HlaMin

Author: Hla Min (Lifelong Learner)

  • Engg — Metallurgy Department

    Engg — Metallurgy Department

    by Saya U Thit

    Updated : October 2026

    U Thit

    The Metallurgy Department was established in 1954 with the assistance of contract staff from India. Mr. H.S. Shastri was the first head of department and Mr. A.C. Agrawal was an assistant lecturer.

    I was awarded a government scholarship to study Metallurgy at Lehigh University in 1954, when I was a second year student of Civil Engineering in Rangoon. (Incidentally, it was at Lehigh that I first met Sayas U Aung Khin and U Pu.) I returned home in 1957 after completing my bachelor’s degree and joined the department as assistant lecturer. Saya U Saw Pru joined the department as an assistant lecturer in 1958.

    I was awarded a Colombo Plan Fellowship in 1959 for further studies at the University or Queensland, Australia, and came back in 1961 after finishing my master’s degree. I was promoted to lectureship in 1962.

    Saya U Than Tin joined the department in 1960 and left for U.S. after a few years. There were visiting lecturers from U.S.S.R., namely, Mr. Charlichev from 1961 to 1963 and Mr. Chalpanov from 1963 to 1965.

    Sayas U Aung Hla Tun, U Pe Win and Dr. Khin Maung Win joined the department in 1965, 1966 and 1967 respectively. There were also part-time teaching staff from time to time from UBARI, such as U Khin Maung and U Nyunt.

    I left the department in 1968 to go to Australia.

    The continuing history of the Metallurgy Department after 1968 can best be written by Saya U Aung Hla Tun.

    Editor’s Notes

    • Saya U Thit taught Materials and Processes in our 2nd BE class in 1964.
    • He was Head of the Metallurgy Department
    • He wrote memories of Saya Allen Htay in “RIT Alumni International Newsletter”
    • He passed away in Melbourne, Australia
    • In response to my request, several sayas (Dr. Aung Gyi, U Min Wun, U Aung Khin, U Thit and U Myo Myint Sein) wrote about the history of their departments. The articles appear in the CD supplement of the HMEE-2012 book
    HMEE Book
    HMEE CD
  • Calendars

    Calendars

    by Hla Min

    Updated : October 2026

    Calendar for 1969

    Academic calendar

    It may span two years. For example, the Class of 1958 has to attend classes in 1957 and 1958.

    Civil calendar

    It is used for Civil or Administrative purposes. It is also used for general purpose by people and organizations.

    Early Roman calendar

    It covered only 10 months.
    September, October, November and December were 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th months. Note that “Sept” stands for 7, “Oct” for 8, “Nov” for 9, and “Dec” for 10.

    Fiscal calendar

    Usually has four Quarters: Q1, Q2, Q3 and Q4

    Gregorian calendar

    Named after Pope Gregory. It has “leap year” correction for century years. A century year is considered a leap year if it is divisible by 400. e.g. 1900 is not a leap year, but 2000 is a leap year

    Julian calendar

    Named after Julius Caesar. It is a revised Roman calendar with 12 months. December is the 12th month.

    Lunar calendar

    It is based on the monthly cycles of the moon. A lunar year usually has 355 days. Some lunar calendars are pure (e.g. Islamic calendar). Some lunar calendars are luni-solar calendars.

    Luni-solar calendar

    It syncs up with the solar calendar by adding a month every three years.

    Mayan calendar

    It is a “long count” calendar used by the Mayan civilization. It is made up of 260 days (13 x 20 day group). nThe great cycle used by the calendar ended in December 2012 causing doomsday proponents to raise alarm about the “end of the world”.

    Myanmar calendar

    It is a luni-solar, socio-religious calendar. Many festivals are celebrated on the Full Moon day of selected months (e.g. Kason). The extra month used for synchronization is called “Second Waso”.

    Religious calendar

    It is used to celebrate religious events. The Islamic calendar is a purely lunar calendar. Hence, the holy month of Ramadan falls in different months of the Gregorian calendar.

    Solar calendar

    A solar year usually has 365 days. It takes about 365.2422 days for the earth to orbit the sun. The difference is adjusted by adding a day to February in a leap year.

