His thesis review has been shared multiple times online.
Undergraduate student Luke Messac decided to post his undergrad thesis reviewed on Twitter, by no less than United States disease chief Dr. Anthony Fauci himself.
The tweet with the photo of the review has been shared online and trended on Twitter, and other social media platforms. As of press time, it has garnered almost 30,000 re-tweets and almost 240,000 likes.
Luke Messac, Student and author
According to his Twitter profile, Luke Messac is one of the emergency medicine residents at Brown University, and author of No More To Spend. He also indicates in his profile that he holds MD, PhD, and is a physician historian.
In his tweet, he wrote, "13 years ago, I emailed Dr. Fauci out of the blue to ask if I might interview him for my undergrad thesis. He invited me to his office, where he answered all my questions. When I sent him the thesis, HE READ THE WHOLE THING (see his overly effusive review below). Who does that?!"
Then, he attached a screenshot of what appeared to be a written letter from Dr. Fauci.
Who is Dr. Fauci?
Dr. Fauci, known with the full name Anthony Stephen Fauci, is the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and has been with the office since 1984. This American immunologist and physician has shared valuable insights about the COVID-19 pandemic.
This prominent physician manages an extensive portfolio of research designed to seek prevention, diagnosis, and treatment for infectious diseases like HIV/AIDS, diarrheal complications, malaria, tuberculosis, and respiratory infections. He also handles diseases like Zika and Ebola.
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To be able to get at least a re-tweet or a social media response from Fauci is a huge honor. With Luke Messac, he seemed not to contain his happiness to see the review from the doctor, knowing that he himself is a health practitioner.
Posted on Friday, the photo showed Dr. Fauci saying, "First, it was great to get the chance to meet you and discuss these critical issues with you last summer. Your thesis was absolutely magnificent!"
The U.S. disease chief started the letter with asking Luke has he been, and ended it with a remark bearing his nickname "Tony." It was very personalized reading the letter will show a part in Fauci's personality.
He then moved forward to critique the thesis, detailing its subject matter, the approach, methodology, and conclusion.
At the last paragraphs of the letter to the undergrad, he pointed out that he would have given the thesis a grade of "summa cum laude maximus" if he were to decide.
13 years ago, I emailed Dr. Fauci out of the blue to ask if I might interview him for my undergrad thesis. He invited me to his office, where he answered all my questions. When I sent him the thesis, HE READ THE WHOLE THING (see his overly effusive review below). Who does that?! pic.twitter.com/3FIEfSSlXm — Luke Messac (@LukeMessac) July 16, 2020
Responses
There were also several responses that Luke Messac received after posting the screenshot.
For instance, Harvard alumnus Aelaf Worku wrote, "This is incredible. His humility and willingness to treat someone younger with less experience as a colleague is inspiring. Thank you for sharing. Also, I am picking up your book. Malawi is a country close to my heart."
Luke's thesis is about reframing critical issues with frontliners, with details on policies to support the conclusion and arguments.
This is incredible. His humility and willingness to treat someone younger with less experience as a colleague is inspiring. Thank you for sharing. Also, I am picking up your book. Malawi is a country close to my heart. — Aelaf Worku (@DrAelaf) July 16, 2020
