Raghaviyengar Parthasarathy

Raghaviyengar Parthasarathy of Lanham, MD, passed away on Wednesday,
March 7, 2012, at the age of 82. His life and career spanned the
globe before the advent of a global economy, taking him from a
master's degree in physics at Annamalai University, India, to a
radiophysics fellowship at CSIRO in Sydney Australia, to a full
professorship at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks to consulting
with Lockheed Palo Alto Research Laboratory and finally, to the
National Space Science Data Center at Goddard Space Flight Center in
Greenbelt, Maryland, where he worked as a contractor for 25 years
before retiring at the age of 80.

He celebrated Isaac Newton's birthday on December 25; long ago, he
taught his little daughter to propel a rolling chair backwards by
jumping forwards off it, explaining that action and reaction are equal
and opposite according to Newton's 3rd law. His bookshelves contained
every book written by or about Albert Einstein. But, he was much more
than his love of physics and empirical thinking.

He was an avid bridge partner in that game's suburban heyday, a tennis
player and a fisherman who was more interested in spending time along
the river bank than catching and gutting a fish. To the end of his
days, he enjoyed a martini and a cigarette and the fine conversation
that sprang from relaxing with both. He loved a good party.

Long before "animal companions" superseded "pets" in the national
lingo, he cherished the dogs he always kept near him including Indian
strays, an Irish setter he ambitiously named Indira Golda Bernadette
after three strong-willed female statesmen, and a Lhasa apso named
Tibby who lived for 18 years on a mostly vegetarian Indian diet and
the steady companionship of his master.

A keen gardener, he planted an unexpected variety of fruits and
vegetables in the very different climates he inhabited. Among
battles with many a garden pest, his family recalls him facing down a
recidivist she-moose who delighted in nibbling at his Brussels sprouts
under the Alaskan midnight sun. Most recently, last summer, when
declining health prevented him from deep gardening work, he
nonetheless supervised a balcony full of potted tomatoes, peppers and
eggplants, with the help of his family.

Most importantly, he was a devoted husband and father. He is survived
by his wife of over 50 years, Sarada, and his daughter, Hemai, both of
whom miss him very much.