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␈↓ ↓H␈↓␈↓βS␈↓∧ Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, STANFORD UNIVERSITY, Stanford, California 94305
␈↓ ↓H␈↓∧Telephone 415 497-4430␈↓ 	oOctober 23, 1976




␈↓ ↓H␈↓Prof. Andrei P. Ershov
␈↓ ↓H␈↓Computation Center
␈↓ ↓H␈↓Novosibirsk 630090
␈↓ ↓H␈↓USSR

␈↓ ↓H␈↓Dear Andrei:

␈↓ ↓H␈↓        We␈αenjoyed␈αour␈αshort␈α
visit␈αto␈αHelsinki␈αafter␈α
the␈αWG2.2␈αmeeting,␈αand␈α
it␈αwas␈αpleasant␈αto␈α
talk
␈↓ ↓H␈↓with␈α
you␈αon␈α
the␈αtelephone.␈α
 Our␈αnew␈α
computer␈αfor␈α
student␈αuse␈α
will␈αarrive␈α
in␈αless␈α
than␈α
a␈αmonth,
␈↓ ↓H␈↓and␈α
I␈α
have␈α
been␈αlearning␈α
facts␈α
about␈α
the␈α
Stanford␈αbureaucracy␈α
from␈α
which␈α
I␈α
had␈αapparently␈α
been
␈↓ ↓H␈↓previously␈αsheltered.␈α Our␈αproblem␈αconcerned␈αputting␈αair␈αconditioning␈αand␈αpower␈αinto␈αthe␈αrooms
␈↓ ↓H␈↓that␈α
were␈α
allocated␈α
for␈α∞the␈α
new␈α
computer.␈α
 The␈α
Stanford␈α∞Planning␈α
O≠ce␈α
said␈α
that␈α∞while␈α
actual
␈↓ ↓H␈↓construction␈α
might␈α
take␈α4␈α
to␈α
6␈αweeks␈α
their␈α
procedures␈α
of␈αplanning,␈α
engineering␈α
and␈αbidding␈α
would
␈↓ ↓H␈↓make␈αit␈αtake␈α≡ve␈αmonths.␈α So␈αI␈αwent␈αand␈αgot␈αa␈αprivate␈αcontractor␈αto␈αbid␈α$41,000␈αto␈αdo␈αthe␈αjob␈αin
␈↓ ↓H␈↓one␈αmonth.␈α
 They␈αfound␈α
reasons␈αwhy␈αit␈α
couldn't␈αbe␈α
contracted␈αto␈αhim,␈α
but␈αsaid␈α
they␈αcould␈αnow␈α
do
␈↓ ↓H␈↓the␈αjob␈α
in␈αtwo␈αmonths,␈α
and␈αit␈α
would␈αonly␈αcost␈α
$71,000.␈α Finally,␈α
the␈αadministration␈αdiscovered␈α
that
␈↓ ↓H␈↓the␈α
Government␈α
had␈α
paid␈α
for␈α
a␈α
computer␈α
room␈α
in␈α
the␈α
new␈α
Education␈α
Building␈α
that␈α
was␈αnot␈α
going
␈↓ ↓H␈↓to be used otherwise, so we will move in there.

␈↓ ↓H␈↓        We␈αdecided␈αto␈α
buy␈αthe␈α50␈α
display␈αterminals␈αfor␈α
the␈αsystem␈αas␈α
kits␈αand␈αhave␈αthem␈α
assembled
␈↓ ↓H␈↓by␈α
students.␈α∞ This␈α
saved␈α∞between␈α
two␈α∞and␈α
three␈α
hundred␈α∞dollars␈α
per␈α∞terminal,␈α
and␈α∞the␈α
students
␈↓ ↓H␈↓are␈α∞assembling␈α∞them␈α∞for␈α∞about␈α∂$50␈α∞apiece.␈α∞ So␈α∞far␈α∞about␈α∂15␈α∞have␈α∞been␈α∞completed,␈α∞and␈α∂when␈α∞I
␈↓ ↓H␈↓dropped␈α⊃by␈α⊂our␈α⊃"factory"␈α⊃today,␈α⊂four␈α⊃students␈α⊂were␈α⊃busy␈α⊃soldering␈α⊂away.␈α⊃ We␈α⊂will␈α⊃see␈α⊃if␈α⊂the
␈↓ ↓H␈↓student␈α
assembled␈αterminals␈α
have␈α
more␈αtroubles␈α
than␈αthe␈α
factory␈α
assembled␈αversions.␈α
 We␈αwill␈α
also
␈↓ ↓H␈↓be␈αrelying␈αheavily␈αon␈αvolunteer␈αstudent␈αlabor␈αfor␈αsoftware,␈αbut␈αnot␈αmuch␈αcan␈αbe␈αdone␈αabout␈αthat
␈↓ ↓H␈↓till we get the computer.

␈↓ ↓H␈↓        One␈α∂of␈α∂our␈α∂new␈α∂graduate␈α∂students,␈α∂Ben␈α∞Moszkowsky,␈α∂would␈α∂like␈α∂to␈α∂spend␈α∂a␈α∂year␈α∂in␈α∞the
␈↓ ↓H␈↓Soviet␈α
Union␈αat␈α
some␈αplace␈α
that␈αdoes␈α
computer␈α
science.␈α Since␈α
he␈αhas␈α
just␈αarrived,␈α
I␈α
don't␈αknow
␈↓ ↓H␈↓how␈α
good␈α
he␈α
is,␈α
but␈α∞on␈α
the␈α
basis␈α
of␈α
his␈α∞recommendations␈α
from␈α
UCLA␈α
and␈α
on␈α∞his␈α
examination
␈↓ ↓H␈↓scores,␈α∞he␈α∞was␈α∂considered␈α∞one␈α∞of␈α∞the␈α∂two␈α∞best␈α∞candidates␈α∞for␈α∂admission.␈α∞ There␈α∞is␈α∞no␈α∂rush;␈α∞the
␈↓ ↓H␈↓academic␈αyear␈α1978-79␈αor␈αeven␈α1979-80␈αwould␈αbe␈αsuitable␈αfor␈αhim.␈α The␈αo≠cial␈αprograms␈αhe␈αhas
␈↓ ↓H␈↓looked␈α
into␈α
seem␈α
to␈α
call␈α
for␈α∞people␈α
who␈α
already␈α
have␈α
PhDs,␈α
so␈α∞it␈α
occurs␈α
to␈α
me␈α
that␈α
it␈α∞might␈α
be
␈↓ ↓H␈↓possible␈α∞for␈α∞your␈α∞computation␈α
center␈α∞to␈α∞take␈α∞him␈α
as␈α∞an␈α∞aspirant␈α∞for␈α
a␈α∞year.␈α∞ Do␈α∞you␈α∞think␈α
this
␈↓ ↓H␈↓might be possible?

␈↓ ↓H␈↓        I␈αwas␈αhappy␈αto␈αhear␈αthat␈αboth␈αVasya␈αand␈αAniuta␈αare␈αdoing␈αso␈αwell,␈αand␈αI␈αhope␈αNina's␈αleg
␈↓ ↓H␈↓will be all well soon.
␈↓ ↓H␈↓Best regards,
␈↓ ↓H␈↓αProf. Andrei P. Ershov␈↓ ¬]October 23, 1976␈↓ 
nPage 2␈↓




␈↓ ↓H␈↓John McCarthy
␈↓ ↓H␈↓Director
␈↓ ↓H␈↓Professor of Computer Science