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1]
G. K. Chesterton (1874-1936)
English writer Chesterston
suffered greatly in school and could not read till he
was eight. He stayed at the bottom of his classes until,
at age 15, a budding friendship with future author E.C.
Bentley ended his introversion. His transformation was
remarkable and later on became a successful writer. |
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2]
Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
British Statesman. The
man who was to become the most distinguished member of
an already illustrious family seemed so dull as a youth
that his father thought he might be incapable of earning
a living in England. |
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3]
Charles Darwin (1809-1882)
English naturalist the young
Darwin did poorly in a school noted for its classical
education. He failed dismally in a medical course at
Edinburgh University. Darwin languished at Cambridge until
his enthusiasm for natural history got him a berth on
H.M.S. Beagle in 1831. He transformed the voyage into one
of history's greatest scientific expeditions, using his
findings from the trip to develop his theory of evolution.
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4]
Thomas A. Edison (1847-1931)
U.S. inventor. First teacher of Edison described him as
‘addled’ and his headmasters warned him that he “would
never make a success of anything” But eventually he
patented over a thousand inventions whose worth to
mankind is incalculable. |
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5]
Paul Ehrlich (1854-1915)
German bacteriologist. Ehrlich
always performed badly but he had a flair for
microscopic work, and this carried him through his
education. He eventually used his talent with the
microscope to develop the field of Chemotherapy and he
was awarded a Nobel Prize in medicine in 1908. |
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6]
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
German physicist. Einstein
performed very badly in high school courses except
mathematics. Even after graduating from the institute,
he had trouble finding and holding a job. Meanwhile he
was formulating his first class ideas about theory of
relativity. |
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7]
Henry Ford (1863-1947)
U.S. car manufacturer. Ford made
it through school with a minimal grasp of reading or
writing. However his ability to fathom the inner
workings of machine was evident at an early age. |
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8] Heinrich Heine
(1797-1856)
German Poet. Young Heire performed miserably
in his classes particularly in languages. His grasp of
German grammar was weak also. |
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9] Gamel Abdel Nasser
(1918-1970)
Egyptian statesman. Egypt's first president
had a dismal school career. From age 6 to 16, he passed
only four grades. At last he enrolled at Royal Military
Academy and graduated as a second lieutenant. In 1952 he
led a military camp to oust King Faruk and establish a
republic. |
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10] Sir Isaac Newton
(1642-1727)
English scientist. The man who now ranks as
perhaps the greatest intellect of all time showed little
promise as a youth. Newton was relegated to the lowest
form in his school, but finally he snapped out of his
mental lethargy. His outstanding work in mathematics and
physics revolutionized scientific thought. |
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11] Pablo Picasso
(1881-1973)
Spanish painter at the age of ten Picasso
could barely read or write. He refused to learn
mathematics and quit school out of sheer boredom.
Afterwards he studied painting on his own in Madrid and
Paris. Before making his first impact on the art world,he struggled for several years. |
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12] Giacomo Puccini
(1854-1924)
Italian Opera Composer. Puccini was born
into a family of Church musicians, he did poorly in
school and caused his first music teacher to give up in
despair. His second music teacher caught his fancy and
from that moment onwards Puccini energetically devoted
himself to music. |
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13] James Watt
(1736-1819)
Scottish Engineer. Watt was a delicate child
and labeled “dull and inept” at his lessons. At the age
of 13, an interest in geometry launched his rapid
intellectual development. He went on to develop the
steam engine thereby helping to start industrial
revolution. |
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14] Arthur Wellesley
1st Duke of Wellington (1769-1852)
British General and
Statesman. Young Wellesley did very badly in school that
his mother pushed him into a military career, Wellesley
worked so rigorously to his military studies that he
eventually rose to the top of the British army. |
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15] Emile Zola
(1840-1902) French Novelist.
Zola always failed in the
languages and literature orals. His attempts to enter
the University of Marrseilles ended disastrously. His
performance on the written entrance exam was atrocious
that he didn't even take the orals. Later he wrote
‘Nana’ and other popular novels, and was the founder of
the Naturalist movement in literature. |
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