1 00:00:10,129 --> 00:00:08,660 I remember watching a shuttle launch one 2 00:00:12,410 --> 00:00:10,139 day and my father came up to me and said 3 00:00:13,730 --> 00:00:12,420 do you want to work for NASA no yes I do 4 00:00:15,259 --> 00:00:13,740 and he said well that's great and you 5 00:00:16,730 --> 00:00:15,269 need to be an engineer and of course my 6 00:00:18,529 --> 00:00:16,740 dad was an engineer followed my dad's 7 00:00:20,779 --> 00:00:18,539 advice that he gave to me in an early 8 00:00:22,400 --> 00:00:20,789 age about being an engineer and went to 9 00:00:25,160 --> 00:00:22,410 the George Washington University in 10 00:00:26,870 --> 00:00:25,170 Washington DC and then about midway 11 00:00:28,330 --> 00:00:26,880 through my engineering curriculum I had 12 00:00:31,490 --> 00:00:28,340 a lot of friends who were actually 13 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:31,500 pre-med engineers and they said Serena 14 00:00:35,209 --> 00:00:33,570 you need to need to think about medicine 15 00:00:36,380 --> 00:00:35,219 you'd be a great doctor and so during 16 00:00:39,619 --> 00:00:36,390 college I actually spent a lot of my 17 00:00:41,540 --> 00:00:39,629 time teaching martial arts I learned 18 00:00:43,280 --> 00:00:41,550 kung fu when I was in high school and in 19 00:00:44,869 --> 00:00:43,290 undergrad I was looking for a little bit 20 00:00:46,760 --> 00:00:44,879 of a job and looking for a school to 21 00:00:48,680 --> 00:00:46,770 train at and so I found a school in the 22 00:00:51,139 --> 00:00:48,690 southeast part of DC not the best part 23 00:00:53,330 --> 00:00:51,149 in the world but really good instructors 24 00:00:56,510 --> 00:00:53,340 and I used to take the metro every 25 00:00:58,610 --> 00:00:56,520 Monday Wednesday Friday from GW campus 26 00:01:00,020 --> 00:00:58,620 down there I started training there 27 00:01:01,639 --> 00:01:00,030 myself just to have more physical 28 00:01:02,689 --> 00:01:01,649 fitness and then they said hey we 29 00:01:05,090 --> 00:01:02,699 thought you'd be really good with kids 30 00:01:06,859 --> 00:01:05,100 would you mind teaching a kid's class on 31 00:01:08,780 --> 00:01:06,869 Mondays and Wednesdays after finishing 32 00:01:12,170 --> 00:01:08,790 my undergraduate degree in electrical 33 00:01:14,000 --> 00:01:12,180 engineering I was accepted to University 34 00:01:15,350 --> 00:01:14,010 of Texas Health Science Center Houston 35 00:01:18,200 --> 00:01:15,360 there medical school right in the 36 00:01:20,929 --> 00:01:18,210 medical center and started my medical 37 00:01:23,780 --> 00:01:20,939 training there when I was a fourth-year 38 00:01:25,580 --> 00:01:23,790 medical student I knew I wanted to do a 39 00:01:28,460 --> 00:01:25,590 rotation at NASA but when I came down in 40 00:01:30,740 --> 00:01:28,470 October of 2000 I learned that there was 41 00:01:32,120 --> 00:01:30,750 a special program that combined internal 42 00:01:34,609 --> 00:01:32,130 medicine which is medicine for adults 43 00:01:36,649 --> 00:01:34,619 and what I love with aerospace medicine 44 00:01:38,569 --> 00:01:36,659 and that program existed at the 45 00:01:41,270 --> 00:01:38,579 University of Texas Medical Branch in 46 00:01:43,310 --> 00:01:41,280 Galveston my personal journey you know 47 00:01:45,200 --> 00:01:43,320 it started off as an engineer turned 48 00:01:46,760 --> 00:01:45,210 into a physician which I absolutely love 49 00:01:48,710 --> 00:01:46,770 and a lot of people say that the journey 50 00:01:50,660 --> 00:01:48,720 along the way is the best part in 51 00:01:51,649 --> 00:01:50,670 getting to your end destination and it 52 00:01:55,010 --> 00:01:51,659 really has been because they 53 00:01:57,169 --> 00:01:55,020 absolutely love being a doctor but at 54 00:01:59,270 --> 00:01:57,179 the same time since I was little I've 55 00:02:01,099 --> 00:01:59,280 always wanted to be up here I've always 56 00:02:04,039 --> 00:02:01,109 wanted to be in space so I worked space 57 00:02:05,419 --> 00:02:04,049 station operations in Mission Control or 58 00:02:05,840 --> 00:02:05,429 thicker one as we call it for space 59 00:02:07,789 --> 00:02:05,850 station 60 00:02:09,050 --> 00:02:07,799 spent a lot of time in Star City looking 61 00:02:10,550 --> 00:02:09,060 after the astronauts who are training 62 00:02:12,410 --> 00:02:10,560 out there so I got a little bit of a 63 00:02:14,449 --> 00:02:12,420 preview as to what their lives were like 64 00:02:16,190 --> 00:02:14,459 so I do work as a Capcom one of my 65 00:02:18,140 --> 00:02:16,200 favorite jobs actually I love talking to 66 00:02:19,430 --> 00:02:18,150 the crew because I know they're up there 67 00:02:20,869 --> 00:02:19,440 they're working hard and sometimes just 68 00:02:23,300 --> 00:02:20,879 chairing a friendly voice is really nice 69 00:02:24,949 --> 00:02:23,310 so I have been Antarctica and that was 70 00:02:27,890 --> 00:02:24,959 one of my neatest analogs I did that 71 00:02:30,430 --> 00:02:27,900 from the 2010 to 2011 season so I spent 72 00:02:33,500 --> 00:02:30,440 two months in Antarctica and six weeks 73 00:02:35,119 --> 00:02:33,510 living on the ice and a tent we had a 74 00:02:38,569 --> 00:02:35,129 mountaineer who was the leader of our 75 00:02:40,550 --> 00:02:38,579 team very small team of four and we're 76 00:02:42,860 --> 00:02:40,560 by ourselves there's no bugs there's no 77 00:02:44,180 --> 00:02:42,870 ants there's no animals unless you're 78 00:02:46,640 --> 00:02:44,190 near the coast then you have the seals 79 00:02:48,289 --> 00:02:46,650 you know any other penguins I still have 80 00:02:50,869 --> 00:02:48,299 dreams at night where I hear the wind 81 00:02:52,759 --> 00:02:50,879 hitting the tent and when the winds not 82 00:02:55,099 --> 00:02:52,769 blowing it's just absolutely silent