Category: Broadcast

Calendar
by Hla Min

Updated : June 2025

Video Broadcast

Types of Calendar
- Solar Calendar
- Lunar Calendar
- Luni-solar Calendar
- Religious Calendar
- Civil Calendar
- Fiscal Calendar
- Academic Calendar
Burmese Calendar

I wrote an article on the Burmese Calendar for the BAPS Newsletter.

Article

January
- First month of the Gregorian Calendar
- Named after Janus, two-faced God (symbolic to bid farewell to the old year and usher in the new year)
- Jan 1 : New Year’s Day
- Jan 4 : Independence Day in Myanmar
- Martin Luther King’s Day in US
- Sometimes : Lunar New Year
February
- Second month of the Gregorian Calendar
- Has 28 days in a Common Year and 29 days in a Leap Year
My poem for Union Day Supplement in WPD

Burma/Myanmar

February 12

Pyidaungsu Nay (ပြည်ထောင်စုနေ့ Union Day) is a public holiday in the Union of Burma. It commemorates the signing of the Pinlong Sar Choke (ပင်လုံစာချုပ် Panglong Agreement) on February 12, 1947.

February 13

Bogyoke Aung San was born on February 13, 1915. He was named Htain Lin. He later changed the name to rhyme with that of Aung Than (his elder brother). Arzani U Ba Win is their eldest brother.
Centennial celebrations for Bogyoke were held in 2015.
February 13 is also as Khalay Myar Nay (ခလေးများနေ့ Children’s Day).

Tabodwe Festival (Sometimes)

The Full Moon of Tabodwe တပို့တွဲ often falls in February. Two celebrations are held.
- Htamane Pwe (ထမနဲပွဲ Sticky Rice Festival)
- Ovada Partimauk Day (ဩဝါဒပါမောက် Exhortation)
USA

February 14

Valentine’s Day (Chit Thu Myar Nay ချစ်သူများနေ့) is not a public holiday, but many people send greeting cards and presents.

Presidents’ Day

In the early days, there were two holidays. One to celebrate George Washington’s birthday and another to celebrate Abraham Lincoln’s birthday.
Later a single holiday in February to honor all US Presidents was proposed.
Some states continue to celebrate the birthdays of Washington and Lincoln.

Canada

“Family Day” (holiday) is observed on the 2nd Monday of February in Ontario.

Family Day is observed on the 3rd Monday of February in British Columbia.

Lunar New Year

Some countries (e.g China and Vietnam) observe the Lunar Year.

The Lunar New Year occurs at the end of January or the beginning of February. The date is not fixed in the Gregorian Calendar.

It fell in February in 2018 and 2019.

Days

February is the shortest month in the year with 28 days in a Common Year and 29 days in a Leap Year.
- A common year has 365 days, while a Solar year has 365.2422 days.
- A year which is not a Century year is a Leap Year if it is divisible by 4. The discrepancy of .9688 days is rounded up to a day.
- A year which is a Century year is a Leap Year if it is divisible by 400. This ensures that there are 97 leap years in four centuries.
February supposedly had 30 days, but one day each was transferred to July (honoring Julius Caesar) and August (honoring Augustus Caesar) to have 31 days in those months (worthy of Roman Emperors). February was left with 28 days.

Ripley’s “Believe it or not” illustrated a grave stone which had February 30.

March
- First month of the old Roman Calendar
- Third month of the Gregorian Calendar
- Mar 2 : Peasant’s Day တောင်သူလယ်သမားနေ့ was moved from Jan 1 in order to celebrate the Coup D’eat
- Phone Maw Day
- Burma’s Human Rights Day (celebrated by Berkeley)
- Mar 27 : Resistance Day was renamed as Armed Forces Day
- First Day of Spring : Persian New Year
April
- Second month of the old Roman Calendar
- Fourth month of the Gregorian Calendar
- Thingyan : Three or four days of Water Festival
- Myanmar New Year
- The deadline for filing taxes in the USA is around mid-April
May
- Third month of the old Roman Calendar
- Fifth month of the Gregorian Calendar
- May 1 : May Day in some countries
- May 5 : Cinco de Mayo
- Mother’s Day in the US
June
- Fourth month of the old Roman Calendar
- Sixth month of the Gregorian Calendar
- Jun 6 : D Day
- Jun 6 : Ah Loke Thamar Ah Yay Ah Khinn အလုပ်သမားအရေးအခင်း
- Father’s Day in the US
July
- Fifth month of the old Roman calendar
  Had 30 days
- Renamed July in honor of Emperor Julius Caesar and was given an extra day
- Seventh month of the Gregorian Calendar
  Has 31 days
- My beloved father was born on 1st July.
- Jul 4 : Independence Day in the US
- Jul 7 : Students’ protest that was brutally crushed
- Jul 8 : Demolition of the Rangoon University Student’s Union
- Jul 19 : Arzani Nay အာဇာနည်နေ့
- Apollo 11 landed in Tranquility Bay on the Moon in July 1969. Neil Armstrong (Mission Commander) and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin (Lunar Module Pilot) stepped on the Moon. They set up the US Flag. They collected lunar rock samples. Michael Collins (Command Module Pilot) circled around the Moon and waited for the return of the Lunar Module.
Poem
- My poem “Men on the Moon” was forwarded by Mr. Hall (USIS) to NASA.
- The poem was published in the Guardian Daily.
Dark day in July 1947

Nine Arzanees — seven Ministers, one Secretary and a body guard — were gunned down on July 19, 1947. Eight perished that day. Sao San Htun succumbed a day later.
- Bogyoke Aung San
- Thakin Mya
- Deedoke U Ba Cho (Grandfather of Dr. Khin Hla Cho & Daw Khin Myint Cho)
- Mahn Ba Khine (Father of Sayama Daw Myint Myint Khine)
- Mong Pawn Sawbwa Sao San Htun (passed away in the hospital on July 20, 1947)
- U Ba Win (Elder brother of Boyoke, Father of Dr. Sein Win)
- U Razak (Father of U Tin Myint & U Hla Kyi)
- ICS U Ohn Maung (father of Saya U Tin Maung Thein)
- Yebaw Maung Htwe
There are books & documentaries on the “unsolved mystery”.

