Our commenters here tore into Michael Crichton and gave him a what-fer, the kind of stuff I love. It blew right by me, Crichton’s nonsense did, which is encouraging. I am not alone and can depend on others to pick up on what I miss. That in mind, I offer up the following tidbits from Al Gore’s Wikipedia page regarding his early life and career. The lines are set far apart, making it easy to read between them.
Gore was a privileged kid who attended St. Albans School, a feeder school for the Ivy League. Finishing 25th in a class of 51 paved the way to Harvard for him.
Here’s Wiki:
Gore was an avid reader who fell in love with scientific and mathematical theories,[19] but he did not do well in science classes and avoided taking math.[18] During his first two years, his grades placed him in the lower one-fifth of his class. During his sophomore year, he reportedly spent much of his time watching television, shooting pool, and occasionally smoking marijuana.[18][19] In his junior and senior years, he became more involved with his studies, earning As and Bs.[18] In his senior year, he took a class with oceanographer and global warming theorist Roger Revelle, who sparked Gore’s interest in global warming and other environmental issues.[19][29] Gore earned an A on his thesis, “The Impact of Television on the Conduct of the Presidency, 1947–1969”, and graduated with an A.B. cum laude in June 1969.[18][30]
I don’t often (or ever) say to readers that you should go read something that I read. I know how that works, as I am usually reluctant to take time from my planned day to indulge anyone. So my suggestion here is to simply take a glance at the opening words of 
Piece of Mindful 