Ultimately, my research was curiosity driven, which kept me active even in low periods.

Science is about curiosity-driven learning, and unless you are curious, you will never find science exciting.

I’m in a transition, Hans. I am painting, and I am painting over and then painting, and then painting over, and destroying, and painting, and destroying, and painting over. I am just trying to find the next thing, and the only way I think I can find it is to keep doing things and learning from it.

The good part of aging is that you read more and more. You discover poets you never heard of when you were younger.

Professors are writing more proposals chasing less research money, which reduces the time available for creative thinking.

It is known about me that I’m serious and that when you write a paper I like, I will sometimes have you go up to ten or twelve versions of the paper.

According to Egyptian regulations, the chairman of the department, the dean of the faculty of sciences, the president of Alexandria University, and the minister of higher education, they all have to sign off.

I have had students and postdocs of the first class close to four hundred people.

My science family came from all over the world, and members were of varied backgrounds, cultures, and abilities. The diversity in this "small world" I worked in daily provided the most stimulating environment, with many challenges and much optimism. Over the years, my research group has had close to 150 graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and visiting associates. Many of them are now in leading academic, industrial and governmental positions. Working with such minds in a village of science has been the most rewarding experience – Caltech was the right place for me.

I like simplicity. To me, this is very, very important, whether I am dealing with science or dealing with people.