Bill Gates

(http://computerworld8.blogspot.com/2013/10/william ())

Bill Gates is known for his intelligence which led to huge technological advancements in computer software. He is also known as a visionary and strong leader in founding Microsoft. Bill Gates has inspired many people due to his intelligence and his smart business decisions but what Bill Gates does in global philanthropy is what inspires me and that's why I think he is a hero. Bill Gates is a very intelligent man and has many other billionaires who are his good friends. There is Bill's good friend Warren Buffet and his high school friend and co-founder of Microsoft, Paul Allen. Of course, there is Bill's closest friend, his wife Melinda. Bill Gates mingles with some of the wealthiest and brightest people on the planet. His high level of intelligence helped him transform the personal computer market with his influential Windows operating system and the popular Microsoft Office platform. Bill was highly intelligent and studied computers at a young age. Paul Allen and Bill went on to create Traf-O-Data that measured traffic flow and earned them $20,000 before Bill had even enrolled at Harvard ("Bill Gates: A Role Model for Today's Youth", Indya Youth, May 12, 2015). Within a year, Bill dropped out of Harvard to form Microsoft. Bill had a vision of there being a computer on every desk and Microsoft software on every computer ("Bill Gates Interview", Academy of Achievement, May 12, 2015).  Bill Gates is a highly intelligent leader and visionary which has led to many product innovations and key moments in the PC industry, but what makes him a hero is his generosity and global philanthropy. 

Bill Gates revealing Windows XP (http://computerworld8.blogspot.com/2013/10/william ())

Bill Gates is a highly intelligent leader and visionary and that's why the company he co-founded launched so many innovative products in the PC market (Bill Gates Bio, Great Success Story, May 10, 2015). Bill was born on October 28, 1955 in Seattle, Washington. Bill Gates grew up excelling in school. He scored a 1,590 out of 1,600 on his SAT so Bill is clearly on an intelligence level above most everyone in the world ("10 Celebs with Amazing SAT Scores", Best Colleges Online, May 31, 2015). In 1970, Gates and Allen created a computer program, Traf-O-data that monitors traffic flow. Bill persuades Paul Allen to visit Cambridge, MA. Microsoft takes shape at Harvard in a conference room called the Poker room. Gates decides to drop out of Harvard to focus on his vision. Microsoft is formed in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In 1976, Bill Gates and Paul Allen registered the trademark Microsoft ("Timeline: Bill Gates", npr.org, May 10, 2015). Gates and Allen move the company to Seattle where Gates leads Microsoft to become one of the largest companies in the world. Bill Gates introduces Internet Explorer which helps usher in the swarm of consumers to the internet which became a major highway for e-commerce, social networks and a pipeline of all type of media and communication. His company Microsoft is responsible for many product launches including multiple million+ unit sales of many different versions of Microsoft Windows. By 1987 Bill Gates is named the youngest billionaire ever. Without a highly intelligent leader and visionary like Bill Gates, our world would not be what it is today and that's why I look up to him as a highly intelligent leader and visionary. Bill Gates inspires me with his intelligence and vision.

(http://img.thesun.co.uk/aidemitlum/archive/01128/s ())

What makes Bill Gates such a global hero in my eyes is his generosity and philanthropy. Bill and Melinda Gates started a foundation in 1994 ("Bill Gates Bio", A&E Television Networks, May 4, 2015). It is the largest foundation in the world. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation helps people less fortunate than us. It supports financial services for the poor; the foundation supports agricultural development, and water, sanitation and hygiene in undeveloped countries ("Database of Grants", Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, May 4, 2015). The foundations' efforts truly improve the world for those less fortunate. To me, true heroes give back to their communities and that is what Bill Gates has chosen to do. The foundation had an endowment of $42.3 Billion dollars as of 2014 ("Fact Sheet Who We Are", Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, May 4, 2015). Bill Gates gifts back to people or groups in need of financial support to live a healthy life are what makes him a hero. Some of the great contributions made recently by the Bill Gates Foundation are a Grant to Vanderbilt to help study pneumonia vaccines, a grant to support collaborative efforts towards elimination of Human African Trypanosomosis in the Congo, South Sudan and Uganda ("Database of Awarded Grants", Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, May 4, 2015). The Gates Foundation has even touched our local community in San Diego. In 2015, two Westview High School students earned Gates Millennium Scholarships which cover all schooling from their freshman year of college all the way through getting their Masters or Doctorate degrees. Gates generosity touches all parts of the world. All these examples of generosity are known as philanthropy and these acts of giving are why I think Bill Gates is a hero.

Bill Gates is a highly intelligent leader and visionary and has achieved so much in his life but his achievements in philanthropy are what make him a hero. When you think about it, Bill Gates has experienced so many important events in his life. Bill Gates had a vision of Microsoft windows interface on every computer and made that a reality. In 1987, Bill Gates goes onto being named the youngest billionaire ever. In 1994, Bill Gates started the William H Gates Foundation which is at the heart of his philanthropy efforts. Bill and Melinda Gates are married in 1994. In 1995 Bill Gates introduced Internet Explorer. In the year 2000, Gates renames his foundation the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In 2006, Bill Gates is "Knighted Commander of the Order of the British Empire" by Queen Elizabeth II. In 2006, Gates and his wife were awarded the Order of the Aztec Eagle by the Mexican government for the philanthropy. In 2007 Gates finally gets an honorary degree from Harvard ("Timeline: Bill Gates", npr.org, May 10, 2015). Bill Gates has done so many wonderful things in his life. He has contributed intellectually with some of the technological innovations, commercially with all the products and services of Microsoft, and socially with his foundation. Bill Gates is definitely a highly intelligent leader and visionary who has accomplished so much but his greatest accomplishment is his giving back to others. That's why Bill Gates is my hero.

Works Cited

"Bill Gates Interview", Academy of Achievement, May 12, 2015

"Bill Gates: A Role Model for Today's Youth", Indya Youth, May 12, 2015

"Bill Gates Bio", Great Success Story, May 10, 2015

"Timeline: Bill Gates", npr.org, May 10, 2015

"Database of Grants", Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, May 4, 2015

"Bill Gates Quotes." Brainy Quote Xplore, May 8, 2015.

"17 Reasons Why Bill Gates Is Potentially The Best Man In The World." Carter, Johnny. May 8, 2015.

            "Bill Gates Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, May 8, 2015.