SIMPLY A GENIUS

House No.79 is standing at the intersection of Alovsat Guliyev (former Asian St.) and Mirza Ibrahimov (former Maxim Gorky St.) streets. Lotfi Aliasker Zadeh, future American scientist best known as the author of fuzzy mathematics for artificial intelligence, professor at the University of Berkeley in California, honorary chairman of the Azerbaijani diaspora in the United States, has lived with his family on the second floor of this building until 1934.

First steps

He was born on February 4, 1921 in Baku to a journalist Rahim Aliaskerzadeh and his wife, pediatrician Fanya Korenman. Rahim moved to Baku from Ardabil, Iran during the First World War as a correspondent of the weekly publication Iran. The street where they lived was predominantly populated by the families of doctors, lawyers, and engineers. The first conservatory (house No.8) and the headquarters of the newspaper Bakinsky Rabochiy (house No.10), where the Soviet journalist Petr Chagin worked and Sergei Yesenin often visited, were also located here.

The Aliaskerzadeh family, which occupied one of the wings on the second floor, was quite large. Soon after the marriage, Fanya’s mother Taube and sister Anna with her husband moved here as well. This was a cheerful and happy family. Rahim and Fanya named their son Lotfi, or Lutik as his family members used to call him. He was a kind and friendly boy increasingly interested in reading books as he was growing. Thick tomes of books in Lutik’s hands had often made his parents wonder whether he really understood the language of Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, and Chekhov? Or the contents of encyclopedias? Anna admired her nephew, claiming that he was a special kind of boy. When her daughter Jannat was born, she tried to instill in her the manners she liked so much in her nephew: desire for knowledge, perseverance, communication, and respect to himself and to the world. Who knows what would be the life and fate of Lutik, if it were not Mir-Jafar Baghirov’s resolution requesting the residents without citizenship to leave the country. It was 1934 and Rahim Aliaskerzadeh decided to return to Iran. He took Taube-khanim with himself, leaving her younger daughter Anna in Baku. The situation was indeed tragic for the sisters and their mother. Lutik was twelve years old and just graduated from the fourth grade at the Russian school No. 16.

In Tehran

Lotfi started a new life. Parents found a new home and easily adapted to the lifestyle of the country reigned by Reza Shah Pahlavi, who had transformed the country into a secular state with a well-developed infrastructure, and had changed its geographical name from Persia to Iran in 1935. Lotfi began his studies at the American College of Tehran, later called the Presbyterian Missionary School. Then he continued at the Electrical Engineering Department of the Tehran University. Life went on as usual: his parents were employed and engaged in social activities. Lotfi’s mother established the first consulting agency in Iran, A Drop of Milk. Thanks to her efforts, a pediatric department was opened for the first time at the American Hospital in Tehran, which she had headed for ten years. While studying exact sciences at college, Lotfi was also attending a dancing class. Let’s not forget that these events were taking place in the second half of the 1930s, when Iran was a secular state, and jazz compositions were not prohibited. Fanya and her friend Raya, who had a daughter named Fay, took their children to a dancing class. Although both families were neighbors, it was the first meeting of children. Dancing lessons continued as long as they were underage children. Then each of them went their own way until they met again and did not part for the rest of their lives. Lotfi entered the University of Tehran, and Fay left for Germany to continue her studies, which she left for New York after the Nazis came to power.

Memories of Jannat Salimova, cousin of Lotfi Zadeh:

