And each of us is here only because at some point in our lives a teacher changed our life trajectory.

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This discovery, made just three years after new technology first enabled Alvin to reach these depths, changed our understanding of how life can function here on Earth, and opened entirely new fields of research.

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But in a matter of months, our stable life drastically changed.

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So this information changed our thinking about the chances of life developing on the planet and Mars stories from before 1965 would most likely have significant inaccuracies.

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As life changed in America, so did the way that Americans saw our own country and its place in the world.

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"It (the SNS situation) might make us slightly more nervous in terms of valuations and what we would be willing to pay for Dutch bank sub debt, but it hasn't changed our outlook across the board, " said Andrew Fraser, fixed-income investment director at Standard Life Investments Ltd.

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Now I sit at my desk on Oct. 1, 50 years to the day when NASA began pushing the boundaries of human exploration, reminiscing on how space exploration has changed life on earth, with its technological and scientific discoveries and advancements that have helped improve our lifestyle, health and even our national security.

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