Two dark days in July 1962

According to the newspapers, 17 died on July 7, 1962.

Ko Aung Khin, who was stuck by a stray bullet as he was returning home from Rangoon University Boat Club, was listed as the 17th victim.

The revered RU Student Union was demolished on July 8, 1962.

The celebration of the 7th July in the following year (1963) ended with the closure of Universities — with the exception of the Faculties of Medical and Engineering.

August
- Sixth month of the old Roman calendar
  Had 30 days
- Renamed August in honor of Emperor Augustus Caesar and was given an extra day.
- Eighth month of the Gregorian Calendar, and it has 31 days.
- 8-8-88 : start of a long struggle to restore Democracy in Myanmar
Anniversaries

There are several birthdays in my family.

Two sisters, my grand daughter, several cousins and I are August born.

Aug 2016 at HMB

In August 2016, Maurice Chee (M75) organized a birthday soon kwyay မွေးနေ့ ဆွမ်းကျွေး for me at the Dhammananda Vihara ဓမ္မာနန္ဒဝိဟာရ in Half Moon Bay, California. The sayas and alumni presented me an Appreciation award.

Sayadaw U Silanandabhivamsa passed away on August 13, 2005.

Three of my in-laws : Father-in-law, Mother-in-law & Brother-in-law passed away in August.

Daw Mu Mu Kin (spouse of Saya Allen Htay (C58)), U Myint Swe (EP74, NorCal RITAA) and U Thein Naing (Patrick, La Phet Yay Waing member) are also August born.

Party for August born

One of them hosts an August-born Birthday Party. In August 2018, U Patrick (Thein Naing) and Daw Mie Mie hosted a lunch gathering for the August born at Moss Beach Distillery. They also presented a book for us.

Is 8 lucky?

8-8-88 (August 8, 1988) and the following days mark the hope and then despair of the people longing for the end of the Adhamma Era.

Grapevine says that the event was inspired in part by numerologists who remembered the historic event (about Mingyi Yan Naung) in 888 Burmese Era and extrapolated the magic of No. 8 from three 8’s to four 8’s.

Most Chinese think that the number 8 is lucky. For example, Beijing Olympics was opened on 8-8-08 (August 8, 2008).

September
- Seventh month of the old calendar. “Sept” means Seven.
- Ninth month of the Gregorian calendar. It has 30 days.
- Crushed the hopes of Multi-party Democracy in 1988
- Occasionally : End of Burmese Buddhist Lent
October
- Eighth month of the old Roman calendar. “Oct” means Eight
- Tenth month of the Gregorian calendar. It has 31 days.
- Occasionally : End of Burmese Buddhist Lent (Thadinkyut သီတင်းကျွတ်)
- “Deepavali” or “Diwali” celebrations are also celebrated around October. It is known as the “Festival of Lights”.
- “Halloween” occurs every year on October 31 (i.e. the day before “All Saint’s Day” which falls on November 1). It is celebrated with “Trick or Treat” by the children and optional “Halloween Costume Party” by young & old adults.
- Due to differences in the calendars, the Bolshevik Revolution is wrongly referred to as the “October Revolution”.
- Ocktoberfest is a festival held in October.
- The Annual Pumpkin Festival with the bragging rights to the “heaviest” Pumpkin is held along Highway 92 in Half Moon Bay in Northern California. The traffic is really bad in the area for most of October. The 7-mile strip takes an hour or more during the Festival period.
- Sayagyi Dr. Aung Gyi’s birthday is October 1.
- Sayagyi U Ba Than offers soon dana for his birthday on October 2. Sayas, former students and friends are invited to the soon kway. The Class of 69 usually offers Garawa at Sayagyi’s place (Winner Inn).
November
- Ninth month of the old Roman calendar. “Nov” means nine.
- Eleventh month of the Gregorian calendar. It has 30 days.
- Anniversary of my beloved parents
- Tazaundaing often fall around November
- Kathein ကထိန် robe offering often take place in early November.
  Must be held during one month following the Full Moon Day of Thadinkyut (which usually falls in October).
- November 1st is “All Saints Day”. Preceded by Halloween (which falls on October 31st).
- DST (Daylight Savings Time) requires resetting the clock according to “Spring forward. Fall back.” Currently, DST is set back in Fall (Autumn) on the Sunday following Halloween.
- The second Tuesday of November is scheduled for US Elections at the various levels. (a) The Presidential Elections occur every four years. (b) The mid-term elections occur every two years. The House of Representatives serve two year terms. (c) Senators serve six year terms. To ensure continuity in the Senate, the election of the Senators is staggered into three groups.
- Thanksgiving falls on the fourth Thursday of November.
- Black Friday & Cyber Monday following Thanksgiving have massive sales. Some companies start their “Black Friday” early in November.
- Several English words (e.g. November, Black Friday) have lost their original meaning.
- November 11 is celebrated as Veterans Day in the USA.
- It is celebrated as Armistice Day in the UK and France.
- A hundred years ago, Truce was called between the Allied Forces and Germany.
- The Truce occurred at 11 AM, marking the event with three 11s.
- First World War officially ended a year later with the controversial Versailles Treaty.
- Elections in the US (Local races every year, House of Representatives every two years, One third of Senators every two years, President every four years)
- Nov 22 : JFK assassinated (Conspiracy Theory survives)
- Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday in the US
December
- Tenth month of the old Roman Calendar. “Dec” means Ten.
- Twelfth & last month of the Gregorian Calendar. It has 31 days.
- U Thant Ah Yay Ah Khinn ဦးသန့်အရေးအခင်း dark day in the history of Burma
U Thant Ah Yay Ah Khin
- Apollo 8 orbited the Moon in December 1968
- Dec 25 : Christmas
- Dec 31 : New Year’s Eve
Holidays

