I was born overseas and came to the US when I was two years old. I grew up in a small town in Texas—the kind of place where I went to Cub Scouts in a trailer home with the sweetest of den mothers. My first job there was knocking on doors selling newspaper subscriptions. I was too young at the time to get my own route, so I joined a crew of kids who were driven through neighborhoods with one pitch: “Would you like a subscription to the Bryan Daily Eagle?” Every time we made a sale, we were handed a dollar bill right on the spot. By the time I turned 10, I finally got my own route—delivering the actual papers, and then heading back out door-to-door to collect two dollars a customer.

Later on, my family moved to a suburb of Seattle where I finished high school. I stayed busy working a bunch of different teenage jobs: taking on another paper route (and even managing the paper shack), picking up shifts in restaurants, and lifeguarding. Eagle Scout, News Carrier of the Year, generally a box-checking kid. Still, things certainly weren’t always smooth—my shack burned down with me almost in it, but that is a story for another time.

After high school, I headed to the Boston area for college. The summer after my freshman year, I landed my first real programming job—writing assembly code for Microsoft back in 1982. In hindsight, I’d be a lot richer had I just skipped college and stayed there. Shrug.

Instead, I finished my degree out East, and eventually made my way back to the West Coast. Over the years, I’ve worked as a programmer, a researcher, and for the last 27 years, a professor at UC Berkeley (see my full professional qualifications).

Family-wise, I’ve raised three kids, coached numerous recreational soccer teams, served on Berkeley High’s school site council for a few years, and been active with my kids and our community.

Random other things: Live music at Eli’s Mile High Club with a Ghost Town IPA is great. Before golf, I played basketball (more tall than talented). Such a beautiful game. Ran a marathon once to impress a girl, was pretty fast. Generally chill, sometimes passionate.

Looking back, I see (and feel) my mistakes—but knowing what I know now, they would be fewer.