"This semester," bellowed the teacher as he addressed the room of high school seniors, "I will make you all chemists." The class let out a collective groan. The teacher continued unfazed. "You will all have to complete a real research project using the facilities of local universities." Like most of my classmates in the AP Chemistry course, I dreaded the huge amount of work that loomed before me. Little did I know that this work would help determine my future. In the months ahead, I committed more time to this one course than I ever had before, poring over chemistry textbooks and working in the laboratory into the early hours of the morning. I always had an inkling that my future lay in science and technology, and this experience proved it beyond question. The methodical laboratory preparations, the interweaving of theory and practice, and the tangible results of a successful experiment all appealed to my disciplined and inquisitive nature. By the end of my senior year, I had developed a solid foundation in the principles of chemistry, and just as my teacher had promised, I was on my way to becoming a chemist.

Despite my growing interest in chemistry, I still harbored dreams of becoming a fighter pilot in the United States Air Force at the time of my high school graduation. Even as I spent my evenings in the laboratory for AP Chemistry, I woke up early in the morning to run and do a routine of sit-ups and pushups. I was preparing for the rigorous physical and mental demands of the Air Force Academy. Over the course of previous summers, I had experienced the sweeping rush of glider school and had soloed in my first motorized aircraft. I hoped for the challenging life of an Air Force pilot and was on my way to making it a reality through sweaty self-discipline and intense mental focus. On one sunny afternoon, I saw a thick letter with a Colorado postmark in my mailbox. I was now a cadet at the Academy.

As with all military institutions, the first years at the Academy were intensely demanding. Strenuous endurance tests, high-level academic work, and hazing by upperclassmen made a junior cadet's life extremely trying. Nonetheless, I thrived during these years because I never lost my sense of focus or my love of chemistry. Even as I dreamed of being a fighter pilot, I found my chemistry courses to be highly engaging and challenging. All cadets were given a choice of academic tracks, and I had chosen science and engineering. As in high school, I worked in the laboratory late at night and ran early in the morning. Whenever I got fatigued, I just remembered how close I was to fulfilling my goal of becoming a pilot.

After a visit to the ophthalmologist one day, my dreams of airborne glory were abruptly shot down. My vision did not meet the Air Force standards required of pilots. It was a crushing blow, and at first I did not know what to do. Nonetheless, I knew that I was not without direction. Once again, my life pushed me towards studying chemistry. This was a subject that I knew I would enjoy, so I packed up my science textbooks, threw away my flight training manuals, and headed back to my hometown college, the University of Texas at Austin (UTA).

As much as I had loved chemistry before, my studies at UTA convinced me that I had found the right vocation. I was particularly inspired by Dr. John Rove. Like my high school chemistry teacher, Dr. Rove knew that the best way to instill an appreciation for the field was through active research and meaningful laboratory work. He believed that one should never learn from a book what one could learn from a beaker, flask, or Bunsen burner. As soon as I explained my experience and interest in the field to him, he offered me a position in his group doing research on the decomposition mechanisms of electro-optic dyes. The research I performed involved finding suitable organic dyes for electro-optic modulators. After months of grueling work and wise guidance from Dr. Rove, I was ready to present my research at regional and national meetings of the American Chemical Society. Networking with chemists from around the country allowed me to glimpse not only other possible fields of chemical research, but also the potential career options I might want to pursue. Had it not been for Dr. Rove's personal guidance and help, I doubt that my future career plans in chemistry would be as clear as they are today.

Because of my two-year commitment to the United States Air Force, I was unable to apply to graduate school directly after college. Instead, I spent two years serving as an intelligence officer. From this job, I have greatly improved my analytic ability, communication skills, pressure management techniques, and patience as a researcher. Like chemists, intelligence officers often have to construct coherent models of reality from incomplete pieces of data. This position has offered me insights and training that no classroom setting could match. Nonetheless, I am ready to return to my first love, chemistry.

Although my life has taken some unexpected turns in the last few years, the field of chemistry has been an unwavering companion and a source of intellectual interest. Whether it was discovering research in high school, learning advanced chemical theories at the Air Force Academy, or presenting my findings at meetings of the Chemical Society, the lure of studying physical structures has always guided my decisions. My advanced research in electro-optic modulators and my course work in classes such as Molecular Orbital Theory have given me the analytical ability, laboratory skills, and theoretical knowledge to excel in a rigorous doctoral program. During my Ph.D. studies, I intend to focus on inorganic and materials chemistry in order to design new materials for use in industry. By a stroke of fate, the weak vision that prevented me from becoming a fighter pilot allowed me to envision my future as a successful chemist.

評語：

這篇文章的與眾不同之處在于作者的專業(yè)目標經(jīng)歷過這種轉(zhuǎn)變，最終定位化學的。但這種決定并不是盲目和無奈的，而是在經(jīng)歷過各種專業(yè)研究和實踐后，在放棄飛行員職業(yè)目標后，更加堅定地選擇的。正是因為這些波折，使得作者對化學的熱愛更加強烈。文章雖然提到一些關(guān)于飛行員的事，但是絕大多數(shù)的篇幅和例子其實都是有關(guān)化學學習的。所以這是一篇主線明確、主題非常深刻，事例層層深入的好文章。