Some holidays
- have fixed date
- have relative dates
- are designated as Public holidays
- are religious
Some holy days are preceded by some fun events.
- Halloween (October 31) precedes “All Saints Day” (November 1).
- “Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday”) falls on the day before “Ash Wednesday” signifying the start of the Lent.
YouTube Channel

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June 18, 2025
Law
by Hla Min

Updated : June 2025

Video Broadcast
- When Rangoon University was established in December 1920, it had the Department of Law.
- U May Aung served as the first Professor.
U May Aung

U May Aung
- U May Aung (Barrister-at-law, LL.D) served as Professor of Law from 1920 -1922.
- Rakkhine national
- Later became Home Minister
- Father of Daw Mya Sein (Scholar).
Sir Arthur Eggar

Sir Arthur Eggar
- Law Professor (1923 – 1937)
- Earlier : Lecturer in the Maths Department at Rangoon College, and Legal Advisor in the Middle East
- Founded Rangoon University Boat Club in 1923. Elected as Life President.
- Pledged a third of his salary for the operation of RUBC.
- Wrote autobiography (in three installments) for the Guardian Magazine in the mid 50s.
Autobiography
- Several Old Members including me reprinted his autobiography for the 90th Anniversary of the founding of RUBC. YUBC OMA has copies of Sir Arthur Eggar’s autobiography.
Dr. Ba Han

Dr. Ba Han
- Alumnus of Sorbonne University
- Law Professor for two terms : (1937 – 1942) and (1946 – 1950).
- Rangoon University was closed for a period during the war.
- Complied a dictionary.
Dictionary
- Dr. Ba Maw (Adipati) is his brother. He earlier was English Lecturer at Rangoon University.
- Both brothers attended De La Salle Schools.
U Kyaw Myint

U Kyaw Myint
- Stood first in Burma in Matric with distinctions in all subjects from Central. He was selected by Mr. Matthew Hunter (Principal of Rangoon College) to take the Entrance exam of Calcutta University to study Medicine. He requested the Principal that he wanted to pay last respect to his mother. The Principal warned that he would be expelled if he did not take the entrance exam. He attended his mother’s last journey and was expelled from the College. Worse still, his father threatened to disown him. The Kan So Kan Kaung story of U Kyaw Myint can be read in a series of blogs by his son Dr. Thane Oke Kyaw Myint and re-printed in my web site hlamin.com
- Served as Professor of Law and Dean of the Faculty of Law from 1950 – 1958.
- Earlier served as Justice of High Court and Supreme Court, Head of the Tribunal that tried Galon U Saw and co-founder of a political party with Dr. Ba Maw. He later founded his law firm.
- Has an elder brother (ICS U Tin Tut), two younger brothers (U Myint Thein & Dr. Htin Aung), and three younger sisters (Daw Khin Mya Mu, Daw Khin Saw Mu & Daw Tin Saw Mu).
- According to Dr. Thane Oke Kyaw Myint, his father had full confidence in his students (e.g. Guardian U Sein Win, Sao Hso Holm, U Mya Thein).
Law Professors (for the later periods)
- U Myint (1958 – 1961)
- U Aung Khine (1961 – 1964)
- U Hla Aung (1965 – 1971)
- U Tin Ohn (1971 – 1986)
- U Tin Aung Aye (1986 – 1994)
- Daw Than Nwe (1994 – 2007)
- Dr. Daw Khin Mar Yi (2007 – 2018)
Law Degrees
- In the early days, BL (Bachelor Law) was studied as a post-graduate degree (e.g. after B.A. or B.Sc.)
- Several student politicians enrolled in the program to preserve their eligibility as RU students.
- Under the new Education System, LL.B was established.
- It was a five year study after Matriculation.
Related posts in RU Centennial
- First batch of LL.B graduates
- Several other batches
- Sayamas known for their beauty and teaching.
- Dr. Maung Maung Kha’s daughter Daw May Thi Ka was a sayama at the Law Department before she moved to the USA. She was a core organizer and coordinator for the groups raised fund for Saya Kha’s Centennial.
- Some practitioners of Law took exams for HGP and RL.
YouTube Channel

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June 16, 2025
Tarot
by Hla Min

