Why Don’t People Like Steve Jobs Emerge from Our Country?

Prof.Dr. Aziz Sancar… I think you are aware of which award this Turkish scientist received, whose name many of us had not heard until relatively recently: the Nobel Prize. On the day news about the Nobel Prize began to be reported, I happened to overhear a conversation between two young women in a café. One of them said to the other: “Türkiye has received the Nobel Prize…” The other quickly corrected her: “That prize isn’t given to countries; it’s given to a man…”

Before the Nobel Prize results were announced, there had long been a question in my mind: why don’t people like Steve Jobs emerge from among us? Over time, as I reflected more, I realized that this was actually the wrong question to ask. I felt ashamed of even asking such a question, as it seemed to ignore the many geniuses who have come from my nation throughout history, a nation I am proud to belong to, as if they had never existed. Then another question came to my mind: what kind of state of mind led me to ask, “Why don’t people like Steve Jobs emerge from among us?” Of course, the formation of this state of mind is greatly influenced by the psychology of our society today and the conditions of our country that shape this psychology. Let me give a simple example: when I was a child, for every new car or large machine, I would hear my elders say, “That’s German engineering… Those guys know how to do it!” I also heard similar praise for the Japanese, and over time, without realizing it, a rule-like phrase seemed to settle in my subconscious from everything I heard around me: “We will never amount to anything.” But what did it mean to “amount to something”? It was probably about achieving great things… Yet in history, we did have leaders who accomplished major feats and are recognized as geniuses by the world. How did Sultan Mehmed become the Conqueror? Have you ever really thought about how he became such a brilliant leader? You are likely aware, at least in general terms, of how Ottoman princes were raised—with great care, patience, and attention. The idea was not that the father was automatically the best educator. Instead, the most respected and leading master in a given field—whether art, literature, or science—was entrusted with this honorable duty. In other words, the princes were educated for many years by the country’s best teachers. Moreover, the sultans, fulfilling what they believed to be the best form of fatherhood, treated their sons as adult individuals from a very early age. As they grew older, they were given increasing responsibilities, and their areas of governance were gradually expanded. In contrast to the princes of history who were raised with confidence, don’t you think that for a long time now—and even today—more passive generations are being raised? Is it really possible to raise individuals who have self-confidence, can dream, and even have the courage to pursue those dreams, by imposing prohibitions, comparing them to others, and not treating them as adults?

Many of us are familiar with the late Prof. Dr. Oktay Sinanoğlu and Prof. Dr. Mehmet Öz. What they have in common with Nobel laureate Aziz Sancar is that they completed their education in the U.S. and continued their research there. As can be expected, there are many successful Turkish individuals in Western countries. Not just Turks—Indians, Iranians, Africans, and many others who could not find sufficient support in their home countries or societies also pursue their dreams abroad, while at the same time contributing to the advancement of Western societies.

Recently, I witnessed on social media the efforts of a young Turkish man pursuing his dream and his frustration with our country. The young man, who wanted to become an aerospace engineer, adopted an interesting approach and sent emails to various space and aviation institutions in different countries. He explained his goals and aspirations and requested various educational materials that he could benefit from. He received encouraging and educational documents from various companies and institutions such as Lockheed Martin and NASA, and even small gifts.

To give another example, İlayda Şamilgil, a 12th-grade student at PRIVATE MEF High School, became the world first by surpassing nearly 5,000 physics projects from around 70 countries in the “First Step to Nobel Prize in Physics” competition. It was also reported that the project she previously submitted to TÜBİTAK did not place in that competition. İlayda Şamilgil participated this year in the 22nd edition of the competition held in Poland with her project titled “A Low-Cost, Fast, and Portable System for Measuring Water Content in Liquids Using Magnetism,” which she had been working on for a year. She received full marks from the jury of the competition, which is regarded as one of the most prestigious physics project competitions in the world and consists of internationally renowned academics. As a result, her project ranked first in the world.

Now imagine this… This young person will most likely continue their education abroad. Perhaps she will become a successful engineer. Through various observations and research, she may even achieve a major breakthrough and be deemed worthy of a Nobel Prize. Meanwhile, in a café in Istanbul, a young woman might be telling her friend the news she heard: “Türkiye has won the Nobel Prize!”