 5th floor of Tech Institute.

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Regional Economics is all mathematical modelling. The professor is a black. The standard was high and most of it is over my head. Multivariate Statistics was taught by Dr. Peterson. He is about my age. When I started as the Head of the Town Planning Department at the Central Polytechnic, Adayar, in 1965, I had students several years older than me. Now I am finding most professors are much younger than I!

Multivariate Statistics was taught with the manual for the computer program Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) as the text. All the assignments involve using this package.

I am fascinated by Operations Research. I had attended couple of short courses at Guindy and IIT-M on linear programming and operations research. But, it was tough to do it as a full course with homeworks and frequent tests and quizzes.

I should have signed up for courses where I had some background. As P. Sankaran advised before I left, I perhaps would have been better off signing up for courses which I have taught! But, Town Planning as it was taught in India then was all qualitative - essays and descriptions - and drawing.

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My classmate and resarch partner, Ergun Gokman from Turkey, took me to a mall to buy a good parka (winter jacket) and other winter gear. The bata shoe is biting my legs sore. Fortunately, it is only 2 minutes walk from my room to Tech Building, where all classes except Regional Economics were held. I need to walk about 5 minutes every Tuesday and Thursday morning for my Economics Class.

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I find an aluminum utensil and an electric heater in the Graduate Office. Gokman says it was left by a former student and suggest I use it. Now I start cooking some rice and eat yoghurt rice once or twice a day. There is a grocery store in Foster, within 5 minutes from Loder Hall. I buy bananas, bread, rice and yoghurt from there. Dannon yoghurt is proud to say it contains "No artificial anything." Wonder why can't they say "Nothing artificial"? I was so happy to see a banana after nearly 2 months. These bananas are so big that one of them will equal 3 of the ones we find back home.



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Gokman lives in Graduate Housing known as Engelhart Hall of Residence. An interesting and friendly person. India's Prime Minister had recently visited the US. Gokman is interested in Prime Minister Desai's urine therapy and how the PM was enthusiastic about it on TV, even when the interviewer was trying to change the topic.

I ask Gokman how long it takes for him to walk from his residence to Tech Instt. "Normally 10 minutes; on severe cold days 5 minutes!"

"How come?"

"When it is cold and freezing, you run instead of walk!"

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The University Library (See Building 123) with three towers is amazing. I can checkout books using my Pic ID. I need not go to any chekout counter - I can just use the machine, swipe the card and follow the instructions! The library is open until midnight 6 days a week. Entire second floor of one of the towers is for text books. The books in this section cannot be checked out by anybody. These are for use in the premises only. This is to help students who cannot afford to buy text books!

There are other specialty libraries - Seeley G. Mudd Science and Engineering Library (Building 91) is another marvel!

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There are only 8 students in Dr. Peterson's Multivariate Statistics class. In the bebinning I used to be at the class by 12:55. Usually there will be no one for the class and I would wonder if I have made a mistake in the class room or meeting place; but at 1:00 pm I will find suddenly all the students and the Prof. in the class!