Updated : June 2025

Video Broadcast on October 2, 2020

Background
- Associated with Gypsy fortune tellers
- Some thought Tarot started in Asia
- One may study Tarot cards for fun, e.g. don’t be scared if the reading says that “your house is going to be damaged”; or be happy if the reading says that “a new family member is on the way”
- Some may study and practice Tarot cards for profit, e.g. professional reader/advisor
- There are websites & publications for Tarot
- I used to have a Tarot deck and a book. It covered a brief history, the meaning of each card, and several spreads for Tarot readings.
Tarot Deck
- It consists of 78 cards
- 22 cards belong to the Major Arcana
- 56 cards belong to the Minor Arcana
- The two Arcanas supposedly indicate long term versus short term events & whether an event is in control versus uncontrollable
Major Arcana
- 22 cards
- Include Fool, Lovers, High Priest, High Priestess, Emperor, Empress, Hermit, Sun, Moon, Stars, Tower, Chariot, Tower, Strength, Judgement …
Minor Arcana
- 4 suits
- Each suit has 14 cards : One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Page, Jack (Knight), Queen, King
- Total of 56 cards in the Minor Arcana
Styles
- The Tarot Decks come in different styles.
- The suits may be named differently in the decks, but the underlying concepts hold.
Options
- Beginners usually use the “Straight up” option (where a card may be good or bad).
- With experience, one might try “Allow Reversals” (where every card has two meanings : one for upright & another for reversed).
- One might also try “Consider Significators”.
Spreads
- After shuffling the deck, one lays our a selected number of cards in a pattern.
- One card only : Decision making for a specified problem
- Three Card Spread : used to interpret the Past, Present & Future.
- Celtic Cross places 7 cards in the form of a cross. The cards represent problem, influence (positive & negative) and likely outcome (and suggestion).
- Others
  Vary with the Practitioner
Options
- Straight up
- Reversal
- Significator
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June 16, 2025
Ted, TED & TEDx
by Hla Min

Updated : June 2025

Video Broadcast on September 26, 2020

Ted
- could be a given name, e.g
  Ted Mya Maung (Toe Nyunt, Thamankyar, Shwe Gaung Byaung)
- Nickname for Edward, e.g
  Ted Heath (former British Prime Minister)
- Some prefer Teddy, e.g Teddy Gyaw, Teddy Thaung, Teddy Mya Bu
- Nickname for Theodore, e.g
  Teddy Roosevelt (former US President)
TED
- Technology, Entertainment & Design
- First conference in 1984
- Annual conference since 1990
- 18 minute (limit for TED talks)
- Details can be found in TED.com
TEDx
- Independently organized conferences
- Need to apply license from TED
- Attach location
  TEDxInyaLake
  TEDxYangon
TEDx InyaLake

Miscellaneous
- TED & TEDx talks on You Tube
- TED ED for educational videos
- U Nay Oke’s talk about two pioneer Myanmar Poets
  Saya U Wun (Minthuwun) and Daw Khin Saw Mu
- Diverse topics
June 16, 2025
1976
by Hla Min

Updated : June 2025

Video Broadcast on December 19, 2020

Engineering

Khin Maung Zaw (KMZ, EC76)

KMZ
- University Selected for Hockey (usually played Last Defender)
- RIT Selected for Rowing
- UCC Alumnus
- Worked in Singapore and USA
- Retired from Microsoft
- Founding member of RIT Alumni International
- Designed and maintained ex-rit Web Page
- Core Organizer of SPZP-2000
Wynn Myint Aung (EC76)
- UCC Alumnus
- Worked in Aviation Industry in the USA
- Hosted me two nights during a visit to East Coast to attend the RIT Alumni Reunion
Sein Myint (EC76)
- Studied M.Sc. (CS) at UCC
- Retired from UN OPS
Thura Thant Zin (M76)
- RUBC Gold
- University Selected in Hockey
- Past President, BASES
- Co-organizer, 2015 RIT Alumni Reunion in Los Angeles
Moe Myint (M76)
- Member, Swel Daw Yeik Entertainment
- Organizer, Karuna Association in Singapore
James Shwe (Jimmy Hla Shwe, M76)
- Entrepreneur
- Donor / Sponsor of RIT and Social Event
Phyo Wai Win (M76)
- RUBC Gold
- University Selected in Hockey
- Worked in Oil Industry
Miscellaneous
- Fourth Batch of Science Scholars
- The Class of 1976 has to wait till the early months of 1977 to take their Final Examination and attend Convocation.
- In 1997, there are two RIT Convocations : one for the Class of 1976 and another for the Class of 1977.
- Bi-centennial Celebration of US Independence
June 16, 2025
1975
by Hla Min

Updated : June 2025

Video Broadcast on December 18, 2020

RIT Graduates
- Maurice Chee (Hla Myint Thein, M75) : Past President, BAPS; Founding member & Financial Controller, RIT Alumni International; Co-chair, Working Committee, SPZP-2000; Founding member & Past Vice President, NorCal RITAA; Donor and organizer, Books to YTU Library; Seminar, YTU Mechanical Engineering Department
Maurice
- Than Po (M75) : Luyechun;
  Zat Saya, Yangon SPZPs; Musician : Piano, Pattala
  Composer
Than Po
- Win Khaing (M75) : RUBC Gold; Past President, MES; Union Minister; Organizer, SPZP-2004 and SPZP-2012
M75
- Ye Lin Oo (M75) : Retired after teaching in Brunei; Co-Organizer, M75
- Mar Mar Yee (M75) : Member of Htee Yein in 1970 (RU Golden Jubilee); Minthamee, Swel Daw Yeik Ah Nyeint;
  Vocalist; Master of Ceremony, M75 & All Mechanical Gathering
Mar Mar Yee
- Soe Aung (M75) : Senior in marriage to class mates
- Ohn Win (Raymond, M75) :
  Bragged about the number of children & grand children;
  Sisters : Joyce Win (Nwe Yin Win), Hilda Win
- Dr. Soe Thein (C75) : Web master and organizer for SPZP-2007 & Singapore Civil Alumni; Invited me to join Civil Gathering in Singapore & C75 dinner in Yangon
- Annette Shwe (Annette Shain, A75) : Spouse — James Shwe (Jimmy Hla Shwe, M76); Provided internship for Myanmar graduates (before they could pursue studies and/or work permanently); Stipend for eligible YTU students; Donation to YTU Library; Donation to “Prevent starvation” project
UCC/RASU Graduates
- M.Sc. (Computer Science) First Batch : Ko Win Naing (Maths 73, Science Scholar) & Ko Khin Maung Aye (M73) are now GBNF
- DAC First Batch
June 16, 2025
1973
by Hla Min

