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What was Dennis Ritchie's exceptional "other talent"? Sergey Brin? David Patterson? Yale Patt? Linux Torvalds?

Conviction?

You don't actually hire any of those people - they hire you. Those are 'not the droids you're looking for'

I don't know any of the above personally. Maybe they don't do anything exceptional in their private lives -- but I think it's more likely that they do and we don't hear about it.

So who are the top achievers you are referring to?

I think it's more likely that they do and we don't hear about it.

I'm pretty sure if Dennis Ritchie had climbed Everest or something, it would be all over the internet now.

Anyway, my point is that as humans we often make the mistake of seeing patterns where none exist. So, we should be wary of making claims that are unsupported by strong evidence.

Linux Torvalds?

heh, nice typo ;)