Logo Foundation Board


Takayuki Tsuru

Bachelor of Physics, Tokai Science Vocational College, 1947
Master of Psychology, Nippon University, 1952





I was born in Kumamoto in Kyushu in February, 1927. My father was a government tax officer and we moved to Fukuoka, Nagoya and Okazaki and in 1936, when I was in third grade, settled in Tokyo.

From 1944 to 1947, I studied at Tokai Science Vocational College (now Tokai University). I graduated from the applied physics department in 1947 and became a science teacher in junior high school and high school. My students were experiencing the hardships of the world: evacuation, mobilization and loss, and lacked most of the important aspects of school life. The city was overflowing with homeless children and I woried about what I could accomplish for them.

I had felt the importance of psychological support for children and went to the Cossetting Laboratory to study the psychoanalysis of the child. The Lab was established by Profesor Shimoda, who had studied in England before the war and was familiar with Dr. A.S.Neil.

By studying in this laboratory I understood the importantce of psychology and I wanted to do a full-scale study. I entered the psychology department at Nippon University. My dissertation was "The Analysis of Emotion."

I graduated in 1952 and opened the musical instrument shop which is called YAESU Piano Company for the purpose of helping children gain emotion through learning play the piano and by composing music. My successor is working hard managing this shop now and it has more than 500 students.

During the 1980s I had a chance to work with the Logo langauge that Professor Papert had been developing through Logo Computer Systems Inc. While writing my own programs I became completely captivated by Logo. In 1986 I established Logo Japan, Inc. and two years later we entered into a special contract with LEGO Dacta.

My wish is to support the development of problem solving abilities through programming among the children of the 21st century by encouraging the spread of the Logo langauge.