No Borders: Science and Caltech

I was born in Vietnam
I grew up in a town called Ancona
in Leon, Guanajuato
in Tehran, capital of Iran.
In Italy growing up I was a bit different
and I always felt different
even if I grew up there. Maybe I liked math
more than other people, and for that
people were making fun of me or thinking
that somehow there was something wrong with me.
And I never felt that here.
When I discovered what was going on at Caltech
was when I began working with a
condensed matter theorist, Professor Nesterenko.
He was the one that introduced me
to the work that Melany Hunt was doing
on the booming sand dunes.
It was very fascinating for me so
having an opportunity to come here and
meeting her in person and meeting other
colleagues was very exciting and in a
way being able to work here as a professor
was eventually a dream come true.
People here are -really- smart, very driven
and at the same time incredibly creative.
Working with students at Caltech
is a fantastic experience.
I think the main influence for science was my mother.
At some point
I was about to drop out of school,
my dream of becoming a scientist was vanishing
but I was lucky enough to meet
a Mexican scientist that just returned from the U.S.
and said "hey guys, I want to do some outreach,"
"and I want to teach you Science every Saturday."
"What do you guys want to learn next?"
I was like, "Biophysics!"
I knew nothing of what Biophysics actually meant,
but the word really sounded sexy...that sounds good!
I opened the book and it was like -
this is what I've been looking for!
This is what I want to be, what I want to learn
what I want to dedicate my life to.
I took the textbook and googled the name of the author
I sent him an email. "Dear Mr. Phillips PhD.."
You know, if you send an email to Ringo Starr,
you don't expect Ringo Starr to answer like "Hey Manuel, how's it going?"
But he actually replied to my email
he gave me his skype account and
it was really mind-blowing. I remember
the first time I talked to him,
we finished the conversation and I run to my mom and
I'm like "Mom! Mom!
I just talked with a scientist in the U.S.! It's incredible!"
At the end of an email he just writes:
"Manuel, this is a fantastic idea
I want you to come not only for the summer,
but I'm gonna sponsor you to come for the full year."
And I just couldn't believe it.
It was like...
amazing.
I can't really describe with words
how blessed I feel.
Rob (Phillips) is not only my advisor and my mentor
but a true superhero for me.
In 1975, the communists took over the
south of Vietnam.
My dad fled by boat when I was an infant.
We never heard anything about him, so since that time
we just have to assume that he has died.
Me and my mom came to the United States in 1990.
She worked at a sewing factory:
twenty cents per t-shirt.
So how many t-shirts do you have to do per day to support your kid?
Nobody was around to help me.
You know, it was hard.
I thought Math was pretty easy
besides the word problems...
In high school I got an A in sciences,
I got an A in Physics, and I was like
"Oh, I could do science!"
I never thought one day I would work at Caltech.
But the people are friendly...
and if you want to go on to study more,
they're very supportive.
So you feel like family.
I grew up with a family encouraged me
to be bold and discover things by myself.
I spent most of my time basically
in the backyard, playing with the channels that
took the water from the pond
to different parts of the garden,
always causing problems, flooding the backyard...
Water was basically the game
that challenged my imagination.
I finished mechanical engineering, got my bachelor's degree in Tehran.
By then I was married with my wife.
The first school that gave admission to both of us
was Syracuse University.
I remember when we were at Syracuse,
we traveled to Canada
and every time we entered
they would say "welcome back home!"
It was interesting because they knew that
I wasn't at that time a U.S. Citizen,
but they still say "Welcome back home."
I became a graduate student at Caltech and
coming here and suddenly finding
this serene environment...
We came a year before the Revolution
and then suddenly faculty I didn't even know
would say "Hey, what are you guys doing this Friday?"
"Come to our house!"
Because they knew exactly what was going on.
They knew that we couldn't go back to see our familiy
they couldn't come here,
so for at least four or five years
all the family connections were severed.
It doesn't matter where you're from
It doesn't matter the color of your skin
Good ideas can come from the Bay Area
and they can come as well from Leon, Guanajuato
From Kansas or from India
Caltech has been always
a place where anybody who is willing to come
to take the challenge is welcomed here.
I can do this, I am up to the challenge.
My background should not determine
how far I can get.
The more points of view,
the richer will be the final answer.
We have different backgrounds,
different trainings
and that diversity was the strength,
it allowed us to really tackle interdisciplinary problems
with creativity, fearlessness, and ultimately
success in our work.
It really changed the whole the course of my life.
I decided not to think about the old country
and that I'm a citizen of the U.S.
I felt welcomed here
that even if I was different from others,
I was accepted.
Receiving the citizenship
was kind of a coronation of a dream.
For all of us who tried to get away from our country,
it's for a reason.
Coming to the United States is like a dream.
Becoming a United States citizen
is also a dream.
If I could dream big,
I'd love to stay in the US and become a professor.
My mom recently asked me when
I was going back home, and I told her
I wasn't sure if I should leave the country at the moment.
Who knows, if I go out to visit my family
then I cannot come back in?
I miss home but I also feel like
here is my second home.
It's really fantastic.
Now that I came here,
I don't want my kids to grow up the same way I grew up.
I want them to be happy, healthy.
I want them to know that they are loved.
You know, now that we're living in America
You let your kids explore
and they can be whoever they want to be.
As long as they strive their best
they will be successful.

No Borders: Science and Caltech

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