Many Latino kids should become scientists because we need scientists all over the world from all different backgrounds. We have many tough problems, and we need everybody's help to solve the problems.

One action society needs to take is to use energy much more efficiently. Instead of incandescent light bulbs, you could switch to LEDs that consume a lot less electricity, for example.

In 1960, I enrolled in the chemical engineering program at UNAM, as this was then the closest way to become a physical chemist, taking math-oriented courses not available to chemistry majors.

The scientists I looked up to at the beginning were not Latino. They were famous scientists of many years ago, like Madame Curie. Later, I realized that there were also, but a very few, Latino scientists. There were good ones, but very few, because there wasn't as much a tradition to be a scientist in our culture. But this is changing.

Brian and I were both science students. You know science sort of math and physics side, you know.

Observation is a passive science, experimentation an active science.

In this era of globalisation, I believe that the only way to push the Philippines forward is to focus our energy on improving English, mathematics, science, and technology.

My sense, talking to the general public around the country, is that most people don't have a very high level of scientific literacy.