An experience encountered and how it changed my science, training and career goals.

In my early childhood years more than often my days were filled with more questions than answers. Among my questions were why everything turns black when it burns no matter the initial color, why a week has only seven days, and why a fragile object like an egg becomes rigid when put into boiled water whereas a rigid potato softens? When asking my parents they would tell me that I asked a lot and should perhaps become a lawyer. Unfortunately the only lawyer close to the family had very little interest in answering my questions. My interest was not in asking questions but in knowing the answers. Owing to my general curiosity my English teacher suggested that I make use of the Library in the local University. At the library in the University of Limpopo, I came across a statement that shook my focus towards science. It read "science is an elegant complex of human intellect an imagination." I then desired the science stream. I eventually learned of outreach programs the university usually held, and took part in one which was devoted to engineering. Becoming an engineer was an interesting prospect; however, the lack of resources and sufficient facilitators at school compromised my grades to qualify. I then chose to enroll for a B.Sc. in physics, chemistry, and computer science. The discipline catered for the provision of obtaining answers and continual learning. Currently I am pursuing a scientific research based career in computational modeling of materials.

Science 6 July 2012: vol. 337 no. 6090 pp. 32-34
DOI: 10.1126/science.337.6090.32