  • Historical Events

    Historical Events

    by Hla Min

    Updated : October 2026

    RU Centennial

    • Pre-Celebrations kicked off on December 1, 2019.

    Publications

    RU Centennial Magazine
    • Former Executive Committee members of the 1958 – 1962 Tekkatho Kalaung Ah Thinn published
      (a) Collection of Kabyars mainly from the old University magazines
      (b) Magazine with hitherto unpublished articles, essays, short stories, kabyars, etc.
    • Several books have been published to commemorate the RU Centennial.
    • A book and magazine by Tekkatho Kalaung Ah Thinn
    • SMART Sarpay reprinted the book by Maung Aung Mon (Win Aung).

    U Pe Maung Tin

    U Pe Maung Tin
    • Sayagyi U Pe Maung Tin was the first native Principal of Rangoon College and the founder of the Burmese Department. Sayagyi will be honored by the Myanmar Sar Mi Thar Su in December 2109 with a bust.
    • The bust of Sayagyi U Pe Maung Tin was unveiled. Daw Tin Tin Myaing (Brenda, daughter of Sayagyi) attended the ceremony.

    U Ba Toke

    U Ba Toke
    • Sayagyi U Ba Toke (GBNF) who is a Phwa Bet Taw of the University of Rangoon was interviewed by a TV program. Sayagyi passed away on December 2, 2020 (the day after RU Centennial). It was several days short of Sayagyi’s centennial birthday on December 26.

    Articles

    • Kyemon published an article about the Land marks of the University of Rangoon.
    • Myanmar Ah Lin published a series of articles for RU Centennial.

    Jubilees

    • RU Golden Jubilee in 1970
    • RU Diamond Jubilee in 1995

    Albums in RU Centennial FB Group

    The following is a sampling:

    • Botany
      Dr. Daw Yi Yi (Mother of Okka)
    • Burmese (Myanmar Sar)
      “Khit San Kabyar”
      Saya U Wun (Minthuwun)
      See Aung Pyie (Farewell to Mya Thilar)
    • Chemistry
      Saya U Aung Khin
      Dr Soe Win & Daw May Saw Lwin
      U Nyunt Win
      Dr. Aung Myint
      Dr. Tin Win (Alan)
      Dr. Myint Tun (Henry Cho Tun)
      U Kyaw Tun
      U Maung Maung Gyi
      U Nwe Aung
    • Ma Chit Swe’s Autograph
      Mom of Hazel Kyaw Zaw (Kyi Kyi May)
      Friends of Ma Chit Swe
    • Graduation
      Photo taken at Bayin Ma Studio
      Photos taken inside Convocation Hall
      Photos taken outside Convocation Hall
    • Law
      U May Aung
      Sir Arthur Eggar (RUBC founder)
      Dr. Ba Han
      U Kyaw Myint
      Sayas and sayamas
      LLB first batch
    • Mathematics
      Sayagyi U Ba Toke
      Dr. Chit Swe
      Dr. Khin Maung Swe (Tekkatho Maung Thin Char)
    • Physics
      Sayagyi Dr Maung Maung Kha
      Dr. Tin Aung
      Dr. Soe Myint Win
      Dr. Aye Thein Kyaw
      Daw May Su
      Dr. Zin Aung
      Dr. Saw Wai Hla
      Dr. Win Naing
      Dr. Myo Thaik
    • Rectors and Registrars
      Dr. Htin Aung
      U Thet Lwin
    • UCC Alumni
      UCC Gathering

    Some History

    Second World War

    • The Second World War started in 1939 in Europe and spread to Asia.
    • The University of Rangoon suspended classes for three years : 1943 – 1945.
    • Per Sayagyi U Ba Toke :
      There were some make-shift classes at the ad-hoc University in Mogul (Shwe Bon Tha) Street. Sayagyi taught Mathematics there.

    1946

    • Rangoon University was reopened in 1946.
    • Saya U Tin U (C), Saya U Sein Hlaing (Professor, EE), Dr. Pe Nyun (Pediatric Surgeon) and Dr. Pe Thein (Professor, Minister) attended Rangoon University in 1946.

