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Notable Achievements at Age 71
Sentenced to 16 years in California
Sentenced to 16 years for the Los Angeles convictions (Feb 23, 2023); California sentence to be served separately from New York term.
Flew on Virgin Galactic Unity 22 to edge of space (VSS Unity)
Traveled as a passenger on Virgin Galactic Unity 22 suborbital test flight; mission ~1 hour, peak altitude 53.5 miles (86.1 km); became third-oldest person to fly to space.
Awarded the ACM A.M. Turing Award (with Bengio and LeCun)
Received the 2018 Turing Award (the 'Nobel of computing') for conceptual and engineering advances in deep neural networks.
Turing Award publicly announced by ACM/MIT News
ACM/MIT News reported Stonebraker as the recipient of the 2014 Turing Award on March 25, 2015 (prize awarded for 2014 work).
Awarded ACM A.M. Turing Award (2014)
Received the ACM A.M. Turing Award (2014) for fundamental contributions to database systems; prize carries a $1,000,000 award (announced March 2015).
Died of cardiac failure in Santa Monica, CA
June 22, 2008: George Carlin died of cardiac failure at age 71.
Awarded Padma Vibhushan
Received Padma Vibhushan, India's second-highest civilian award, for exceptional service to the nation.
Released from Victor Verster Prison
Walks free on 11 February 1990 after 27 years in prison; greeted by massive crowds and international media.
Forbes estimated net worth at US$1.2 billion
In April 2024 Forbes estimated Laurence D. Fink's net worth at approximately $1.2 billion.
Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability launched/collaborated
John and Ann Doerr collaborated with Stanford University to launch the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability (first new Stanford school in ~70 years).
Company transfer to Broadway postponed due to COVID-19
Transfer of the West End Company was set to open at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre on March 22, 2020 (Stephen Sondheim's 90th birthday) but postponed because of the pandemic.
Appointed three Supreme Court Justices (Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, Barrett)
Nominated and saw confirmation of Neil Gorsuch (2017), Brett Kavanaugh (2018), and Amy Coney Barrett (2020) — shifted Court's ideological balance.
Made Companion of the Order of Canada (CC)
Named a Companion of the Order of Canada in recognition of his scientific contributions.
Drink-driving charge and sentence
Charged with drink-driving (appeared in court 18 Dec 2017); on 18 Jan 2018 fined £6,000 and given a 12-month driving ban.
Death of Carolyn Lynch (wife and co-founder of the Lynch Foundation)
Carolyn Ann Hoff Lynch died in October 2015 due to complications of leukemia at age 69.
Did not seek re-election in 2012
Announced he would not run for a third Senate term in 2012; his term ended Jan 3, 2013 and he was succeeded by Republican Deb Fischer.
HBO special: 'It's Bad for Ya' (14th special); CD and DVD release
Spring 2008: broadcast his fourteenth HBO special, 'George Carlin: It's Bad For Ya' and released the CD/DVD; it was his final special.
Married Amalia Koutsouri-Vourekas
Married Dr. Amalia (Amalia Koutsouri-Voureka), a Greek colleague from St. Mary's, on 9 April 1953.
Death of husband James G. Skelton Anderson
Her husband died of a stroke in 1907; Garrett Anderson thereafter became more active in public life and suffrage work until 1911.
Here Lies Love opens on Broadway (stage version)
The stage version of Here Lies Love made its Broadway debut on July 20, 2023; controversy over use of pre-recorded tracks led to hiring of live musicians.
💡 What this means for you
At age 71, you're at a pivotal point where many successful entrepreneurs made their breakthrough. Whether you're building your first company or scaling an existing one, these examples show what's possible with focus and execution.
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