譯文：

老師走進我們高年級教室時大聲說道：“這個學期，我將使你們?nèi)汲蔀榛瘜W家”。教室里傳出一片噓聲，老師并沒有絲毫的狼狽，繼續(xù)說：“你們每個人都將在大學中使用那里的先進器械，完成一項真正的研究項目”我和許多上AP化學課程的同學一樣，對于將要面臨的繁重作業(yè)十分頭疼。我當時覺得這堂課的研究項目不會對我將來的發(fā)展有幫助。在那之后的幾個月里，我比過去花了更多的時間在這個課程上，無數(shù)次地翻閱化學課本，在實驗室里做實驗直到第二天凌晨。我對自己的將來漸漸產(chǎn)生一種模糊的概念：我可以在科學技術(shù)方面有所發(fā)展。而這段研究的經(jīng)歷也一定程度地證實了我的想法。我在實驗前作過系統(tǒng)的準備，將理論靈活運用于實踐并成功得出了一些比較切實可行的答案。這些與我嚴謹、好學的個性是分不開的。在高中畢業(yè)前，我已經(jīng)培養(yǎng)了很扎實的化學基礎(chǔ)。正如我的老師所說的，我正努力著去成為一個化學家。

雖然對于化學的興趣漸漸濃厚起來，我中學畢業(yè)時還是曾考慮過成為一個美國空軍的戰(zhàn)斗機飛行員。在每晚熬夜在實驗室里做AP化學課程作業(yè)的那段期間，我還會每天早起出去跑步、做一些仰臥起坐和俯臥撐，為了空軍學校嚴格的體能與知識要求做準備。去年夏天，我去過許多規(guī)模很大的滑翔機學校，并且有了屬于我自己的小飛機。我向往空軍飛行員那種充滿挑戰(zhàn)的生活，希望能夠通過自己的強化訓練和各種心理準備，最終能夠?qū)崿F(xiàn)這一愿望。在一個陽光燦爛的下午，我看見一封蓋有科羅拉多州郵戳的厚厚的信在我的郵箱里，信里告訴我說，我已經(jīng)成為了一個軍事院校的學生了。

和所有的軍事學校一樣，在學院里第一年的學習對學生就有很高的要求。強度很大的忍耐力測試、難度很高的學術(shù)任務(wù)以及受高年級學生欺負，這些使我的軍校生活異常艱難。盡管如此，我還是順利完成了這些年的學習，而且我從未放棄過對化學的熱忱的追求。雖然我夢想成為一個戰(zhàn)斗機飛行員，但我發(fā)現(xiàn)化學其實更加吸引我，更有挑戰(zhàn)性。所有的軍校學生都可以選擇他們的學術(shù)發(fā)展方向，而我就選擇了科學與工程。我高中時就在實驗室里熬夜，第二天還早起出去跑步，那時候每當我感到疲倦的時候，我就會告訴自己我離我成為飛行員的目標已經(jīng)越來越近了。

可是一次去看眼科門診的經(jīng)歷將我的夢想徹底粉碎了。我的視力水平?jīng)]能符合空軍招飛行員的標準。這對我是個很大的打擊，起初我都不知道該做什么好了。經(jīng)過了一段時間的迷茫，我想到自己還沒有完全迷失方向。我的生活又一次將我推向了化學。我知道我會喜歡這個學科，所以我整理了學科的書籍，扔掉了我的飛行訓練手冊，并回到了家鄉(xiāng)的德州奧斯汀大學（UTA）讀書。

正如我以前是那么地喜歡化學一樣，在UTA 學習期間，我更加確定化學將會成為我以后的職業(yè)方向。我的老師John Rove教授給了我很多鼓勵。就像我的高中化學老師一樣，Rove教授強調(diào)：積極地參與實驗室研究是灌輸化學知識的最好的方法。他相信，學生從書本上是無法學習到那些在操作燒杯、燒瓶和煤氣燈中學到的內(nèi)容。當我把自己對化學的興趣告訴他后，他為我安排了一個在他的實驗組中助研的位置，我可以參與研究光電染料的分解機理，還包括為光電調(diào)節(jié)器尋找合適的有機染料。經(jīng)過了幾個月的艱苦工作和教授的悉心指導，我已經(jīng)準備好在美國化學學會上做論文報告了。通過網(wǎng)絡(luò)，我和一些各地的化學家作交流，我不僅能看到其它可以發(fā)展的化學研究，還能了解到一些可以從事的、較有發(fā)展?jié)摿Φ穆殬I(yè)方向。如果不是Rove 教授的親自指導和幫助，我想我對未來的職業(yè)目標可能不會像現(xiàn)在這樣明確。

由于在美國空軍學院讀了兩年，我從學院畢業(yè)后不能直接申請研究生院。因此我在情報局做了兩年的服務(wù)工作，從中學到了分析、溝通、管理壓力的技巧和研究工作者所需要的耐心。情報工作者經(jīng)常要根據(jù)不完全的數(shù)據(jù)建立適應實際情況的模型。這就培養(yǎng)了我的洞察力和課堂中無法學到的實踐能力。雖然這份工作很好，但我還是決定要回到我最初喜歡的專業(yè)—化學。

雖然在過去的幾年中我的人生經(jīng)歷了幾次意想不到的變化，但最終我堅定地選擇了化學成為我終生的追求。無論是在學校里做研究、在空軍學院深入學習化學理論，還是在化學學會上作專業(yè)報告，都引導著我選擇了這個專業(yè)目標。對于光電調(diào)節(jié)器的深入研究和分子軌道理論的課程論文培養(yǎng)了我的分析能力、實驗室操作技術(shù)以及能夠適應博士課程的理論基礎(chǔ)。我想以無機和材料化學作為博士學位課程研究的主要方向，這樣就可以為工業(yè)設(shè)計出新的材料。由于命運的波折，我視力的缺點破滅了我成為飛行員的夢想，卻引導我走上了成為化學家的征途。