BANGALORE, April 21 � Mathematical genius Shakuntala Devi, nicknamed as �human computer� for her ability to make complex mental calculations, died at a hospital here today following respiratory problems. She was 80.
�She passed away at Bangalore Hospital,� Shakuntala Devi Educational Foundation Public Trust trustee DC Shivadev told PTI. Doctors declared her dead at 8.15 am, he said.
Devi was hospitalised a couple of weeks ago for critical respiratory problems,
Shivadev said. �She developed heart and kidney problems later,� he added.
She found a slot in the Guiness Book of World Record for her outstanding ability and wrote numerous books like �Fun with Numbers�, �Astrology for You�, �Puzzles to Puzzle You�, and �Mathablit�. She had the ability to tell the day of the week of any given date in the last century in a jiffy.
Coming from a humble family, Shakuntala Devi�s father was a circus performer who did trapeze, tightrope and cannonball shows.