Professor
Isaac, who encouraged his students to refer to him as Jimmy, was my teacher and
mentor during my time at the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay. He had
studied at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, USA, and had worked with
IBM. His return to India in the early 1960s was a gift to thousands of
students. He inspired and coached his students with an enthusiasm that was
amazing. His sustained cheerfulness gave them confidence in their studies and
research. He taught the first formal computer courses in 1963 and guided my
doctoral work, jointly with Professor Rangaswamy Narasimhan of the Tata
Institute of Fundamental Research, from 1965 to 1970.
He was known
for championing his students. A minor incident, as described to me by one of
his students, illustrates this. The student was new to the campus and was
trying to open an account in the neighbourhood bank. The bank required an
existing customer to provide a reference. Prof. Isaac, who witnessed this
happening, intervened to provide him with a reference and resolved the problem.
He was a
pioneer in introducing computers in schools. Using the BBC Micro in its early
years, he trained schoolteachers to impart digital literacy to their students.
In his later
years at IITB, he served as a dean.
Dozens of
his students have risen to positions of leadership in various fields of work
worldwide. I will be publishing a
webpage dedicated to him on my blog https://ObviousTruths.blogspot.com
I post this on the occasion of Guru Poornima, when people of Asia pay their
respects to their teachers and mentors.
Srinivasan
Ramani
10-07-2025
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