Excerpt:
Described as one of the 8 true geniuses, Von Kármán's inspiration for aeronautics came about during doctoral study at one of the world's foremost universities in the 1900s, Göttingen. After an all-night party in Paris, a friend suggested that, instead of going to sleep, they watch the French aviation pioneer Henri Farman fly his machine. Farman successfully completed a 2-kilometre (1.25-mile) course as Von Kármán embarked upon a long career in the aeronautical and astronautical sciences.