Updated : June 2025

Video Broadcast on December 16, 2020

Some Graduates in 1973

Doctors
- Dr. Ba Han
- Dr. Than Aung
- Dr. Myint Htwe
Engineers
- Dr. Myint Thein (M73)
  Doctorate from Georgia Tech, Atlanta, USA
Myint Thein
- Dr. L Sein Myint (M73)
  Doctorate from UK
  Worked in UK, USA, Malaysia and Myanmar
- U Hla Win (M73)
  Roll Number 1 in most classes
  Member of Hovercraft Project
- HE U Khin Maung Cho (M73)
  Member of Hovercraft Project
- John Rao (M73)
  English Editor, Swel Daw Yeik Sar Saung for SPZP-2007
  Organizer, M73 er Monthly Gathering in Singapore (with Saya U Tu Myint)
- Hovercraft Project Members (M73)
  Supervisor : U Tu Myint
  Six members
  Interview with media a few years back (arranged by Saya U Moe Aung)
- U Khin Maung Aye (M73, GBNF)
  First batch Masters student at UCC
- U Htun Aung Kyaw (HAK, EC73)
  First batch Masters student at UCC
  Moved to Australia
- U San Lin (Robert, EC73)
  First batch Masters student at UCC
  Moved to Singapore and USA
- U Kyaw Lin (C73, GBNF)
  Organizer, All Civil Reunion and SPZP
- U Nyunt Htay (Met73)
  Retired Associate Professor
  High School Luyechun
  Poet
  Chief Editor, Myanmar Mudita Sar Saung
RASU
- U Win Naing (Maths, Science Scholar, GBNF)
  First batch Masters student at UCC
- U Kyaw Kyaw Hlaing (Physics, Science Scholar)
  SMART Group of Companies
  Award winning author
  President, Professional Speakers Association
- Dr. Khin Maung Maung (Physics)
  Chair, Department of Physics & Astronomy, Mississippi University
  Co-organizer, International Physics Conference in Mandalay
- Dr. Rafiul Ahad (Physics)
  Preliminary selection for Burma Team for Hurdles
  First batch Masters student at UCC
  Post graduate studies in CS at AIT and USC
  Retired VP, Oracle Cloud Computing
Computer Courses in 1973

Thanks to Sayagyi Dr. Chit Swe (Founder/Director of UCC, Maths Professor at RASU), the following degree courses was offered
- M.Sc.(CS)
  Conducted at UCC
  Degree conferred by Maths Department of RASU
- DAC
  Part-time two year course
  Post-graduate Diploma in Automatic Computing offered by Maths Department of RASU
June 16, 2025
Olympics
by Hla Min

Updated : June 2025

Video Broadcast on January 12, 2021

U Hla Min

Origins

Modern Olympics was a revival of the ancient games held every four years at Olympia.

The four year interval is called an Olympiad. The ancient Greeks use Olympiad instead of years when describing dates.

Pierre de Coubertin created the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894.

IOC selects a city or cities to hold the Summer Olympics and the Winter Olympics. The two Olympics are interlaced.

Drama in the Olympics

Summer Olympics has its share of drama.

Berlin (1936)

The 1936 Summer Olympics was held in Berlin and was attended by Adolf Hitler (who promoted the supremacy of the Aryan race). Jesse Owens, a black athlete from the USA, won four Gold medals : 100m, 200m, 4 x 100m relay, and Long Jump.

The drama occurred in the Long Jump event. Jesse Owens was having some problems in the Long Jump when the German competitor Lang supposedly advised him to leave about six inches gap behind the broad to prevent overstepping and getting disqualified. Jesse took the advice, regained his poise and went on to win the Long Jump Gold.

Munich (1972)

1972 Olympics in Munich saw both good and bad.

Mark Spitz (USA) won seven Gold medals in swimming : 100m & 200m Freestyle, 100m & 200m Butterfly, 4 x 100m Freestyle relay, 4 x 200m Freestyle relay, and 4 x 100 Medley relay. He saved energy by not competing in the trials for selected relay events.

Olga Kolburt (USSR) was awarded a couple of Perfect Ten in Gymnastics.

Eleven Israeli athletes were kidnapped (shown live on TV) and murdered by Black September. Mossad took several years to track down and decimate Black September.

Boycotts (1980 & 1984)

USA boycotted the 1980 Olympics held in Moscow.

USSR retaliated with a boycott of the 1984 Olympics held in Los Angeles.

Olympians

Some went on to have illustrious careers.

Johnny Weissmuller, swimming champion, gained fame as Tarzan in the movies.

Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr., Light Heavyweight Boxing Champion, went on to become Mohammad Ali, three time World Heavyweight Boxing Champion.

Media Coverage

During my SPHS days, there was no television in Burma. I received a ticket from Brother Austin as a prize to see the “1960 Rome Olympics” documentary at Thamada (President) cinema.

I was in the UK and was fortunate to see the 1972 Munich Olympics on a Color television.

2020 Olympics

The games were postponed due to the pandemic.

Some Burmese Olympians
- Kyar Ba Nyein (Boxing)
- Thein Myint (Boxing)
- Tin Tun (Boxing)
- 1972 Burma Team (Soccer)
- Tin Maung Ni (Swimming)
- Weik Pan (Female Marathon)
- Zaw Weik (Weightlifting)
- Aung Gyi (Weightlifting)
YouTube Channel

@hmin3664

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June 15, 2025
1971
by Hla Min

Updated : June 2025

Video Broadcast on December 14, 2020

UCC

Dr. Chit Swe
- Dr. Chit Swe (GBNF) : Founder / Director; Also, Professor of Mathematics, RASU
U Soe Paing
- U Soe Paing : Manager of Systems Division; Transferred from RIT
U Ko Ko Lay
- U Ko Ko Lay (GBNF) : Manager of Operations Division; Transferred from PWD
U Myo Min
- U Myo Min : Manager of Applications Division; Chartered Accountant;
  Systems Analyst at IBM (UK);
  Came back at the request of his mother and Saya Chit to help with the UCC Project
U Tun Aung Gyaw
- U Tun Aung Gyaw : Engineer, Systems Division
U Hla Min
- U Hla Min (Systems) : Engineer, Systems Division
CO U Hla Min (Top row 2nd from Right)
- U Hla Min (“Pauk Si”) : Chief Operator
- See “Memories of UCC“
- See “UCC Sayas“
RIT Graduates in 1971

Rosie Gyi (Center), Ma Sandar (Right)
- Cho Cho Tin (Ma Sandar) : A71
  Literary Award Winning Author; Wrote “G-Hall Thu”
  Spouse : San Maung (A)
- Khin Maung Myint & Mai Khin Nyunt (Rosie Gyi) : both ChE71; Members, Combined 1st BE Intake of 64 and 65
Saw Lin, KMM, RG
- Saw Lin (GBNF) : C71; MES (VP, Technical Publications Manager); Core Organizer, SPZP-2012; Chief Editor, Swel Daw Yeik Magazine for SPZP-2012; Reprinted 23 RIT Annual Magazines; Provided transportation and welcome dinner
Win Myint (Left)
- Win Myint : C71; High School Luyechun; Author; Brigadier General; Dy. Minister
- Wunna Sithu : EC71; Rowed for Marine Youth, RIT and RUBC;
  Swimming & Water Polo
Ma Pwint Than
- Ma Pwint Than : EP71; Twice High School Luyechun; RIT EE Association
Myint Thin (Standing Rightmost)
- Myint Thin (GBNF) : M71; RIT Luyechun; RIT Rowing Selection (with Khin Maung Myint, Myint Than, Win Kyaw); Sponsor of U Ba Than to SPZP-2007; Friends : Myint Toe, Aung Win (Owen), Bo Bo Oo (Oscar), Soe Khine, Michael Aye, Uttam Singh
- See “Class of 1971“
- See “Combined 1st BE Intake of 1964 and 1965“
June 15, 2025
MASTAA Interview
by Hla Min

