Guest guest Posted October 14, 2000 Report Share Posted October 14, 2000 Shakuntala Devi Shakuntala Devi, the human computer - holds an undisputed place in the Guinness Book of Records for multiplying in 1980 two randomly chosen 13-digit numbers and giving the correct answer in 28 seconds. Her abilities, defying common theories of human intelligence, have been the subject of much research. In 1977 she won a standing ovation from an audience of mathematicians when she extracted the 23rd root of a 201-digit number. That means she found the number that when multiplied by itself 23 times equaled the 201-digit number she was given. She solved it in 50 seconds flat. The day's most sophisticated computer, a Univac 1108, also did the deed - in 62 seconds - but only after days of programming, 13 thousand instructions and 5,000 data locations. No one has a plausible theory as to how she could have arrived at the answer, for the feat far exceeds the supposed limits of human intelligence. Shakuntala Devi attributes her mathematical wizardry to her friendship with Lord Ganesha, developed in her early childhood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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