We are united in the hope that every individual will someday enjoy at least the intellectual privileges we have had, if not always the material advantages.

He may or may not get out someday. If he does it won't be for at least 20 years.

Nevertheless, as is a frequent occurrence in science, a general hypothesis was constructed from a few specific instances of a phenomenon.

Indeed, we are privileged to have been afforded the opportunity to study Nature and to follow our own thoughts and inspirations in a time of relative tranquillity and in a land with a generous and forward-looking government.

My intention was to enroll at McGill University but an unexpected series of events led me to study physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

I was born in Montreal in 1939, the second son of poor immigrants.