Updated : June 2025

U Soe Paing

U Soe Paing, U & Mrs. Hla Min

U Soe Paing

Note : Comments in italics are provided by Hla Min.
- I have written many articles on the History of Computerization in Myanmar.
  ** Most can be read from SCRIB-D.
- However many people have not read them. MASTAA has requested me do an interview.
  ** It is tentatively planned for July 19, 2020 (at 10 PM. EST). It will be morning in Yangon, Myanmar.
- Facts are very important because there are some people who want to twist them to their advantage. Especially since the project was very successful in introducing computers and computer education in the country.
- I was with the project right from its inception.
  ** Sad to report that Saya Dr. Chit Swe and U Ko Ko Lay have passed away.
- I would like to go over the facts.
When and how I got involved in UCC Computer project
- Took programming and DP courses at Stanford University.
- Around 1962, there was no CS Department or CS courses.
  ** Professor George Forsythe later founded and Chaired the CS Department at Standford.
- Computer programming was given by Mathematics Department as part of Numerical Analysis
- Introduction to Data Processing was given by Industrial Engineering Dept
- Worked as part time computer operator for the Stanford Computation Center.
- Joined Electrical Engineering Department, RIT as Assistant Lecturer in January 1964,
  RIT was closed.
  As part of the staff development program, I gave lectures to Elect Engg staff on computers and programming.
- Ko Nyi Nyi (Instructor in Elect Eng Dept) told Dr Chit Swe, Head of Maths Dept at the Institute of Economics who was preparing to start a project with the assistance of the UN to install a computer.
- Dr Chit Swe and U Hla Myint (Maths Dept) came to recruit me to assist them in the computer project.
- Immediately agreed and joined the project preparation team.
- Ko Nyi Nyi and Dr. Than Htaik (Chem Eng Dept) also joined the team.
- At that time Unit Record Machines using punched cards (both IBM and ICL) were used in Burma by the Railways, Central Economics and Statistics Department (CSED), Records Office Burma Army.
- At one point all the Unit Record Machines were centralized in one place (Burma Machines Corporation??) and then decentralized again.
  ** Per U Thein Han, IBM unit record machines were used in the first Demonatization. The machines were set up in Rangoon University (e.g. Convocation Hall).
- Burma Railways wanted to replace their Unit Record Machines with a computer and was requesting funds from the government.
  ** However, the nationalization followed by tight control of foreign exchange caused the request to be denied.
Preparation for the UCC project (1965 – 70)
- The UNDP in Yangon and the Goverment agreed to explore the possibility of having a UNDP funded UNESCO executed project of installing a computer at the Institute of Economics.
- In 1965 Dr Abou Taleb from Egypt visited Burma at the Institute of Economics for one month as a UNESCO consultant on the formulation of the project. He had discussions with the project team, the concerned persons at the Directorate of Higher Education and other government departments, UNDP personnel and managers of IBM (** U Aung Khin) and ICL (** U Kyaw Tha).
- Dr Abou Taleb prepared a report that was submitted to the UNESCO and UNDP.
- Around 1968 UNDP mission composed of Professor Owens of Columbia University and Mr Talbot of UNDP HQs came to Burma (Institute of Economics) to write a project proposal for the UNDP/UNESCO Computer Project.
  The mission had discussions with the project team, the concerned persons at Higher Education and other government departments, UNDP personnel and managers of IBM and ICL.
- The report and the project proposal were submitted to UNDP, UNESCO and the Government.
- It was agreed to implement the UNDP funded, UNESCO executed Computer project.
- The project document for the UNDP/UNESCO Universities’ Computer Center Project was signed in 1970.
Preparation for the establishment of UCC
- In 1969 the project preparation team office moved to the Maths Department, RASU.
- The Government decided to establish the Universities’ Computer Center directly under the Department of Higher Education.
- A new building was to be constructed for the Center on the Hlaing Campus.
- The project preparation team started to develop the organizational structure, budget, as well as the design for the building.
- Ko Tun Aung Gyaw (UTAG) joined the project preparation team.
- A temporary office / room was given to the project preparation team on the 3rd /top floor of the RASU Maths Dept.
  The Maths department still provided the logistics support.
  Saya U Maung Maung Tin of the RASU Maths Department was extremely helpful to the project preparation team.
- The UCC organization structure consists of the Director at its head advised by the Board of Management.
  Under the Director are three technical divisions: Operations, Systems, Applications and an Administrative Support Section.
  One Manager heads each division.
- Operations division consists of the Computer Operations section and the Data Preparation section.
- Systems Division consists of the Systems Hardware section and the Systems Software section.
- Applications Division consists of the Scientific Applications section and the Business Applications section.
- The UCC organization structure was approved by the government and the Board of Management was formed.
- Dr. Chit Swe was appointed Director of UCC in addition to his duties as Professor.
- The Board of Management was formed with Dr Nyi Nyi, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Education as Chairman and Dr. Chit Swe as Secretary.
  The members include U Thet Tun, DG of CSED; U Win Pe, Research Dept, Planning; U Nyunt Maung, Dy Director, Finance; Dr Khin Maung Kyi, Inst of Economics, Dr Aung Gyi, RIT; etc
- The UCC building on Hlaing Campus was to be designed and built by the Public Works Corporation.
  It was designed by the Chief Architect U Aung Myint. The team also met my high school and Stanford friend Ko Ko Lay who was a structural engineer there.
- Ko Myo Min returned from the UK after studying as a Charted Accountant and working (** as Systems Analyst) at IBM UK.
- Ko Ko Lay, Ko Myo Min and other volunteers joined the project preparation team.
  The volunteers are Ko Win Myint (Gyi) etc.
- The three managers were recruited.
- I transferred to UCC from RIT as Systems Engineer/Manager of the Systems Division of UCC on April 1971.
- Ko Ko Lay transferred from Public Works/Construction Corporation as Manager of the UCC Operations Division.
- Ko Myo Min joined as Manager of the Applications Division.
- 1st April 1971 is considered as the start of UCC.
- The first batch of other staff were recruited and appointed.
  UTAG and Johnny Hla Min joined as Maintenance Engineers.
- UCC was given a temporary office on the third floor of the Mandalay Hall.
- The project preparation team organized courses in computers, programming and applications for the staff of Universities and government departments.
Choice of the computer
- In October 1970, Dr Chit Swe went to UNESCO, Paris to participate in the selection of the computer for the project.
- ICL 1900 series was chosen over IBM.
- IBM was only willing to supply the IBM 360 and not the recently introduced IBM 370.
