The Medha Journal

Only last week I mentioned Srinivasa Ramanujan in my comment to a fine post by Gangp on RM's wonderful new book, 'Being Different. The mathematician's Atma must have been hovering near, because his photograph and a small news item about him
from the Hindu's 1905 archives have appeared in the front page of that paper today.
Let me reproduce the news here:

December 22, 2011 marked the 125th birth anniversary of the mathematical genius Srinivasa Ramanujan (1887-1920).

The Ramanujan@125 celebrations are being inaugurated in Chennai on Monday, December 26 by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who will declare 2012 to be the National Mathematics Year.

More than any other newspaper, The Hindu has followed over the decades the mathematical achievements of Ramanujan in detail and highlighted his genius, especially from early 1914.

The first reference to Ramanujan occurs in a letter to the Editor titled ‘A Missing Boy', published on September 6, 1905 in the newspaper, which was a triweekly at the time. The letter, from J. Seenivasa Raghava Ayangar, appeals for the public's help in tracing “a Brahmin boy of the Vaishnava (Thengalai) sect, named Ramanujam, of fair complexion and aged about 18 years” who had “left his [Kumbakonam] home on some misunderstanding.”

The letter, discovered recently by The Hindu's Archives department, is being reproduced for the first time.

The missing boy was “safely back” home within days, as Ramanujan's biographer Robert Kanigel relates in The Man Who Knew Infinity.

This is the quaint letter from the archives.
To the Editor of "The Hindu"
Sir, Kindly insert the following in your widely circulated journal.
" A Brahmin boy of the Vaishnava (Thengalai) sect, named Ramanujam, of fair complexion and aged about 18 yearswas till recently a student of the Kumbakonam College. He lefthis home on some misunderstanding. His guardian is verysolicitous about his returning home.He stayed at Rajahmhndry for about a month and was last seen there some five days back. Those who happen to see him are kindly requested to pursuade him to return home, and to communicate his wherabouts to
J. Seenivasa Raghava Ayangar,
18, Sarangapani Sannidhi Street,
Kumbhakonam.

The letter was dated September 2, 1905. I have of course not edited it.
Partha

When The Hindu rains , it seems to pour Srinivasa Ramanujan.

Dates December 26, there was a rich supplement on the mathematical genius, and my good friend Dr. V. R. Sista forwarded 8 articles from it for my leisurely chewing. I shall give the links to all 8 below.
www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-feature...s/article2748125.ece
www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-feature...s/article2748139.ece
www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-feature...s/article2748134.ece
www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-feature...s/article2748138.ece
www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-feature...s/article2748140.ece
www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-feature...s/article2748130.ece
www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-feature...s/article2748141.ece and
www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-feature...s/article2748124.ece

Enjoy yourselves!

The Hindu continues on Srinivasa Ramanujan.
Partha enjoys forwarding info on this genius.
Eventually some readers will read the links and some one or two will feel like giving a feed back.
Here is the next one.
www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/article2746988.ece
Two Indian origin academics in Canada share this biography of the gifted mathematician.

Thank you for reminding us dear Partha.The Hindu is doing a very good job on this one.

I was talking to a group of bright 15 year olds the other day and not one of them said they wanted to take up the study of Science or Maths.
" After graduation" ," land a job that pays well" were all I heard.Very sad for them and for the World.

SR's story inspires,it would be good to introduce him at the primary school level itself through text books.
That wont happen easily, so it's up to parents to feed the life stories of SR and others like him along with the food they serve their children.

"Many mathematicians have made it an industry to prove these formulas that Ramanujan had scribbled into his notebooks since he left no hint as to how he got them."

Remember discussing about this here sometime ago. He was surely in touch with the source.This only means that future Ramanujans need to research and prove these formulas, now with all the facilities we have this should not be impossible.