Nicholas Thinh Truong Vu: Audio
1. What are you passionate about?
I am passionate about providing a service to my community. I used to volunteer at Ho Chi Minh City University Medical Center helping surgeons with sutures and endoscopy handling. I used to help emergency medicine physicians at the Fairview University Medical Center with EKG’s and taking notes on patient counseling. And I currently volunteer at the Nazarene Health Promotion Center contacting pharmaceutical companies to obtain medication for low-income patients and fill prescriptions.
2. What is one goal you’d like to accomplish during your lifetime?
I would like to develop a vaccine to prevent an autoimmune disease like multiple sclerosis. I am currently working at an immunology research facility determining the structural characteristics of proteins related to the human immune response and multiple sclerosis.
3. If I could be anybody besides myself, I would be…
Anh Cao, the first Vietnamese-American United States Representative in United States history, because he successfully integrated Vietnamese and American culture while providing a service to his community.
4. What do you think the secret to a good life is?
Have fun. Have fun in class. Have fun playing tennis. Have fun running experiments in the laboratory you work at. Have fun at the free clinic you volunteer at. Have fun making s’mores at bonfires with your friends. Have fun laughing about nothing. You cannot go wrong in life if you are having fun.
5. What are three good traits your ideal girlfriend should have?
My ideal girlfriend would be a triple threat: athletic, ambitious, and adventurous. It would be really great if she loved tennis (since I have been playing for 12 years), volunteering, and travelling to foreign countries. But, I mean, if she had a great personality, none of the above really matter.
6. What do people like best about you? Why?
I like to believe I am generous. I volunteer my time to help my friends with things like tennis lessons, Norwegian lessons, and chemistry lessons. I think they enjoy being around a person who likes to help out without asking for anything in return.
7. If you could visit one place in the world, where would you choose to go and why?
I would travel to Mount Fansipan in North Vietnam because I love to hike, camp, and take photographs of nature. After camping in Norway, I really developed an interest in mountains, forests, and wildlife.
8. If you had a time machine that could take you back in time, what year would you go to and why?
I would go back to the 1963 to see my grandpa, Chi Nguyen, serving as the Colonel for the Army of South Vietnam. I have always had an interest in history. But I think it would be fun to see a part of history my family member was directly involved in.
9. If someone made a movie of your life would it be a drama, a comedy, a romantic-comedy, action film, or science fiction?
My life would be like the action movie, I am Legend, starring Will Smith. I am science-oriented. But I enjoy living life on the edge and experiencing new adventures.
10. What do you like to do most with a free hour? Why?
I love to cook Vietnamese dishes. I really enjoy experimenting with different ingredients like fish sauce, soy sauce, oyster sauce, basil, cilantro, and spearmint. Chang the saltiness or sweetness of dishes like com thit ga, bun tom xao, and pho ga is fun for me. So if any of you want to swap recipes, just let me know!
11. Do you have any phobias?
I am afraid of the dark. I always have been…and I always will be…
12. What thought or message would you want to put in a fortune cookie?
Your definition of success will determine your achievements.