    1947

    • Pinlon Sar Choke (Panglon Agreement) was signed on February 12, 1947. Some ethnic races did not attend the Pinlon Conference.
    • Nine Arzanis — Bogyoke Aung San, Thakin Mya, Deedok U Ba Cho, Mahn Ba Khaing, Sao San Htun (Mong Pawn Sawbwa), U Ba Win, U Razak, ICS U Ohn Maung and Yebaw Ko Htwe — were mercilessly gunned down at the Secretariat on July 19, 1947. All except Sao San Htun (who was hospitalized with fatal wounds and died on July 20, 1947) perished that day.
      Three ministers including Bagan U Ba Gyan escaped.

    1948 and 1949

    • Burma gain Independence on January 4, 1948 at 4:20 AM.
      Sao Shwe Thike / Thaik became the first President of the Union of Burma. U Nu became the first Prime Minister.
    • Two factions — White Flag led by Thakin Than Tun and Red Flag led by Thakin Soe — of the Burma Communist Party (BCP) went underground. There was several groups in the armed rebellion.
    • For a short period of time, the Burmese government was called “Yangon Ah So Ya“.
    • Thanks in part to the arms sent by neighboring India, and the volunteer RU students, the planned conquest of Rangoon was derailed. The tide was turned, and Burma was back on the road to normalcy,
    • The Union of Burma had a bi-caramel parliament.

    1950s

    • Dr. Ba U served as the second President. In his book “My Burma”, he considers himself as the first President elected in accordance with the Constitution of the Union of Burma. The general public considers him as the Second President (who succeeded Sao Swe Thike).
    • Many States Scholars were sent to the prestigious universities in the USA and UK to pursue undergraduate and graduate studies. In 1954, there were 400 Burmese State Scholars (many from the “Twinning Program” proposed by Sayagyi U Ba Hli). Dr. Aung Gyi, U Min Wun and U Maung Maung Than were the early recipients of the “Twinning Program” to pursue undergraduate and graduate studies at prestigious universities (e.g. MIT, Cornell). Upon their return, they supplemented and later replaced the foreign sayas. Some worked for government departments and the Industry.
    • The split in the AFPFL (Anti-Facist People’s Freedom League) party into Clean AFPFL [Thant Shin] and Stable AFPFL [Ti Mye] caused the handover to the Caretaker Government in the late 50s.
      Some consider the event as the first Coup d’etat.

    1960s

    • Mahn Win Maung, the third President, was detained on March 2, 1962 when a 17-member Revolutionary Council staged a Coup d’etat.
    • Sama Duwa Sinwa Naung (President-elect) did not become President.
    • Per Kyemon U Thaung, seven Council members were not aware of the major decisions.
    • Brigadier General T. Clift (Air Force) resigned. He was succeeded by Brigadier General Thaung Dan. Several senior officers were sent as Military Attaches.
    • Commodore Than Pe (Navy) passed away. He was Ta Wun Gan (Minister) for Health and Education. He is Past Captain and President of RUBC. RUBC has bronze statues of Sir Arthur Eggar (Founder, Life President) and Commodore Than Pe on the promontory. Commodore Thaung Tin (who had jump promotions) succeeded him as Chief of Navy. Colonel Hla Han succeeded him as Minister for Health and Education.
    • Colonel Chit Myaing was the last of the original Revolutionary Council members to pass away. He served as Ambassador to Yugoslavia and UK before moving to USA. He was a supporter of U Kelasa (one of the two sayadaws left behind by Mahasi Sayadaw during his visit to US in 1979).
    • Ko Tin Maung Thant (son of UNSG U Thant) passed away unexpectedly during his visit to Burma. The motorcade at his last journey was longer than that of Commodore Than Pe.

    Khit San Kabyar

    The first volume has poems by U E Maung (later Burmese Professor) and Daw Khin Saw Mu (mother of Daw Khin Saw Tint and U Nay Oke Tint).

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  • Visits — July 2015

    Visits — July 2015

    by Hla Min

    Updated : October 2026

    Invitation

    Ivan Lee (M69) invited several 69ers to get together at his house in New Jersey around June-July of 2015. U Aung Myint & U Sein Tin (who had visited Ivan previously) could not make it to the 2015 mini-reunion.

