It appears that once again our Norman’s are out of order.  There is actually a list of famous Norman’s and it’s ranked 1 to 100. http://m.ranker.com/list/famous-people-named-norman/reference  The criteria for the ranking of the list absolutely escapes me especially when, in my opinion, the most important Norman is #28.  Let’s meet Norman #28, but first, let’s get some perspective on this…”List”.

#4  Norman Swartzkoph, U.S. Army General;  Commander in chief, US Central Command, Persian Gulf War.   A worthy top 5 choice.

#32 Norman Rockwell, Saturday Evening Post illustrator.  Greatest Illustrator on Earth…#32.  Really?

#2  Norman Reedus, Actor who plays “Daryl” on AMC’s The Walking Dead.  #2? WTF? He’s a great guy, but #2?

#..  Norman Bates, Hotelier, Bates Motel and complete psychopath.  He didn’t make the list but I just couldn’t resist.  At least Mother would be pleased.

Seriously the list is a mess.  But let’s talk about my favorite Norman #28.  Norman Ernest Borlaug was born in Iowa in 1914.  He went to school and ultimately earned his PHD in Plant Pathology.  He quickly realized that the world had a problem with wheat called “Lodging”.  Wheat, which would grow to about 4 ft tall, would blow over in wind and spoil on the ground, lowering yields to tragic levels.  People were starving.

In the early 1960’s he developed what is best described as a “Semi-Dwarf High-Yield Disease Resistant Wheat Variety” or “Dwarf Wheat”.  It grew to about 2 ft tall, had a thicker stalk and a much larger seed head.  By 1963, Mexico went from struggling to exporting excess wheat from his efforts.  Between 1965-1970, India and Pakistan adopted the Dwarf Wheat and more than doubled their wheat production.  Later in life, he focused on Asia and Africa and the results were equally as wonderful.

Pretty boring stuff right?  In 1970 he was awarded the NOBEL PEACE PRIZE for his efforts, in 1972 he was awarded the PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM and in 2006, the CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL amongst many other honors for his efforts in bringing world peace through increasing the world’s food supply.  He is also known as the Father of the Green Revolution.  Norman Borlaug died at 95 in Dallas, Texas in 2009.

This “nobody you’ve never heard of” is credited with saving over a Billion lives from starvation.  I challenge you to top that!  #28! Really?!  He is my Norman of choice and he should be nowhere near #28.  Food for Thought…