The author's story is undoubtedly inspirational, to the point of being on the verge of unbelievable; and yet, the titular goal seems positively unattainable for

The author's story is undoubtedly inspirational, to the point of being on the verge of unbelievable; and yet, the titular goal seems positively unattainable for not only average folk , but even above average folks , and possibly reserved just for those with an iq of 125/130+ (at least 2stdevs+) to even have a go at such an auto-didactic trial by fire at the frontiers of physics. What may be MORE interesting to see, not just for HN folks but in general, would be a parameterized set of possible/reachable (as well as 'stretch') goals, for folks interested in learning more about math/physics/cs at various bands of natural/innate ability. While these bands may not be set in stone and raw effort may help level up someone up one tier above their 'home' range, it is for instance frankly impossible for at least 99% of folks to ever become competent at QFT - and likely, 95-99% cannot even grok it in part.