Shangri-La: a place of mystery & prestige that I thought would only be a passing visit for someone like me. I visited this place in the summer of 2008 and was so impressed by the people here and also the opulence of it all that it has been in my mind ever since. Yet, even as I filled out my application and hit the submit button, I considered this place to be out of my reach, my "reach/hope/dream" place. And so to get an actual invite to visit this place was... surreal.
2-21: Checked into the hotel and poured over my papers to make sure I remembered all the details. Then, a meet-and-greet and mingle with other prospectives as well as first years. This was very helpful as I got some fresh insight and advice from these people. My observation of the first years was that they were all relatively happy to be where they are doing what they do. They also all seem very intelligent and very distinct in their personalities. Dinner was at a local restaurant where two senior faculties were to join us; only one made it, and it happened to be the mentor that I worked with in the summer of 2008. I had expected it to be a bit awkward seeing Goba again, but it was quite the opposite. He was still the kind man that I met two years ago - he asked me who I will be meeting and gave me tips on them all.
The next morning, the air of casualness from the night before all but vanished as we sat in a conference room waiting for Ketu to arrive. Mounds of breakfast foods were available, but I didn't have much of an appetite. Ketu arrived, much the same way as I remembered him from before, poofy-haired and all. He gave us a brief introduction and then went on to tell us about the program, school, classes, etc. Hearing him talk about the curriculum actually made me smile. For so long I had wanted to learn about these topics in depth, but have only had the chance to skim the surface of these things, and now there is a real possibility of being immersed in it? I was the donkey and I could almost taste the carrot in my mouth.
Anil: a quiet man as I remembered. We crossed paths before but never exchanged more than a polite hello. I suppose we were both of the shy kind. He seemed reserved, asking me about my research and my background. We then talked about his research in autism and the animal model in his lab. Overall, this first interview did not give me the confidence boost I hoped for. He was very reserved and did not ask me any challenging questions, but we also did not get into the groove, i.e. back-and-forth, that makes interviews interesting and memorable.
Pabu: a magnanimous man with a booming voice and a booming personality to match. From what I've gathered the night before, Pabu is the no non-sense kind of guy who is also your everyday Mensa. My nerves were a bit high as we sat down to talk about my background. He asked if I had a strong background with qualitative coursework. "Um... Uh... Yes?" My mind blanked out on this question, of all questions. I'm sure he thought me an idiot but nevertheless, he continued on about how he dislikes easy problems. He wants nothing to do with problems that are easily solved; everyone can do them, so why should he be interested in it? What really gets his blood pumping are those conundrums that are seemingly impossible, the ones that people have tried before with no avail. Those problems are the ones that he will put his precious time in solving. I don't know if it was a coincidence, or if it was strategically planned for that day, but there happened to be a sheet of paper on his open desk of a pedigree. As an example of the problems Pabu likes to tackle, he pointed to the pedigree. It showed an Amish family with five or six generations. All generations were unaffected except for the last generation shown, where almost all of the individuals, regardless of sex, were affected by this condition. The question, he posed, is: what is the pattern of genetic transmission? "Um... Uh... .... Environmental?" Put under pressure, the only answer I could come up with was the typical answer that you give when you have no idea what the genetic causes are. If you can't explain it genetically, it must be environmental, right? Fail. As it turns out, there is an established genetic link for this condition, but the pattern of transmission is still unclear. That is why Pabu is interested in it, of course.
Senge: A substitute for the person that was put down in my itinerary, since that person was busy I guessed. Senge is a 3rd year international student, studying at Shangri-La on a scholarship from his government. He talked about how much he loves it here and how lucky he is to have this opportunity. I asked how he will adapt if should his project hit an impossible obstacle. His answer was so simple I was kind of embarrassed not to have thought about it before. To ensure that the final goal will be attained, make sure to have more than one project going at the same time! And also, work really, really, really hard. Duh! He seemed deeply content and totally in control of his work and future, and I admire him.
Zapa: To say that this guy's reputation intimidated me would be the understatement of the century. His credentials are miles long; his accomplishments/discoveries are nothing short of groundbreaking. So, when I learned that I wouldn't be meeting him alone but with the rest of the group, I was so relieved! Although there was a small part of me that wanted a one-on-one with Zapa to impress him, my overwhelming intimidation allowed me to completely forget about this loss. As proof of his success, Zapa's lab spans an entire floor in a building devoted to cancer research, which was a trek to get to too. It ended up being that everyone sat in a conference room with Zapa at the head. He more or less gave us advice on choosing a lab, mainly that we need to make sure it is a right fit. No mention of his research or his lab. Overall, I was relieved not to be in the hot seat with Zapa, but at the same time, I wish the meeting could have been more informative about him and his personality, i.e. would he be someone I could work with.