    Fred Thetgyi (M69)

    • Lives in Philadelphia
    • Joined the 2015 mini-reunion
    • Drove most of the 1800+ mile trip in Ivan’s Mercedes
    • Except when his batteries went out (and had to be replaced), he took pictures at the mini-reunion and the trip. He would appear only in a fraction of the photos, when someone else (Ivan, a waiter, or a complete stranger) would offer to take the photo.

    Photos

    Grouped by location

    • New Jersey — Main Host : Ivan; Other hosts : Saya U Soe Paing & Daw Saw Yu Tint
    New Jersey
    • Niagara Falls on the way to Canada — Photos from the US side & the Canada side
    Niagara Fall
    • Windsor, Canada — Host : Sayagyi U Aung Khin
    U Aung Khin
    • Toronto (brief sight seeing)
    • Ottawa, Canada — Host: Sayagyi Dr. Aung Gyi & Daw Emma
    Dr. Aung Gyi
    • Thousand Islands — quick trip
    Thousand Islands
    • Massachusetts — Hosts : Dr. Tun Aung Gyaw (EC69) & Daw Khin Maw Maw; visit MIT & Harvard University
    U TAG
    • Connecticut — Hosts : U Toung (Tom, EC69) and Daw Khin Myint; visit Yale University; visit Pizza place frequented by the young Bill Clinton
    Ko Toung
    • Philadelphia — Hosts : Fred Thetgyi (M69) & Eunice; visit Pake Forge and Liberty Bell; visit my last remaining uncle U Thein Han in Maryland

    Posts

    • 69er
    • Alumni
    • Reunion
    • Sayas
    • Visits
  • Gathering — Dinner by Wai Lwin

    Gathering — Dinner by Wai Lwin

    by Hla Min

    Updated : October 2026

    • Ko Wai Lwin hosted two gatherings for Saya Dr. Aung Gyi and Daw Emma. Saya attended SPZP-2012 & SPZP-2016 in Yangon.
    • The first was in 2013 (a few days after SPZP-2012).
    • The second was in 2016.

    Jan 2013

    • He hosted a Birthday Gathering for Daw Emma Gyi.
    Daw Emma Gyi’s birthday in Jan 2013

    Dec 2016

    In 2016, Ko Wai Lwin hosted a dinner for the Sayagyi Dr. Aung Gyi and several other sayas at Ko Nyan Tun U’s residence.

    Ko Nyan Tun U, Ko Khin Maung Kyaw, Ko Ye Chit Pe, Ko Ohn Khine and Ko Tun Aung are retired. Ko Kyaw Lwin and Ko Win Myint were in charge of the Ministry of Construction.

    Ko Win Myint (later Bogyoke) was a 10th standard Luyechun at the Inlay Khaung Daing Camp in 1965. Ko Win Myint said that Ko Sein Shwe (M67, 4th year Luyechun from RIT, group leader and musician) inspired him to join RIT. Ko Win Myint has published some books.

    Ma Pwint Than, spouse of Ko Htun Aung (“Aung Daung”), was also a 10th standard Luyechun. Later, at SPZP-2016, I met Ko Htun Aung, his close friend Ko Hmaing (author, GBNF) and Ma Pwint Than at the gallery of the famous Bagyee Saya Ko Myo Myint.

  • Events — 1988

    Events — 1988

    by Hla Min

    Update : October 2026

    မတ် March

    • ဘုန်းမော် (ကွယ်) Phone Maw (GBNF)
    Phone Maw

    ဩဂုတ် August

    • ဒီမိုကရေစီ — တောင်းဆို Call for Democratic Reform

    စက်တင်ဘာ September

    • တက္ကသိုလ် ပေါင်းစုံ ဆရာများ အဖွဲ့ — စည်းဝေး Meeting of Sayas from Universities and Institutes
    • ပညာရေးတက္ကသိုလ် ပါချုပ် ဦးခင်မောင်တင့် (တက္ကသိုလ်ဘုန်းနိုင်) — နာယက
      U Khin Maung Tint (Tekkatho Phone Naing) — Patron
    Tekkatho Phone Naing
    • ဦးစံတင် — ဥက္ကဌ
      U San Tin — President
    • Dr. ဇင်အောင် — ဒုဥက္ကဌ
      Dr. Zin Aung — Vice President
    Dr. Zin Aung