Lutik and I had a big age difference. I was born when Uncle Rahim, Aunt Fanya and our grandmother Taube lived in Tehran. My mother used to tell me during the hungry years of war, when it was very difficult to find food in Baku, my aunt had sent us egg powder, coconuts, food, which could support us. Throughout my life, I was raised under the positive authority of my brother, whom I had never seen. Lutik and I met only in the 60s, when he came here for a scientific conference. It was his first visit after the departure. All these years I grew up and matured under my mother's instruction: you must be like Lutik! My mother loved her nephew. She believed he was an ideal role model for a child, and I had to be like him. I was trying to imagine Lutik and his life to myself getting black-and-white photos from Tehran, which he was making himself. Uncle Rahim presented him a camera for his birthday, and Lutik has never parted with it ever since! I know his adolescence from his photos: Lutik with a fashionable hairstyle, Lutik with a hat, Lutik in his car, Lutik with his girlfriend! I wanted to imagine his life in a country where I have never been, but it did not quite work out. Only from his letters and the letters of Aunt Fanya we found out what was happening in their family, his personal life and scientific activities. We enjoyed hearing about his successes and were proud that Lutik was an Azerbaijani with world fame.

Departure to the USA

Fate is favorable to the elect. Lotfi A. Zadeh was one of them. The heavens support the chosen ones through sending guides, people who take them along the right path. The same happened with Lotfi Zadeh. His teacher at the University of Tehran, who noticed his student's gift in mathematics and the exact sciences in general, approached his parents and strongly recommended sending Lotfi to the U.S. for training. Rahim and Fanya were enlightened people, and without thinking twice, they agreed. When Aunt Raya learned about Lotfi's departure, she asked Lotfi to find her daughter Fay in the U.S. But he was not sure that this was a good idea: they have not seen each other for a very long time and would hardly recognize each other. But Aunt Raya insisted: “Do not be afraid. Just take a vinyl record with the music you had enjoyed dancing as children, ring the doorbell, then just show the record to her and call your name! She'll remember you instantly, as you are the only one who can show up at her apartment with your favorite vinyl record?

So, Lotfi found the apartment where Fay lived, rang the doorbell, said hello and just handed the record to her. The girl looked at it, realized that this was the boy from her childhood, and offered him to enter.

Memories of Jannat Salimova:

It was like in movies. Lutik came in, took off his cloak and hat. When Fay saw his head bald as a billiard ball, the record fell from her hands and shattered! She later described that meeting in her book My Life and Travels With the Father of Fuzzy Logic, which includes many interesting and funny stories related to the personality and character of Lotfi Zadeh. For example, the story when my brother made Fay an offer to marry him: they both were waiting for a bus and suddenly my brother made his offer! It was not at all made the way all girls dream about. Everything was quite simple: "Will you marry me?" No ring, no flowers, no knightly descents on one knee. Then she naturally wondered: where is the traditional ring? He was surprised sincerely: is this really necessary? Quite logically, she tried to explain him the reason: if other young men saw a ring on her finger, they would know that there was no reason to court her. He admitted that there was logic in this, and immediately bought her a small tin ring for seven dollars from a nearby shop and put it on her finger. Fay wrote that it was the most expensive gift of her husband.

Life in the USA

After moving to the country of great opportunities in the early 40's, Lotfi Alieskerzadeh soon became Lotfi A. Zadeh. Initially, he received his Master of Science from MIT, and Doctorate from the Columbia University. During his ten years at this university, Zadeh was awarded the title of professor, and in 1959, upon the recommendation of the father of cybernetics Norbert Wiener, he was offered the position of professor at the world's leading university, Berkeley. There he worked until the last days of his life, leading the subdivision of soft computing. Now Lotfi Zadeh is recognized for his theory on fuzzy logic but before that, he has made valuable contributions to theories of impressions, systems, and optimal filters, which still play an instrumental role in development of science.

Memories of Jannat Salimova:

