I should teach the world that science is not dogma, but proceeds by trial and error. Every brilliant insight must withstand the harsh light of experiment - even Einstein's general theory of relativity, which is still the best theory of gravity there is. Why is it the best theory? Because it has survived every single attempt to prove it wrong.

Even now, the Gravity Probe B experiment, one of the most complicated missions ever launched, is silently circling the Earth with only one objective - to test the general theory of relativity. That is how science proceeds. And this scientific method has been immensely successful in expanding our knowledge of the universe, and in improving our material wellbeing on Earth.

It is truly remarkable that, against the canvas of general relativity, we can follow tiny density fluctuations at the very start of the universe - the beginning of time - and understand how they grow into the galaxies we see around us today. This is a testament to how far rational thought can lead us. And this is something that we would do well to remember, this year of all years - a century after Albert Einstein published three papers which would mark the beginning of modern physics as we know it today.