Richard Feynman
Theoretical physicist; Nobel laureate in Physics, 1965
Then there was Von Neumann, the great mathemati-cian. We used to go for walks on Sunday. We'd walk in the canyons, and we'd often walk with Bethe, and Von Neumann, and Bacher. It was a great pleasure. And Von Neumann gave me an interesting idea; that you don't have to be responsible for the world that you're in.
Recorded
First Annual Santa Barbara Lectures on Science and Society, University of California at Santa Barbara, Engineering and Science / Caltech Magazine, 1976
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Paul Farmer
Physician and medical anthropologist; co-founder of Partners In Health
I had lots of teachers encourage me. And I still know some of them, my high school teachers. But one of them encouraged me. She said, “Well, what do you want to do?” I said, “I want to be a doctor.” And she asked me where I wanted to go to school, and so I named all the Florida public universities which seemed within reach, financially. And she said, “Well, maybe you ought to apply to Duke, and maybe you’ll get a scholarship.” And I did both those things. I applied and got a scholarship.
Recorded
Academy of Achievement interview, Cape Town, South Africa, 3 July 2009
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