The Eighth Hungarian Tribe, 1985 (12. évfolyam, 1-11. szám)
1985-01-01 / 1. szám
FERENC F. SAJGÓ: THE HUNGARIAN LIFE-LINE DR. SZATHMARY DONATES FRANZ LISZT COLLECTION Louis Szathmary has donated his collection of Hungarian composer Franz Liszt’s letters, photos and programs to the Boston University Mugar Memorial Library Special Collections. Dr. Howard B. Gotlieb, director of the Special Collections said: “His donation makes our Liszt collection one of the best sources of information available to anyone interested in the life and career of the great composer”. Szathmary, whose library is composed of some 35,000 volumes, intends to donate the rare books published during the era Liszt lived to the Special Collection at a later date. Szathmary, a native of Hungary was educated as a journalist and Psychologist, having obtained a Ph.D. degree in psychology from the University of Budapest. He immigrated to the U.S. in 1951. He is the owner of the Bakery Restaurant in Chicago and presides over the firm of Szathmary Associates, Food System Designers and Management Consultants. Szathmary is a candidate for a honorary degree from Lincoln College. /Chicago es Kornyéké/ 28TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE UPRISING The 28th anniversary of the Hungarian Uprising in 1956 was commemorated in Washington, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Youngstown, Miami, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Pittsburgh, Sarasota, Tucson, Syracuse, Buffalo and New York. In New Brunswiek, N.J., Gov. Thomas Keane signed a proclamation and declared October 23,1984, as Hungarian Freedom Fighters Day. In Chicago, the anniversary was remembered in a religious service and program held at the Szent István parish. President Reagan and Senator Percy joined the commemorations, sending telegrams. George Stirling, editor of the Független Magyar Hirszolgalat, was the guest speaker at the events held in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Stirling flew specially to Buenos Aires by invitation of the Zrínyi Youth Organization. He spoke at the meetings of the Hungária Society and at the Szent László Kollegium. /Chicago es Kornyéké, Független Magyar Hirszolgalat/ January, 1985 WEST GOES TO HUNGARY FOR NEW IDEAS “Hungarians Cash In on West’s Computer Craze” is the title of the article by George Anders, staff reporter of The Wall Street Journal. Anders went to Budapest to see what the Hungarians are doing in the “software celars”, in the tiny but innovative private computer enterprises. The other socialist countries still suffer from the Soviet misjudgment in the 1950s. Back then, the Kremlin theoreticians called the computers “bourgeois means of oppressing”. But Hungary decided to go her own way. Since 1981, it has allowed small private computer businesses to exist alongside the state bureaucracy. Even the state-run software institutes are loosening up. Some of them wriggled free of the government and deal directly with the West. “I’ve been shocked at the extent of free enterprise” said the vice president of Microsoft Inc., Bellevue, Wash. Jack Tramier, president of Commodore International Ltd., went to Budapest to scout out the local computing industry and quickly opened the way for videogame contracts with Commodore. Now, U.S., Canadian, and British consultants are swarming into Budapest, hoping to win licensing rights to Hungarian software. One of Hungary’s wildest innovation is its own computer language. Peter Szeredi found the way to use sentences instead of mathematical equations to talk to the computers. More than 20 Western companies have licensed the language from Hungary, including Fujitsu Ltd of Japan and Digital Equipment Corp. of the U.S.A. AN INTERVIEW WITH DR. EDWARD TELLER Dr. Teller is one of the most renowned and influential Hungarian scientist. He is one of the scientific advisors to President Reagan and one of the architects of the “star war” concept. One would expect of a person of Teller’s talent that he would seclude himself in an “ivory tower” and keep himself out of reach of the common people. That could be the case with others but not with Teller. Dr. Teller is friendly, accessible and available. He always has time for a speech, for an interview, for an appearance not only in the TV programs and for Ivy League institutes, but also for the Hungarian American societies and for the reporters of the Hungarian American papers. In a recent interview with Janos Fercsey of Chicago es Kornyéké (Chicago and Vicinity) Teller revealed several interesting events unknown to many of us. The interview took place in New York after Teller had attended a Requiem Mass at the St. Patrick Cathedral. Teller was the youngest of the Hungarian scientists who played decisive roles at the beginning of the atomic age. Among them were Leo Szilard, a physicist at the Columbia University and head of the laboratory in Chicago, Eugene P. Wigner, a Nobel Laureate, whose theory was utilized in construction of the nuclear reactors, John Neumann, the “father of the computer”, an appointed member of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, the highest position ever achieved by a Hungarian in the United States, Theodore Karman, the aerodynamicist who often remembered as the “father of the supersonic flight”. Szilard was the first who realized that the construction of a nuclear bomb is feasible. He also knew that the science has no frontiers. Sooner or later, Germany also will be in position to make atomic bombs. Which country will be the first in possessing the decisive weapon was only a question of time. Szilard wanted to explain to President Roosevelt that the research to develope an atomic bomb should start immediately. There were two problems: Szilard had no influence at that time, and Roosevelt had no knowledge at all in matters of science. A sponsor was needed for the'project. Szilard thought of Albert Einstein, who already was famous and influencial. Szilard and Teller drove to Princeton. Teller recalled humorously: “I was Leo’s driver. It may sound strange but Szilard never learned to drive and never owned a car”. Einstein understood the potential of the plan, and wrote an outline to Roosevelt. He wrote in German, Szilard translated the letter in English and forwarded to the President. Roosevelt agreed with the plan and the “Manhattan Project” was born. Another episode known only by a few was revealed in the interview was about the deep humane feeling of the Hungarian scientist. Once the atomic bomb was made, Szilard tried to stop its use in killing. “Before the bomb was dropped over Hiroshima Szilard wrote a letter to me in Los Alamos” Teller said. Only a demonstration should be made, impressive enough to convince the Japanese to surrender. Szilard asked me to collect signatures from the scientists working in Los Alamos supporting his Page 5
