I don't know if I would call this a flattering portrait of a founder. The article makes it sound like Holmes's Ahab-like focus borders on monomania, fitting int

I don't know if I would call this a flattering portrait of a founder. The article makes it sound like Holmes's Ahab-like focus borders on monomania, fitting into the well-known model of obsessed founder. On a different note, though, one thing that jumped to me was this: "Her parents let her use the money they'd saved for her education as her first seed round of funding." I applaud this decision and wish more parents would consider this option. Note that based on her academic history this not a wild gamble by her parents but a good bet, well within acceptable risk levels. More parents need to ask their children: "Do you want me to spend ~$60k per year for an Ivy League undergrad (e.g. Stanford http://college-tuition.startclass.com/l/4518/Stanford-University http://college-tuition.startclass.com/l/4518/Stanford-Univer...) or do you want me to invest part of that $240k in your company? Admittedly not for everyone, but when it works the payoff is huge. The question becomes, I think, rhetorical for MS and PhD.