Of inspiration and life-direction…

So, as many of you may have heard today, “Mr. Wizard” Don Herbert died today at age 89 of bone cancer. Slashdot reported on the death and, if you read through some of the comments after the posting, you can see what this man meant to a lot of geeks and scientists, let alone the general public. I, personally, remember watching the show back in the 80s on Nickelodeon, but can’t remember specifics, really. I can certainly visualize the studio set and the kinds of experiments he did, but not necessarily specific ones like others can…

Reading through those Slashdot comments, you can see how much of an effect Mr. Wizard had on generations of scientists (his first show was in the 50s…had another in the 80s…), and that for many, he is solely responsible for their interest and fascination with science, much in the same way Carl Sagan is for others.

I guess it makes me wonder how many people can point to a single event, TV show, book, etc. that determined their careers and course in life. It’s the kind of thing you put in your college admission essay, really… For me personally, it was probably “Star Trek: The Next Generation” that piqued my interest, then other science fiction writings/shows after that, but these really only affect “scientific” careers. And moreover, even people that like “Star Trek” or science fiction don’t necessarily become scientists, engineers and mathematicians. What about people that have “always wanted to be a lawyer,” “always wanted to be a banker”, or “always wanted to be a doctor?” Are these people just as inspired by celebrities, books, television shows, and the like? Or are they getting their career direction more from parents and people they know? Are there kids out there that are inspired to become doctors because they watch Zach Braff every week on “Scrubs?”

Either way, much like Carl Sagan, Mr. Wizard brought science into the homes of millions of children, making it accessible to them and their parents. I just hope he knew the effect he had on the world as a whole.