I think that the fuzzy logic is more recognized because it enabled large companies to achieve great success in technological development. An Azerbaijani scientist managed to change the world towards its technological perfection. I think that he was elected because he was a genius. It is not because he became a professor at 24 years old and not because a small city of Berkeley turned into a major center of scientific research after his appearance there. But because he was simply a genius: a real scientist, whose life was similar and, at the same time, different to the lives of ordinary people. Lutik once told me how exactly the idea of ​​the world’s fuzziness dawned on him. He came from Berkeley to New York to visit his parents. As customary there, he stayed at hotel. In the evening, when he was lying on his bed staring at the space, he suddenly realized that the world around us had no clarity. Between the concepts of hot and cold is a period of transition, which can be described as the states of warmness or coolness. If this concept is enumerated, then it turns out that the numbers are also not specific in nature: between 1 and 2, there are still intermediate numbers of 1.1, 1.5, and 1.75, and so on. In fact, his discovery denies Aristotle, who claimed that there was an absolute zero and absolute one. I understand this very well. I have a spiritual relationship with Lutik. I accept his theory, because I have long been teaching my students: when working on your stage characters, try to find halftones, and do not use default definitions such as bad or good. It is quite possible that the bad becomes good and vice versa. This will bring us closer to reality. There is no absolute lie, as there is no absolute truth. This is the basis of his mathematical theory, his fuzzy logic. It is what leads to the greatest accuracy.

Hobby

Lutfi Zadeh was an easygoing and absolutely democratic person. He was not arrogant, snobbery, a feature that many celebrities suffer severely. But he was not suffering from simplicity that borders with chummy manners. He was a great scientist with distinguished aristocratic manners, wit, tact, eccentric, and responsive. His knowledge reflected his inner world. He was calm and sane, valued stability, customs and traditions of the family. For him, honor and a good name were more valuable than momentary gains. He never resorted to radical methods of solving problems, preferring the liberal path. Being an intuitive, sensitive, and creative person, he has never postponed actions till tomorrow if he could do them today, trying to use every minute of life effectively. Behind his external practicality was hidden a romantic nature with subtle spiritual organization. His hobby was making photographic portraits. Lotfi did not part with his photo-camera ever since his father made him a present back in Tehran. Rahim Alieskerzadeh loved his son and strongly encouraged his hobbies: photography, cars, dancing, books, and study. However, according to Jannat-khanim, her brother once said that he stopped reading fiction at the age of 16. But even that was enough to form a subtle artistic taste and outlook. Lotfi Zade was a good tennis player. Throughout his life, he remained attached to the dishes of Azerbaijani national cuisine - pilaf, shish kebab, dolma from aubergines specially prepared for him at his favorite restaurant Alborz in Berkeley. There you can see the photographs of Lotfi Zadeh hanging on the walls. He specialized in the genre of portrait, and his works cannot be classified as amateur. His photo-portraits include Trotsky, with whom they lived next door, and President Nixon...

Lotfi Zadeh was able to grasp the moment when the features of human soul manifested themselves, so that the character of the imprinted person was read instantly. He became a famous photo-portraitist. So, it turns out that a talented person is really talented in everything. Hobby could well have become a profession, if not for the genius of a scientist who had not taken over. But the scientist had one more gift from God - a gift of love.

Love

He has lived with his love, Fay, for more than 70 years, surviving her for less than a year and raising two wonderful and successful children: daughter Stella is a well-known television journalist in the U.S. and has her own television channel, while son Norman is a talented mathematician who invested his mathematical gift in business.

Lotfi Zadeh, Lotfi, Lutik... Visiting Baku for only two days, he could never stay longer than that. Not only because life and scientific activity required his mathematically verified activity without temporary losses and delays. But also because he could not "leave his Fay for longer than a day and a half". She became not only his wife, but also a friend and companion. Fay Zadeh meant a lot more to him than the sense of banal statements concerning her. She has managed to be an integral part of his I, to fill his life with harmony and spiritual comfort. Fay seemed to compliment his life with her love, protecting him from imperfections of our world. When she was gone, everyone immediately realized that Lutik would not stay in this world for long.

Home

And now, decades later, Lotfi Aliaskerzadeh returned to his native land to lie in it forever. On September 29, he was buried in the Alley of Honor. Lotfi, Lutik... According to her will, the ashes of Fay were scattered over Berkeley. She believed that this way she could become a part of the world soul and then certainly always be near her Lotfi. And maybe now their souls, leaving the vanity of this world, rushed to meet each other in the subsequent earthly incarnation...