    အာဏာသိမ်း

    Coup d’etat

    General

    • Dr. တင်အောင် (ရူပ) ကို နာယက ခန့်။
      ဆရာ က US ကို Delegation နဲ့ သွား။
      အပြန် မှာ forced to retire
  • RIT 69ers — 2024

    RIT 69ers — 2024

    by Hla Min

    Updated : October 2026

    Feb 2024 Breakfast Gathering

    • 69ers usually meet monthly at Royal Rose Restaurant for breakfast.
    • The BFG was paused during the pandemic.
    BFG 1
    BFG 2
    BFG 3
    BFG 4
    BFG 5

    Daw Thaung Htwe

    TH 1
    TH 2

    Tin Aung Win

    TAW 1

  • Learning

    Learning

    by Hla Min

    Updated : October 2026

    Hla Min

    There are several ways to classify learning.

    Four Pillars of Learning

    • Learning to know — both formal (via schooling) and informal (via senses)
    • Learning to do — both formal (via a mentor or supervisor) and informal
    • Learning to be — e.g. a professional (doctor, engineer, scientist, public speaker)
    • Learning to live — e.g. a happy and fruitful life (with peace and tranquility)

    Types

    • Traditional
    • Meta-learning
    • Efficient learning

    AI

    For AI (artificial intelligence), there is Machine Learning (which may be supervised or unsupervised) and Deep Learning (from large sets of data).

    Efficient Learning

    Rote learning is not very effective.

    An effective technique is to perform repetitions (or revisions) at specified intervals.

    There are courses and books about “Learning how to learn”.

    Lifelong Learner

    Hla Min
    • I try to learn new things.
  • Visits — 2019

    Visits — 2019

    by Hla Min

    Update : October 2026

    • Singapore, Malaysia & Myanmar before the Pandemic
    • Thanks to hosts, sponsors and organizers
    5th Irrawaddy Literary Festival

    Late October to Early November

    • In late October 2019, I visited former classmates, colleagues & students in Singapore.
    • Ko Zaw Tun (UCC) & Ma Kyu were our main hosts.
    • Ko Ngwe Soe (Silver, UCC) & Ma Nu hosted us at their second home in Jahore. Silver took us to Melecca. Earlier he took us to Sentosa which was about to bring down the Lion Statue. He also wanted to jolt my memory of the “Myo Putt Ya Htar”.
    • There were mini gatherings :
      69ers, M73 group with their Saya U Tu Myint, ex-UCC and ex-ICST.
    • There were micro gatherings : Boe & Ma Phyu, Ma Pale & Ko Ye.
    • Ko Zaw Tun & Ma Kyu offered Soon at their house in addition to regular ones at Singapore Chan Myay Monastery.

    Early November

    • In early November, we continued our trip. KK picked me up at Mingalardon airport and placed me at a hotel. He hosted two gatherings : speakers & coaches.
    • We flew to Mandalay to attend the 5th Irrawaddy Literary Festival. I was a panelist at two sessions : one on Education and another on Poetry.
    • During a break, Ko Thein Htut (UCC) took me on a quick trip around Sagaing & Mandalay
    • Received autographed copy from Htein Win (Dat Pon). He had to wait a long time before he could publish his photos and articles about two Dark Moments in Burma : U Thant Ah Yay Ah Khin & 8-8-88.

    Mid November to End of December

    • There were several gatherings back in Yangon in November and December, 2019.

    RIT Gatherings

    • RIT 69er Monthly Breakfast Gathering
    • Golden Jubilee of 69ers (Main event at Gyogone Campus, Reunion Dinner organized by Ko Aung Min at his old office compound)
    • Lunch hosted by Ko Tin Win (Min69)
    • Guest of Class of 72 (M72 Annual Gathering & PZP, additional : Indian Lunch, Chinese Dinner)
    • Guest at All Mechanical Gathering
    • Dinner by Ko Nyunt Htay (Met73)
    • Birthday Lunch by Ko Myint Toe (M71) & Ma Nwe (Met74)

    UCC / ICST Gatherings

    • Acariya Pu Zaw Pwe of UCSY/ICST
    • Several ex-UCC gatherings
      (MICT, Sweetie, Soon Kyway by Ko Soe Win & KZ, …)

