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I started doing experiments - mostly in organic chemistry, because it was so much more interesting - in my mother's laundry at home.

Explorations into chemistry were done in our basement, sometimes with friends, and my parents must have had quite a bit of confidence in my abilities when they allowed me to experiment with explosive mixtures.

I was also interested in formulating the path of chemical reactions.

I also became interested in chemistry and gradually accumulated enough test tubes and other glassware to do chemical experiments, using small quantities of chemicals purchased from a pharmacy supply house.

My special fascination has been to understand better the world of chemistry and its complexities.

I had a great chemistry teacher and found it really interesting to learn how things are made up and how they work.

I have always been an avid reader of chemical literature, eager for what is new.

I also found out that I liked biochemical research and that I could do it.

However, I survived and started to read all chemistry books that I could get a hand on, first some 19th century books from our home library that did not provide much reliable information, and then I emptied the rather extensive city library.

In my lab, we're interested in the transition from chemistry to early biology on the early earth.