"Why on earth does anybody want to do 5000-meter hell-and-toe walking race for a sport?" This is the question people invariably ask when they see me practice or compete on the track field. My response to that question is often a simple one: "Why not?"

Yes, why not! I have built good physical stamina because of it; I have made friends through competition; I have learnt valuable lessons about persevering and never giving up. Above all, I enjoy winning the game. It is true my favorite sport is not as graceful as gymnastics or as exciting as 100-meter dash, at least not so according to popular belief. But this sporting event has helped me through the years as I plod along as a student and as a researcher.

Ever since I was a child, I have taken a liking to reading. Science was, and still is, my passion. I remember spending long hours reading Science, Nature, Polymer, Macromolecules, Physical Review and an assortment of other science books and journals. The more I read, the greater my appetite for learning. Despite the heavy workload from school, I always managed my time carefully so that I could explore science above and beyond what the school curricula covered. I did not limit myself just to science, however. I read Chinese and English novels and derived much pleasure from the fictitious world. I also devoted much of my time learning to write and speak English, another favorite subject matter of mine at school.

While an undergraduate, I majored in organic chemistry. On of the projects required that I synthesize PE-PP copolymer by using Ziegler-Natta catalyst. I gained much hands-on experience as I worked on various experiments. Later, I joined in the feasibility analysis of a PC engineering plastic, a project that provided an opportunity to learn about literature search, data gathering and research tools.

For my graduation thesis, I chose to work on the preparation of high modulus PAN carbon-fiber. It was a challenging topic because nobody in the college had ever tackled it. Together with my advisers and my fellow students, I spent numerous hours in the lab brainstorming, recording, observing and experimenting. There were frustrating moments of course, but we were able to come up with creative solutions and make significant headway in the research. Even though I was not the only one participating in this huge and on-going project and I did not stay long enough to see its completion, I was proud of my contribution as well as the accolades I earned from my professors for my thesis. My GPA was consistently among the highest in my class.

In 1996, I was enrolled at Beijing Institute of Clothing as a graduate student majoring in chemical fiber, with a special research focus on the structures and properties of PET-PA6 blend fiber. There, I was fortunate to be working in a well-equipped research environment with experienced specialists and sophisticated instruments. Much of my time was devoted to the study of polymer physics and instrumental analysis of polymer involving NMR, X-ray, DSC and SEM.

To be sure, China still pales in comparison with the United States in the area of polymer research and application. And yet, it is such a promising area. I personally believe that functional polymers, polymer blends, polymer rheology and the study of polymer structure hold very bright future. There is a wealth of information available in the States that I can tap into; a great many best-in-class research facilities to choose from and some world-renowned experts to work with. It is an ideal place for aspiring polymer scientists to keep current with the latest technologies, to set research trends, and to make innovations.

It is against this backdrop that I am applying for the doctoral program in Polymer Science at Pennsylvania State University. I know the University has one of the best NACC football programs and I am curious to learn about the gam. But it is the program offerings at the Department of Chemical Engineering and Material Science that capture my interest because they fit uniquely into my academic and research plan.

Give my solid grounding in mathematics, polymer chemistry and polymer physics, I can concentrate and excel in the following research areas:
(1) Polymer Characterization