 He's almost hit by a freight train. Literally, a train was coming in the other direction. He almost suffocates from diphtheria. He somehow follows a hobo into a waterfall, but he can't swim. And he almost drowns. This kid is cursed. Yeah, life in Montana was tough. And so he saw himself as a remarkable survivor. And he becomes a pretty tough person because of it. But he also becomes very interested in science.