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I teach at Caltech and oversee a research laboratory there. In general, I find that the majority of young people are excited by the prospects of research, but they soon discover that in the current market, many doctorate-level scientists are holding temporary positions or are unemployed.

By that time I was hooked on a career in academic research instead of one in the pharmaceutical industry that I had originally considered in deciding to get a PhD.

I always knew I wanted to be a technologist, so I went to Duke and got a degree in computer science and electrical engineering. Really, I thought my goal in life was to be an inventor, a problem solver, so I thought I needed a Ph.D. to be good at inventions, but it turns out that you don't.

Although I loved working on technology - I've always been a computer geek at heart - my professors encouraged me to get a real-world job working with customers.

I've always had service-industry jobs, because those were the easiest to quit or take time off from.

I literally worked at research labs where the staff really tried to steer management away from the modern technology that was actually better.

When you have a large amount of the workforce being laid off, some of them have no other choice but to go out there and invent something.

I think people are realizing that engineering and science are extremely good degrees to get and you'll be very highly paid once you've got them.

It's easy to forget that for centuries - for millennia - the 'workforce' was all of us.

I've had a career that is kind of under the radar, but it sure is varied, and I've been so blessed to be able to get paid to do something I love to do.