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Richard,

Thanks for the Fligel and Flandern letter. Fortran wasn't so common when I started programming. ANSI C was all the rage. When you mentioned modulo arithmetic, I anticipated seeing some mod() or int()-like constructs, or at least an int-like variable declaration (as required in C). After reading the letter, I see the "compact" line of code exploits the truncation behavior of integer division (apparently the defacto data type). The link below explains the behavior for those who may wonder.

https://fortran-lang.org/learn/best_practices/integer_division/

This "clever" line of code has all the characteristics of a test question in a programming exam!

Also of interest was a letter on "Binary Notation" in that issue of ACM. I'm amazed that only a year from putting feet in the moon, there was still discussion about binary, octal, and hex number symbology! Glad they stuck with alpha-numeric characters on a normal qwerty keyboard (or type writer or teletype). At least I can type &hFF. The proposed symbology reminds me of a programmer's version of a Beaufort scale : ) Imagine having those displays on your calculator! (only 6 segments if the verticals are long)

And lastly, in that same issue comes this timeless quote, "A good education should not be solely directed toward academicians whose only economic justification is to teach in order to turn out recursively new generations of academicians." That could be from 1968 or 2068!