Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
With age, I’ve come to be more patient with the human condition.
And, as a German friend of mine said: “Most scientists are more interested in their job
more than they are interested in the scientific truth.”
I’m single, and I can sit out here and be this odd person who talks what I feel is the
truth, but I’m free.
I don’t have two kids in college; I don’t have to make that university – what to do
you call it –
I don’t have that tuition paycheck; I’m free to speak openly, as opposed to people
who are locked in their jobs in a certain way.
What I do is not supported financially in the scientific community.
No one pays someone to sit down and read and write for two years,
And I just had a particular, odd circumstance in life that afforded me this possibility
– this capability.
And, I think – you know -- particularly being a black American –
We have a legacy – or we feel the importance of our legacy –
That I am one of the first black people of my age group to go to Harvard.
I embody this very unusual and extensive range of scientific and medical knowledge
And I had the opportunity to; basically, have this truth presented to me.
I did not seek out this truth – it came to me through research, and time, and effort.
So I feel obligated that – given all the sacrifices that were made for my education
–
And for me to be developed as a person in my character and ability –
that I am obligated to try to do the best things with my knowledge and my abilities.
And, in some ways, this is a wonderful challenge.
I’m very blessed to have such a wonderful challenge in life to perhaps to be able to
affect people’s lives in such a positive way,
if I can alter this situation and effect this change.