Thomas Edison
One of the greatest scientists in the world, Thomas Alva Edison once said “I have not failed; I have just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” And this dictum is thoroughly revealed in his study of science. During his study of electric bulb, he conducted over 3,000 experiments in finding the correct materials that will not melt at high temperature. After many experiments with platinum and other metal filaments, he eventually found the optimal material-carbon filament. His perseverance and optimism together with truth seeking and intelligence helped him to successfully invent the light bulb.
Truth is not objective
Moreover, in my opinion, what is also worth noticing is the objectivity of truth is that the great confidence of truth is often put into what people think. A story of theft that took place in ancient China can strongly support my perspective. A man, who lost his ax, believed his neighbor took it although he had no proof. The next morning, when he met his neighbor, he observed him carefully and it made him strengthened his suspicion. A week later, the ax was found in his table. Then he went to see his neighbor and found that he was an innocent person with no trace of stealth. He realized his unfounded suspicion had deceived his own eyes. This story tells us that the truth is determined by what we think. Therefore, truth is not often objective.
Galileo Galile’s Heliocentrism
Galileo Galile’s championing of copernicanism was controversial during his lifetime. The geocentric view had been dominant since the time of Aristotle, and the controversy engendered by Galileo’s presentation of heliocentrism as proven fact resulted for the catholic church’s prohibiting its advocacy as empirically proven fact, because it was not empirically proven at the time and was contrary to the literal meaning of scripture. Galileo was eventually forced to recant his heliocentrism and spent the last years of his life under house arrest on orders of the roman inquisition. He is a maverick who believed and stood for truth even if it was against the whole society. He clarified his own idea even though it’s against the misconception of the society. Although he were not rewarded and accepted in his life, his perseverance and optimism together with truth seeking and intelligence made him successfully proved the validity of his theory to the world posthumously.
Teamwork and Cooperation
Sports offer some of the finest examples of teamwork. Great athletes always acknowledge that a great team, not just by a great individual wins championships. As one of the greatest American baseball players, George Herman Ruth once said, “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” For example, a football running back and quarterback’s ability are totally dependent on the strength of their offensive line. A basketball center’s ability in scoring is mainly dependent on his team’s willingness to pass him the ball. Even a NASCAR driver’s finish depends on the speed and skill of his pit crew. In addition, Teamwork has also become increasingly acknowledged as an essential skill for employees in both small and large companies. In today’s increasingly global economy competition, company places a premium value on teamwork in their workplace. Like for example, a companies that produce goods on one continent and then over a matter of a few days must transport, store and deliver them to customers on another continent, teamwork is not just important, it is essential.
Individualism and Truth Seeking
Of all the characters that I have “met” through books and movies, one stands out as a cogent epitome of people who succeed by looking beyond the appearances. His name is Equality 7-2521 from Anthem by Ayn Rand. The story sets in a fictional world in which dominated by collectivism. People there are under the control of collectivist government since they were born. They live and work benightedly in the groups that assigned by the government. Equality 7-2521, a member of street sweeping group and after he discovered a tunnel and stayed temporarily, he realized that solitude pleased him. Since then, it became difficult for him to deny his own individuality. However, the World Council discovered his covert activities and permanently severed him from society. As a result, Equality 7-2521 was exiled, yet he did not stop pursuing his goal. He kept studying in the woods and eventually discovered the meaning of individualism and the word “I”. His discovery is an epitome of looking beyond the deceiving appearance. He successfully became an individual person and freed from the collectivist government’s control.