The People Who Shape Our World

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The heroes and icons on our list stand a little to one side. Some of them, to be sure, have power by any standard--Arnold Schwarzenegger is Governor of the most populous state in the U.S. Some of them have influence--otherwise, what would the doctor who invented the South Beach diet be doing in these pages? But we have a sneaking affection for the true heroes on the list, the people we admire because they have some quality, be it physical or moral, that sets them apart. The scarcely believable toughness of Lance Armstrong, the stubbornness of dissident Aung San Suu Kyi--these are examples of human attributes that inspire and amaze.

We don't imagine that any single reader of these pages will agree with all the choices we have made. But we think our list shows that greatness lives--that a few people can affect the lives of billions around the globe.