How I Found Joy Doing Science in India

Here I recount with pleasure the twists and turns in my academic career and reflect on the many serendipitous events that have shaped the trajectory of my life. Beginning with my twin loves, molecular biology and animal behavior, I describe how I navigated between these disparate passions. Extreme fondness for the organisms and concepts I studied, a relentless desire to live and work in India with all its rewards and limitations, and a determination to do cutting-edge research without recourse to large grants and sophisticated laboratories have been the principal drivers of my scientific life. Understanding everything humanly possible about the society of Indian paper wasps, Ropalidia marginata , became my life's goal although I got there from unexpected and convoluted beginnings.