Greatness, and its meaning

Originally Posted by axon

why? sure he is an extraordinary man, but I certainly would not call him Great, per my definition/outlook

Your definition of greatness is moderately silly!

Next you are going to say that the Olsen twins were just a fad! Boo!

Originally Posted by Darkness

Your definition of great sucks

Next you are going to say that the Olsen twins were just a fad.

I don't like you very much. Please post a lot less.

Originally Posted by Govtcheez

I don't like you very much. Please post a lot less.

Uhm, I think you both chose the wrong time to take me seriously, as I meant no harm.

edit:
there, now the text reflects the actual intended mood of the post, everyone can now be relaxed and junk.

edit1:
But back onto topic, I agree with this statement by cheez:

The man has overcome a horribly crippling disease and has pretty much rewritten the way we see the universe. Seems pretty great to me

No, I know you were joking. My point still stands.

Originally Posted by Govtcheez

No, I know you were joking. My point still stands.

Umm, okay.

As I read the list of criteria posted by Stack Overflow, which seems to be the most impressive set of criteria posted yet, the only person I could think of, real or fictitious, who met all the criteria, was John Galt, the protagonist of Ayn Rand's novel Atlas Shrugged. Everybody else has at least one major flaw to mar their extraordinary achievement(s) or not enough is known to render a meaningful decision.

He's a brilliant scientist; I don't think there is much doubt there. But he has also, as Cheez mentioned, done so despite the difficulty getting there. And, he has done a lot to promote science. He is not the type to be content with no one being able to understand him (which happens anyway, but he seriously tries hard to make his science accessible). And, from what I've heard, he's quite a likable fellow as well.

Besides, you gotta love the bet he lost, even though he's the only one who understands why he lost it.

Have you read a lot of his material Zach? I plan on picking up "The Universe in a Nutshell"

edit:

Everybody else has at least one major flaw to mar their extraordinary achievement(s) or not enough is known to render a meaningful decision.

Interestingly enough, I think that these major flaws are not only expected in great people (as nobody is totally perfect), but in a way add to their greatness. Einstein for example had to one time call one of his coworkers to ask where he lived, as he completely forgot. In Hawking's case, it's plain to see he's overcome great adversity. Alexander the Great had the rivalry with his father. I think all of these things add to the effect, if you will.

If somebody was truly perfect, I'd almost feel like I was being let down in a way.