    SPHS Gatherings

    • Wedding of Eddie Shein’s daughter
    • Soon for Uzin Saya Beatson

    RUBC

    • RUBC Annual Regatta
    • Attendees include :
      U Tin U (Most Senior Past Captain), U Maung Maung Than Tun (Oldest Past Captain, GBNF), Dr. Myo Tint (Past Captain, GBNF), U Sein Htoon (Past Captain), U Myo Myint (Gold), U Tun Mra, U Tin Myint (GBNF), Dr. Thein Hlyne …

    MARB

    • Visited new Building
    • Thai Tarot Master donated Air Conditioners

    Sun Lun

    • Meditation sessions
    • Received two books from Junior Win about her grand parents U Khin Maung Latt and Daw Khin Myo Chit

    Miscellaneous

    • 49th Anniversary of Saya Dr. Soe Win & Sayama Daw May Saw Lwin
    • Thar Yay (သာရေး) Zeyar
    • Nar Yay (နာရေး) Ma Cherry
    • Other gatherings :
      Ma Hazel,
      my friends,
      my spouse’s friends…
    • Thanks for the rides :
      Ko Ohn Khine,
      Ko Win Maung / Lake,
      Ko Tin Aung Win / Oscar,
      Ko Tin Win,
      Ko Ye Myint,
      Ko Aung Myin Bo,
      younger son of Yacub Patail
      …

  • Data Security

    Data Security

    by Hla Min

    Updated : October 2026

    Hla Min

    Background

    In this part of the world, three companies collect and monitor data to determine if a person is credit worthy. They provide a FICO score that is used by companies and institutions to determine the risk level of a person applying for a loan (e.g to buy a house).

    Sad to say, one company was presumably STINGY or not technologically savvy to provide multiple line of defense against intruders. Even after two of its subsidiaries were hacked, the company did NOT report the intrusion to its customers and the general public, most of whom now have to figure what lies ahead with their precious private data (such as social security number, credit cards …) stolen.

    Could this incident have been prevented?

    Personal Experience

    Many years ago, I had to use a Smart Card to enter the office building and to access computers. We were told NOT to use SSN and sensitive information in e-mails. We had to refrain from printing documents heedlessly, and to shred them (or put in special bins for shredding later).

    We had to take courses about

    • handling different types of data — private, sensitive, classified …
    • secure communication channels and/or secure data
    • integrity

    One company developed software to encrypt or replace sensitive data from e-mails, files, database. The test environment has to ensure that no sensitive data is leaked. A subtle assumption is that insiders may explicitly or implicitly be partners in crime.

    Some Incidents

    • the backup tape for personnel data went missing; The affected personnel had great pains to correct their profile
    • lap tops containing sensitive information were stolen; The information are not encrypted, or encryption with weak keys
    • a professor posted SSNs along with the grades; A few students started identity theft
    • without a unique national ID, many companies and institutions use SSN for storing/access records;
    • Phishing attacks or malicious companies set up with the intention of getting credit reports from unwary job seekers
    • a credit card was used in rapid succession at a different state or outside the country; Some credit card companies are good in sending alerts about fraudulent uses.
    • A bug fix made by a professor was NOT properly reviewed and validated

    Rationale

    I have touched only the surface of the security problem.

    Professor Dr. Than Tun was asked “Why should we learn History?”
    He replied, “To ensure that one is not stupid or dumb”.

    To paraphrase, “Why should we learn about Computer & Data Security?”
    “To save countless people from having sleepless nights. Losing one’s identity, assets … is intolerable”.

    U Khin Maung Zaw (KMZ, EC76) wrote :

    One of the first work items on the Data Security is the classification of the data, it depends on what kind (or items) of data is collected/stored in a given application, At some point, it is termed ‘Data Asset’ and have several categories as below.

    HBI – High Business Impact
    MBI – Medium Business Impact
    LBI – Low Business Impact
    PII – Personally Identifiable Information
    HSPII – Highly Sensitive PII

    Of course, the above is not the exhaustive list, and is UN, HIPAA – Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, has one of the strictest regulatory requirements.

    Posts

    • Data Processing
    • Data Types
    • Fraud
    • Malware
    • Regulation
    • Security