As a way of paying tribute to "Star Trek" for leading him to a career in technology, Android co-founder Rich Miner is helping to fund a sculpture honoring the show and Leonard Nimoy, the late actor who portrayed the character Spock.
Miner, who still works for Google, has contributed a six-figure donation to Boston's Museum of Science after learning that it wanted to honor Nimoy with a memorial sculpture but was having some challenges raising money, Axios reported.
"I just offered to put in an anchor grant and make sure it got done," Miner said.
Miner recalled watching reruns of the original TV show while growing up in Natick, Massachusetts.
"It was definitely part of the ethos that had me interested in tech," Miner said, adding that "Star Trek" helped to inspire him to establish Android, as well as Wildfire, an early voice assistant from the 1990s.
"The idea of a tricorder — this incredible computer in your hand — wasn't lost on us when we were doing Android," Miner told Axios.
Boston's Museum of Science, which recently launched a fundraiser to support its campaign with sculptor David Phillips, revealed its "long history" with Nimoy.
"He grew up in Boston's West End (home to the Museum since 1951), and his Spock is one of science fiction's most beloved characters," the museum wrote. "He is an iconic part of the Museum, narrating the original Mugar Omni Theater preshow for millions of our guests."
The museum added that, most notably, "Spock's message of the importance of science, intellectual curiosity, generosity, inclusion, exploration, and logic are closely aligned with the Museum's values."
"Both the character, and the actor, promoted these ideals for decades," the museum concluded. "In partnership with the Nimoy family and local sculptor David Phillips, we are raising funds to create a new Leonard Nimoy Memorial sculpture at Science Park."
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