Many of the great men of science and mathematics have been men who had access to great wealth. Instead of spending countless hours trying to scrape a living, they were able to devote a substantial amount of time to intellectual exploration, performing experiments with carefully crafted golden instruments and developing conspicuously named units – kelvins, newtons, joules, coulombs, volts etc.

Though their discoveries and theories have lead to numerous advancements and an increased understanding of many phenomena, I often wonder how many more contributions might have arisen if extensive education was available to the poor.

To assume only the wealthy have inquisitive and imaginative minds, would be a great insult to all of humanity. Genius transcends all socioeconomic divisions and emerges in many forms.

However, intellectual promise without opportunity, without education…without stimulation is little more than wasted potential, a seed destroyed without germinating, Still, even when opportunity is limited some people find innovative methods to solve problems.

Every so often, genius finds an anchor in infertile soil. William Kamkwamba serves as the paradigm of such tenacious genius. At the green age of fourteen, he built a windmill that generated electricity and pumped water for his humble home in Malawi.

Given that he had recently dropped out of school, because the fees he incurred were too much for his family to pay, and he only had a fairly rudimentary book with a cursory description of a windmill, his accomplishment is truly amazing.

He has inspired me to make the best use of the opportunities I have been given and also confirmed my belief in the ubiquity of human ingenuity and imagination.

Checkout his blog
http://williamkamkwamba.typepad.com/