LIRNEasia loses a friend

Posted on March 19, 2008 / 7 Comments

It is with deep regret that LIRNEasia reports the demise of Sir Arthur C. Clarke. Some of us at LIRNEasia had the opportunity of closely working with him in our professional lives.

In November 2005, LIRNEasia had its last official encounter with him when few representatives from WorldSpace (our partner in the Last-Mile Hazinfo project) including Dr. Rangarajan met him in Colombo. His insightful comments on the need for early warning for disasters are still being used in the output from that project.

7 Comments

Miraj K
March 19, 2008, 11:04 am
GodSpeed! Arthur!!
Divakar Goswami
March 19, 2008, 12:01 pm
My condolences to Sir Arthur’s many friends and family. It was a privilege to have interacted with such a visionary and genius. Godspeed!
William Melody
March 19, 2008, 1:58 pm
A man of rare insight and imagination about future possibilities and opportunities, he leaves a rich legacy for us. His scientific article on communication satellites in the 1940s was considered science fiction at the time. His ideas on space travel are now unfolding. His inspiration will continue for a long time yet.
samarajiva
March 19, 2008, 4:42 pm
This is an excerpt from a little piece on Sir Arthur that will be published in Montage in a few weeks:

“We were blessed to have him live here in Sri Lanka with us. Over the past thirty years, not much good news has come out of this country. War, refugees, riots, bombs, tsunami, more bombs, disappearances, assassinations: they constitute our brand. It gets kind of tiresome when you’re at lunch with a bunch of foreigners, someone asks where you’re from, and then a pall of gloom descends on the table because the talk moves to who invented suicide bombing. Bad for the digestion; terrible for the mood.

I used to say I was from Sri Lanka, where Arthur Clarke lived. And then, we’d have a pleasant lunch-time conversation about the literary license he had taken to move Sri Lanka south to the equator so that the space elevators could be located there (Fountains of Paradise, 1979) or his claim that the oceans surrounding Sri Lanka were the closest he could get to outer space in his life time or his recommendations on where to visit in Sri Lanka or time zones or how he wrote books parked at the Galle Face Hotel, or whatever. Or how I got a fan of his to work for the Telecom Regulatory Commission for free, the only payment being a visit with Sir Arthur. Good for the digestion; great for the mood.

Thank you, Sir Arthur.”
Vineeta Shetty
March 19, 2008, 5:16 pm
Even at 80, when Rohan took me and Merete to his house, his brilliant blue eyes sparkled with the knowing mischief and fun of a 20 year old. He is blessed indeed to be merged with the infinite energy. I look forward to the realization of his vision of the re-greening of Mars.
samarajiva
March 19, 2008, 8:03 pm
Rec’d from Dr Rangarajan:

It is with deep sorrow that I read the news of Sir Arthur Clarke’s demise. He has of course lived a full life, inspired any number of people, contributed so much over his long active span and he will be remembered by generations to come.

I was overawed by his ingenuity, clarity of thought and convictions. I have spoken at a session chaired by him way back in 1996, and have had 2 students from his Institute. I would consider the time we spent with him at his residence in January 2006 to be one of the most memorable and inspirational.

Please communicate my condolences and deep sympathy to his near and dear

May his soul rest in peace.
Randy Spence
March 21, 2008, 7:20 pm
I’ve been a fan of Sir Arthur Clarke all my life. The space elevator continues to move ahead at Los Alamos and elsewhere; I hope to see it built in my life time. Thank you Sir Arthur!