Kaba: From reading about him and hearing what the current students had to say about him, my expectations of Kaba were that he is your scattered-and-spacey-but-incredibly-incredulously-intelligent-scientist, i.e. your typical "mad" scientist. I expected him to be friendly and easy to talk to, as I'm also scattered and spacey myself. However, I left my meeting with Kaba with my eyebrows scrunched, my head cocked to the side, and a look that read: "WTH just happened?" It started out innocently enough as I was telling him about myself, and then somehow we got on the topic of the future of genetics. Kaba seems to think that the future of the field lay in proteonomics, which I politely disagreed, but not too aggressively; I was still being interviewed after all. It wasn't that our disagreement got out of hand, or that we outright dislike each other (I hope); it was just awkward and uncomfortable! The whole conversation that transpired was slow, disjointed, stop-and-go. It lacked the smooth back-and-forth that I was used to. And that really shook me up. It was the only interview where I left feeling like it did not go well.
Cimba: Given the way my meeting with Kaba went, I was a bit uneasy as I sat down to talk with Cimba. Cimba is very young, but very accomplished. He either forgot to dose up on his afternoon coffee, or had had a really long day, because his eyes looked so sleepy and tired. His style of interview was apparent immediately - he was there to answer my questions, and not the other way around. I shot out all the questions I had in my arsenal - nothing too special, just the ones I've thought of and that know would engage us in a little bit of conversation. I had the impression that he was a bit skeptical about me and my motivations, and I was doing my best to convince him otherwise, but the escort came and we had to end. I wish the escort had come one or two minutes later so I could explain myself better, but oh well.
Ketu: I come full circle, not only in the sense that I met him earlier in the morning, but I've also met him in 2008. This is the guy that could make or break me, so for the entire time I sat on the edge of the seat, trying to remember to breathe as I talk. I also get cold easier when I get nervous, and his office was drafty, so I was also trying not to shiver even though I was FREEZING! We went over the past, when I had visited in 2008, and the things I've done since then. He asked about my family background, and we went into a discussion about Vietnam and the horrendous nightmare that is traffic over there. He talked about his trip canoeing with his son, where the guide was a Vietnamese young man who carried a wok with him. I think at some point my shivering became visible, and Ketu looked bemused and offered me some tea. Trips and fun stuff aside, I really wanted to make sure he knew why I was here and what I wanted. Even if I didn't impress anyone else that day, I had to impress Ketu. I had to be sure that he understood my motivations and how badly I wanted it. He took notes on the flap of a folder through out the entire interview, and without glancing up at me he said: "I'm sure you'll do fine."
*** I'm pooped. ***
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
El Dorado
After arriving somewhat late on account of not finding the room right in front of my eyes, I came to a room filled with other prospectives presided by an associate dean. The mood was a professional, uncomfortable silence. We were briefed about the program, the location, the highlights, etc., all the bells and whistles that they had to offer. With not a minute to spare, I was whisked off to my first meeting by an assistant.
Bartholemeu Dias: Poofed hair, baggy & slouchy shirt, uni-brow, computer lost in the general clutter of papers and books; general appearance of a person absorbed more into work than in appearances. She looked to the ceiling when she spoke, as if imagining her thoughts forming above her. The only time she ever made eye contact with me was when I was answering her questions. After hearing my spiel about the work that I currently do, she questioned whether I agreed with the ethics of mass genetics testing. Is it ethical for a company, like mine, to give out genetics results to patients for complex conditions with medical implications? The ultimate goal for a industry laboratory is revenue. Yes, patients come first, but money must also follow the patient, or otherwise there is no company. That said, even though money is the driving force, there are ethical guidelines enforced by the government that all laboratories must follow. That is the reason for the validation stages that these assays must go through before being tested with actual patient DNA. That is the reason why there is a medical director presiding over the research and development projects before such tests are advertised to clients. That is the reason why there is a Quality Control and Assurance department. Every laboratory worth their salt has no choice but to comply with the prescribed guidelines. Of course my answer while on the hot seat wasn't so articulate (not to say this is articulate), but I made my point. After hearing my answer, Bartholomeu half chuckled and said: "Interesting. I guess I know where you stand." Good or bad I have no idea.