- Dr Chit Swe then went on to London for discussions with ICL.
  ICL gave a more powerful version 1902S for the same price.
Installation of the Computer and start of UCC
- In 1972 UCC moved to its new building on Thamaing Campus.
- The site preparation for the computer and environmental equipment started.
- A firm from the UK was subcontracted by ICL to do the site preparation.
- The ICL 1902S computer was delivered and moved into the computer room to start the installation process.
- ICL resident Maintenance Engineer Gaber Khalef (Egypt) and the ICL resident Software Expert Ian Shearer (UK) arrived and took up their responsibilities.
- Acceptance trials for the ICL 1902S started on 25 February 1973, and formally completed on 8 March.
- Professor Huskey arrived on 4 March and took part in the acceptance of the ICL 1902S.
- The original UCC organization was meant to be minimal and mainly for a one shift per day start.
- However due to the Census and more than expected use, volunters were paid minimum salary wages (which can be authorized by the Director) used to do the required support work.
Computer Use
- The Board of Management decided to process the 1973 Population Census on the UCC computer.
- Training of the Census Programmers conducted at UCC.
- Alic Heinrici (UK, the ICL FILAN (ICL Census Tabulation system)) expert came from September to November to train Census and UCC Programmers in FILAN to be used in Census Tabulation.
- The processing of the Burma Population Census started in May 1974.
- The data entry was done in the Census Dept (old Rowe Co. Building) with over 100 rented keypunches from IBM.
- The morning shift (8:00am – 4:00pm) was reserved for UCC.
  The evening shift (4:00pm – 12:00am) and night shift (12:00am-8:00am) were reserved for Census processing.
  At the start the Census processing did not take the two shifts.
- Saturdays were reserved for Maintenance and the center was closed on Sundays.
- ICL experts and UCC senior staff designed the Census Processing System containing Sequence and Completeness check (PLAN), Consistency checks (FORTRAN), Tabulation (FILAN).
- UCC staff also supervised the processing.
- Burma Railways, Central Economics and Statistics Department (CSED)/(CSO), Records Office Burma Army (ROBA) converted some of their Unit Record Machines applications on to the computer.
  Railways passenger and goods statistics; CSED Health and Trade Statistics; ROBA Miltary records.
- RIT final year students implemented projects.
  Civil Engg: Structural Engineering, Astronomical Calculations,
  Electrical: Power System Analysis, Electronic Circuit Analysis.
Computer Education
- The project preparation team organized courses in computers, programming and applications for the staff of Universities and government departments. (1971)
- Preparations start for the MSc Computer Science and Postgraduate Diploma in Automatic Computing (DAC) to be given under the Mathematics Department, RASU. (1973)
- Start of the MSc Computer Science and DAC courses. (1974)
- There were three options under the MSc course : Computer Systems, Computer Oriented Operations Research Techniques and Computational Mathematics.
  Coursework plus dissertation/thesis.
- DAC course was 2 years part-time from 7:00 am to 9:00 am.
- Entrance Aptitude Tests for all applicants meeting the University requirements for post graduate studies.
- The six months part time course (the predecessor to the full time 4 months course ) was started for the staff of the government departments and universities in 1976.
  It consisted of Introduction to Programming with FORTRAN, Mathematics and Statistics, COBOL Programming, Systems Analysis & Design.
- The UCC Staff and visiting experts taught most of the courses.
  However Maths sayas helped out in the MSc and DAC courses. U Hla Myint and Dr Kyaw Nyunt in Computational Mathematics; U Soe Nyunt and Dr Pike Tin in OR courses.
- Paid and unpaid volunteers were expected to attend the courses according to their ability and wishes.
Expert Services
- The University of California at Santa Cruz(UCSC) was given the expert subcontract under the project.
  Professor Harry D. Huskey Chairman of the Department of Computer Science at UCSC and the well known pioneer in computers (in the development of the first electronic computer ENIAC at the University of Pennslyvania) was the coordinator of the contract.
  ** He co-authored the first Computer Handbook. His students include Nickaus Wirth (inventor of Pascal and Modula). He is a Past President of ACM and a Fellow of ACM, IEEE and CHM.
- The UCSC expert subcontract was to provide four long term (4x12m) experts and a few short term (1m) experts, in addition to yearly visits by Professor Huskey.
- Long Term Experts :
  Mr Sheldon Bachus (Systems Analysis & Design, 1973)
  Dr. Malcolm Atkinson (Computer Science Expert, 1974)
  Dr. Paul Keogh (Operations Research Expert, 1974)
  Mr. Bjorn Hustaad (Simulation, 1977)
- Short Term Experts :
  World renowned people able to visit and give lectures for one month.
- Professor Anthony Ralston Professor and Head of the Computer Science Department of the State University of New York (SUNY) in Buffalo, NY USA , and Past President of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) came as a one month short term expert in Computer Science. He introduced Structured Programming to UCC, Burma and even to the long term expert in Computer Science. (1975).
- Professor Foreman Acton of Princeton University, Princeton NJ USA came as a one month short term expert in Numerical Analysis and conducted training courses .(1975)
- Professor Peter Wegner of Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island came as a one month short term expert in Computer Science and conducted training courses in Automata Theory.(1975)
- Professor Wilde of Stanford University, Operations Research (1976)
- Professor Leon Lasdon of University of Michigan, Operations Research (1976).
- Professor Michael Stonebraker, University of California (Berkeley), INGRES Relational Database, Database 1977)
UN Experts
- Dr. Shafeek Saleeb(Egypt) arrived to take up his assignment as Chief Technical Adviser of the UCC project. (1974)
- Mr. Jan Rademaker (Netherlands) arrived to take up his assignment as an associate expert in Computer Applications under the UCC project. (1975)
Further Development
- More memory, 2 disk drives and card reader supplemented by the Census project.
- For scientific and engineering applications a flat bed Calcomp plotter was acquired.
- For teaching purposes Professor Huskey advised to get an on line time sharing mini computer system like most American Universities.
  A PDP-11/70 mini computer system was acquired.
- Prof Huskey also lectured on micro processors and micro computers.
  UCC decided to get a microcomputer for trying out.
  Chose Cromemco (** System Three). Very good except for the 8” disk drive problems. A lot of experience gained.
- Government relaxed on buying microcomputers for the govt departments. Many acquired Cromemco and started their applications on microcomputers.
- Since UCC is to be used mainly for training the Board proposed the establishment of a National Computer Center for use by government departments.
Updates

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June 14, 2025