Google CEO Sundar Pichai was among some of the world’s top tech leaders and scientists who commended a woman for pursuing science despite scoring zero on a quantum physics exam only a few years ago.
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Today, Sarafina Nance is working towards a PhD in astrophysics at one of top institutions in the world, the University of California, Berkeley. The 26-year-old astrophysicist is researching supernovae.
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“4 years ago I got a 0 on a quantum physics exam. i met with my professor fearing i needed to change my major & quit physics. today, i’m in a top tier astrophysics Ph.D program & published 2 papers. STEM is hard for everyone — grades don’t mean you’re not good enough to do it (sic.),” she said in a tweet on Thursday which has now been liked over 57,000 times and retweeted over 10,000 times.
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“Well said and so inspiring!,” Pichai said in response.
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The inspiring story of the young astrophysicist who is also a breast cancer survivor opened the gates for a flood of similar stories. Among them is Mike Turner, Director of Science, Wellcome Trust, a research charity based in London.
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“This is an inspiring thread. Thank you Sarafina. I left school with 2 A levels, got the third next year and into uni through clearing. Now director of science at Europe’s largest funder of biomed science. Do not let failure define you (sic.),” he said.
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“You are an inspiration. Thank you so much for sharing,” said another user.
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“I so admire you little sister. I wish so much I would have been brave enough to forge ahead into the Sciences as have you and so many others of your generation. I hope my grand nieces follow you. Lilly wants to be a Starship Commander. So I buy her rockets to build and launch,” tweeted another.
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