During my college years, I changed majors several times. But most of the times, I was a mathematics and later a linguistics student even though I attempted to go to the other disciplines many times.

Most of the time, I was a mathematics student and I think I should have not mentioned about other majors. Once I said that, I need to clarify it if some questions or doubts arises, which bugs me. Having said, I tried to put something here for clarification. Yes, there are some gaps between each steps, but I don't feel I'm obliged to reveal everything about myself.

During my high school days, I thought about studying philosophy or linguistics, and entered college to be a humanities student. Some fate twisted me during my freshman year, and I reentered following year as a physical science student intending to study mathematics. I was very much interested in logic, and found out logic expands to both philosophy and mathematics. So mathematics was a my choice of study, even though I hated math since my elementary school until then. I had to like to do math. No choice. I still liked to read philosophy books, study foreign languages and did drawings and paintings, and was scared a little bit thinking of working with all those abstract mathematical symbols. Another fate forced me out of the course.

New environments. Everything was new. I was not sure which would be the best for me. Mathematics was the one I did for the past couple of years. So I decided to do mathematics for a while until my objective became clear. No other things occupied me much at that time and I studied mathematics really hard. I doubted whether that's the right way, and tried to go to Astronomy. While in astronomy course, I found out that my childhood-liking-of-star-watching had not much to do with astronomy. To be a successful astronomer, one has to be good at physics. So I took some physics courses.

If one has to do so many physics classes to be an astronomy student, why not change to physics and drop astronomy? So I decided to stay in physics. One branch of physics is mathematical physics which got me reason to be a physics student. The other areas of physics branches were not familiar to me, and I needed to get a new insight to be a physicist.

Getting motivated is not an easy matter. I was still a mathematics student while running around other departments. Some of my astronomy and physics classmates didn't even aware that I was still a math student. Going two departments was draining, mentally and physically. Even in physics one has to work on solving lots of mathematical equations. If that were what I had to do rest of my life as a physicist, I thought I would stay in mathematics which until that time, I did quite a lot.

Here's comes the sad part. After Differential Geometry, Surfaces and Curves, Topology, Fractals Geometry, a mathematical description of the physical objects through physics classes and Bucky Ball, I envisioned that Computer Graphics might be my best interests so that I could apply my arts training and insights, mathematics and programming skills to the new medium. I believed in myself in making decision. Now WHERE and HOW? There's no one around me to give any hints or suggestions. I mean ANY. I was just directionless and frustrated chaotically.

Looking back, I was at the wrong place at the right time. If I were at the right place, I would have been guided easily and gone into taking a next step. No peers and mentors were helpful to me at all. As for a personal level, they were warm and kind, but for the professional level, they were just strangers. I knew there were few people working in computer graphics, media arts and virtual world, but didn't know how to approach them. Being a student, one could take advantage of the established system to go ahead and break into the desired field. If I couldn't get that kind of support and system, why would I or anyone bothered to go to school, rather than study all by myself at home?

My professors were very encouraging (even to this day), but that was not enough for me. What I realized later is that more important than what you know is where you are to represent yourself and who you know to help you represent yourself. I'm not gonna be explicit about this. That's what I experienced. Period.

To earn more time to think, I stayed in mathematics. And finally I came to an conclusion that architecture would be the practical focal point for that. Without genuine interests in architecture, I lost any more desire for graphics related ones. I call it quits. Social status and money talks oneself. It seemed like going to Law School would be the best and only one choice for me. I needed time to prepare for it. More mathematics in the mean time followed.

I never thought about becoming a lawyer, and forcing me to read that boring law codecs was managable. I enjoyed reading, learning foreign languages and drawings, and came to think that there are more happy people in this world than lawyers. And I could envision that I could find many ways which makes more satisfaction, enjoyment and money than lawyers.

After some hiatus of working for and running company of my own, I felt like I was wasting my youth and energy in exchange for thick paychecks. Another bold move to throw away everything I accumulated until that time. To utilize all my past experiences and learnings, Area Studies might be a choice for me. The fate twisted me again.

Altaic Linguistics was found to be an alternative to use up my acquired language skills. I was interested in Altaic Languages since high school days and even thought about studying at college but decided not to do linguistics and instead go to philosophy. Without hesitatiaon, Altaic Languages occupied me for several years. Even during that time, I occasionally went to math classes and kept a close contact with mathematicians. A few of my old classmates and underclassmen from my undergraduate years turned out to be professors offering courses and seminars which I was attending.

That gave me mixed feeling about myself and all my searches for IT. But, C'est la vie! I was highly motivated going into linguistics and mapped out all the plans. This time, not fate but situations forced me to reconsider my options. After several months of contemplations, I decided to drop Linguistics and go into mathematics and applied scicence field. Putting away Altaic Linguistics related books, texts, dictionaries and papers (I wrote which hasn't been pulished yet) into the box was heart-breaking knowing that all those would turn into the recycle center someday.

People judge me as who and what I am to continue the personal and professional relationships, regardless of my past experiences. There's nothing shameful about my past experiences, I assume. So as we know more, I tend to talk about something from the past like everyone else. As for mine, it was rather unusual and non-traditional.

Then, why do I mentioning about changing majors? To know really about one, the others need to know what had motivated the decision one made. The result and what kind of action it was are not important at all. The others want to know what's happening at one's head. That's how the others can judge and understand about one.

Changing majors forced me to open to new approaches and new methods. For every one of the subjects I have studied makes different assumptions and employs a different methodology. I need to reconfigure and adjust to new thinkings and methods. I was amazed how flexible I was, and became confident that I could adapt to any environments if I have to do. And along the way, I met lots of knowledgable and responsible people, through whom I could see the world and I had fun. (4-5-97)