Francisco Pizarro: His office was way across campus, in it's own little building, with his own secretary. When the secretary opened the door to let me in, I felt as though I was reliving Harry Potter's moment when he first stepped into Dumbledore's office. This place had a quiet grandeur to it with light pouring in from the many windows. When I commented the nice sofa set he has in his office, Pizarro admitted that his office is "embarrassingly large." Similar to the way that Dumbledore's reputation precedes him, I felt myself trembling a bit as I sat down in front of Pizarro because I had read and heard so much about him. Yet, he couldn't have felt more comfortable and relaxed as he propped his feet on the coffee table revealing the ragged sneakers he wore that day. I, on the other hand, was in a suit sitting at the edge of my seat talking so intensely that I forgot to breathe. Surely he would grill me on both sides just to see what I was made of... surely so, I thought. Instead, he was just a most soft-spoken, mild-mannered, world-weary person to whom I talked of my background and experiences and motivations. We also talked of drunken fruit-flies and college freshmen, but that's another topic for another day...
Hernando Cortez: Again, a trek and a half across campus to this far-away office. Prior to my meetings, I prefer to do some research on the person who I'll be talking to. I do this in the hopes of increasing my chances of saying something intelligent and also reducing my chances of saying something utterly stupid during my meeting. Cortez does not have any relevant research background or information that I could find on Google, and not being able to find this out prior to meeting Cortez put me at extreme unease. Stepping into his office, I gathered why information on him was so hard to come by... he is newly appointed to El-Dorado and is just beginning to settle into his position. Cortez spoke with a thick accent; I'm sure I had my eyebrows scrunched during most of the meeting because I had to concentrate on understanding him. Background talks aside, we talked of new technologies and advancement in drugs. He educated me off on a few interesting things such as MDA-7/IL-24, and exedin-3 in diabetes. I didn't know it at the time, but these things have been published for quite a few years now, and I really should have known more about it while talking to him. Nearing the end of the meeting, I asked him why he chose the field of cancer genetics. Cortez smiled as if he had been anticipating my question for a while. He then pointed to a faded wallet-sized photo at the far corner of his desk.... his father. From what I can gather, Cortez's father was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I couldn't hear well enough to learn if his father is still living or deceased, and I did not want to prod and make him uncomfortable. His father is his inspiration. Even if he could elucidate just a tiny piece of information to add to the knowledge of cancer research, he would make his father proud.
Vasco Nunez de Balboa: It's funny that man I've heard of and even crossed paths a few times before could make me so nervous. Maybe it's because we've never had a formal introduction, or that I've found him to be too intimidating that when it came time for me to formally meet him I almost didn't want to do it. His office moved from where I last knew it, to the dark and gloomy third floor where no one else goes. Also, his hair changed from when I last saw him (or maybe I just didn't pay that much attention). Actually his hair very much amused me; it looked like there was a stiff, gray brush in the shape of a fan on his head. Like Cortez, his accent is very heavy, though not the same accent. The conversation began somewhat patchy but progressed as I asked him some questions about why he does what he does. I get the feeling that he is a person that bores easily and is always on the lookout for that new challenge that no one else could figure out. Once he has figured out something the thrill goes away and he's on to something else. I also get the distinct impression that his teaching style is very laissez-faire, meaning he is very independent and would work well with someone else who is equally independent. His thoughts on types of researchers: horizontal and vertical. Horizontal types learn a new technique/method/assay/technology really well, and then apply the same technique/method/assay/technology to new problems. Vertical types learn about a problem/issue and figure out different technique/method/assay/technology to solve different aspects of that problem/issue. Which type is he? Vertical.
My day on the hot seats was exhausting not only mentally, but physically too from all that trekking around. At the end of the day I felt like I had been holding my breath all day long. Yet, I felt good. I had an unexplainable good feeling about the day. Good, bad, ugly, I had no idea, but I left all the interviews with a smile on my face.
Next visit: Shangri-La
Bartholemeu Dias: Poofed hair, baggy & slouchy shirt, uni-brow, computer lost in the general clutter of papers and books; general appearance of a person absorbed more into work than in appearances. She looked to the ceiling when she spoke, as if imagining her thoughts forming above her. The only time she ever made eye contact with me was when I was answering her questions. After hearing my spiel about the work that I currently do, she questioned whether I agreed with the ethics of mass genetics testing. Is it ethical for a company, like mine, to give out genetics results to patients for complex conditions with medical implications? The ultimate goal for a industry laboratory is revenue. Yes, patients come first, but money must also follow the patient, or otherwise there is no company. That said, even though money is the driving force, there are ethical guidelines enforced by the government that all laboratories must follow. That is the reason for the validation stages that these assays must go through before being tested with actual patient DNA. That is the reason why there is a medical director presiding over the research and development projects before such tests are advertised to clients. That is the reason why there is a Quality Control and Assurance department. Every laboratory worth their salt has no choice but to comply with the prescribed guidelines. Of course my answer while on the hot seat wasn't so articulate (not to say this is articulate), but I made my point. After hearing my answer, Bartholomeu half chuckled and said: "Interesting. I guess I know where you stand." Good or bad I have no idea.
