August 11, 2002

Dear Dr. Doughty:

I am so pleased to hear that the scholarship program in honor of Dr. Chopra, or Dr. C as some of his students used to call him, and Omi is progressing so well.

Dr. Chopra was a major influence on my plans for the future. In fact, it was discussions with him that helped me make the decision to pursue my graduate degrees at New Mexico State University. That is a decision I never regretted.

Even so, it is my time at East Texas State University with Dr. Chopra and others that I remember most fondly. His lectures always showed his desire to explain physics as clearly as possible, and he was always available to answer questions. He was serious about teaching, and that is part of why I find the story I am about to tell about him so amusing.

It was an early morning Electricity and Magnetism class with only six or seven students, well into the semester, and we were all tired. Dr. C. came into the classroom and said "Good Morning." We all mumbled something close to "Good Morning." It was clear that we were not enthusiastic. So, Dr. C. said "What’s new?', trying to get a little enthusiasm. Nobody answered. So, he said in a slightly louder voice "You mean to tell me we're half way through the semester, and you guys still don't know that nu is c over lambda!" That woke us up. We had a great class after that.

Sincerely,

Jimmy D. Shirley, Ph.D.

 

16 August 2002

Dear Fellow Alumni,

When I learned that a scholarship fund to honor Dr. Dev and Omi Chopra was being established, I was very much interested in supporting this effort. I remember when I first met Dev. I was very impressed with his teaching skills and his interest in the students. He was always willing to take the time to help outside of class and his desire to ensure that each student understand the material was always evident. I would see Dev on a daily basis and he would always ask how I was. He took an interest in the personal lives of all of his students.

When Ben asked me to write this letter, I began thinking of ways to describe Dev and his influence upon his students, especially his influence upon me. I thought of many words to describe his teaching skills (fun but demanding), his personal concern for students (friend), his research accomplishments (dedicated researcher) and even his academic life (professional). All seemed to me to be inadequate to capture the image I wanted to convey. In the end, my best description of Dev is simply to remember him as Dev Chopra, Physicist. I believe this captures best the influence Dev had on me.

I want to join in this effort and encourage you to support it as well. This is an excellent way in which we can remember Dr. Chopra and contribute to the training of other physics students.

Sincerely,

Frank L. Brandon