| What is your most memorable childhood experience? | The time that I spent with my brother and cousins was very memorable. We grew up together so we had a lot in common. We loved to read comic books and, any time we got a new one, we would all read it together. We also used to share a bike, with all three of us riding the same bike. We went many places on that bike. |
| What immediate family member do you closely identify with and why? | My brother, because we have grown up together for all of our lives and have many things in common. Our hobbies are very similar: we both love sports, going out with friends, and science-related subjects. We also look very similar and people mistake us for each other very often. |
| What character traits do you admire in an individual? | I admire responsibility and patience in an individual. When you do something, you need to take full responsibility for it. To me, if you take full responsibility for what you are doing, you are half-way to success. Another character trait that I admire is patience and it's probably related to my studies. As a scientist, I have performed many experiments in the lab, and not all of them turned out as I expected. It requires patience to deal with all of the issues during experiments. |
| What is the funniest thing ever to happen to you? | There was one time in college when a girl came up and said "hi" to me. I was polite, so I said "hi" back. She then started talking and telling me some stories. I felt that something was wrong because I didn't know what she was talking about. After talking for five minutes, she called me by my brother's name. We then realized that she had been talking to the wrong person and we had a good laugh. |
| If time and money were not an issue, where would you travel and why? | Vietnam would be the first place. I have been in the U.S. for years and have not had the chance to go back to visit my friends and relatives. I also want to travel around Vietnam. Even though I was born there, I did not have a chance to visit many places. After Vietnam, Europe would be the next destination because of their famous sight-seeing. |
| When and if you ever have children, what would you like to pass on to them? | I want my kids to be responsible and hard-working. I want them to take responsibility for what they are doing and even for what they are saying. Along with responsibility, being hard-working is also a main aspect of being successful. My family came to the U.S. with almost nothing and spoke limited English, and only hard work gave us what we have now. |