Francisco Pizarro: His office was way across campus, in it's own little building, with his own secretary. When the secretary opened the door to let me in, I felt as though I was reliving Harry Potter's moment when he first stepped into Dumbledore's office. This place had a quiet grandeur to it with light pouring in from the many windows. When I commented the nice sofa set he has in his office, Pizarro admitted that his office is "embarrassingly large." Similar to the way that Dumbledore's reputation precedes him, I felt myself trembling a bit as I sat down in front of Pizarro because I had read and heard so much about him. Yet, he couldn't have felt more comfortable and relaxed as he propped his feet on the coffee table revealing the ragged sneakers he wore that day. I, on the other hand, was in a suit sitting at the edge of my seat talking so intensely that I forgot to breathe. Surely he would grill me on both sides just to see what I was made of... surely so, I thought. Instead, he was just a most soft-spoken, mild-mannered, world-weary person to whom I talked of my background and experiences and motivations. We also talked of drunken fruit-flies and college freshmen, but that's another topic for another day...
Hernando Cortez: Again, a trek and a half across campus to this far-away office. Prior to my meetings, I prefer to do some research on the person who I'll be talking to. I do this in the hopes of increasing my chances of saying something intelligent and also reducing my chances of saying something utterly stupid during my meeting. Cortez does not have any relevant research background or information that I could find on Google, and not being able to find this out prior to meeting Cortez put me at extreme unease. Stepping into his office, I gathered why information on him was so hard to come by... he is newly appointed to El-Dorado and is just beginning to settle into his position. Cortez spoke with a thick accent; I'm sure I had my eyebrows scrunched during most of the meeting because I had to concentrate on understanding him. Background talks aside, we talked of new technologies and advancement in drugs. He educated me off on a few interesting things such as MDA-7/IL-24, and exedin-3 in diabetes. I didn't know it at the time, but these things have been published for quite a few years now, and I really should have known more about it while talking to him. Nearing the end of the meeting, I asked him why he chose the field of cancer genetics. Cortez smiled as if he had been anticipating my question for a while. He then pointed to a faded wallet-sized photo at the far corner of his desk.... his father. From what I can gather, Cortez's father was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I couldn't hear well enough to learn if his father is still living or deceased, and I did not want to prod and make him uncomfortable. His father is his inspiration. Even if he could elucidate just a tiny piece of information to add to the knowledge of cancer research, he would make his father proud.
Vasco Nunez de Balboa: It's funny that man I've heard of and even crossed paths a few times before could make me so nervous. Maybe it's because we've never had a formal introduction, or that I've found him to be too intimidating that when it came time for me to formally meet him I almost didn't want to do it. His office moved from where I last knew it, to the dark and gloomy third floor where no one else goes. Also, his hair changed from when I last saw him (or maybe I just didn't pay that much attention). Actually his hair very much amused me; it looked like there was a stiff, gray brush in the shape of a fan on his head. Like Cortez, his accent is very heavy, though not the same accent. The conversation began somewhat patchy but progressed as I asked him some questions about why he does what he does. I get the feeling that he is a person that bores easily and is always on the lookout for that new challenge that no one else could figure out. Once he has figured out something the thrill goes away and he's on to something else. I also get the distinct impression that his teaching style is very laissez-faire, meaning he is very independent and would work well with someone else who is equally independent. His thoughts on types of researchers: horizontal and vertical. Horizontal types learn a new technique/method/assay/technology really well, and then apply the same technique/method/assay/technology to new problems. Vertical types learn about a problem/issue and figure out different technique/method/assay/technology to solve different aspects of that problem/issue. Which type is he? Vertical.
My day on the hot seats was exhausting not only mentally, but physically too from all that trekking around. At the end of the day I felt like I had been holding my breath all day long. Yet, I felt good. I had an unexplainable good feeling about the day. Good, bad, ugly, I had no idea, but I left all the interviews with a smile on my face.
Next visit: Shangri-La
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