Self Taught Scientist Quotes

“Servant Scientist (The Sonnet)

No academician lent me a hand,
No industry gave an ounce of backup.
If I am what I am today, it's because,
I was too stubborn to give up.
Hence I can say without hesitation,
My legacy is built only by me,
Not an industry, not a benefactor,
And definitely not some university.
I come from the working class,
With neither education nor wealth.
Hence, my priority is always people,
Not comfort, nor intellect, nor gelt.
The name is Naskar, I'm a Servant Scientist,
Painkiller to people, pesticide to prejudice.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Amantes Assemble: 100 Sonnets of Servant Sultans

“Vande Vasudhaivam Sonnet 68

Don't be fooled by my attire,
You think of me a fool because
I want you to think of me a fool.
I am a behaviorist, and by behaving idiot
I study who's true, who's a tool.

I don't dress all ancient like a monk,
yet monks come to hear the words I utter.
I don't dress fancy like world leaders,
yet world leaders look to me for answer.

I don't wear the uniform of law,
yet coppers study me to be better cops.
I never got to put on a white coat,
yet white coats study me to be better docs.

I am the person beyond the paradigm,
I am but a reflection of the best of humankind.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Vande Vasudhaivam: 100 Sonnets for Our Planetary Pueblo

“Abhijit The Useless (A Sonnet)

At school I didn't even know the term neuroscience,
Yet today I'm a symbol of neuroscience and psychology.
As a kid I never even dreamed of becoming a scientist,
I just wanted to observe the underpinnings of reality.

After high school I failed my medical entrance exam,
Yet to the world I am a vessel of ethics in medicine.
I chose CS Engineering instead but soon dropped out,
Yet today I am the epitome of responsible engineering.

Failure and success are eternally entangled,
Masses fear them while legends feast on failure.
I never felt the urge for academic validation,
Yet today I'm regularly cited in Springer.

I never studied science in the pursuit of grades,
I accidentally became a scientist by doing science.
Grades and degrees are shortcut to social validation,
But when you are a pioneer pushing the frontiers,
all mortal validation turns null and void.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Vande Vasudhaivam: 100 Sonnets for Our Planetary Pueblo

“I appreciate the sentiment, but kindly refrain from addressing me as "Dr", it is misleading, as I am an Autodidact, and do not hold a doctorate.”
― Abhijit Naskar