The first-time teaching assistant course in the department requires a self intro, so here it goes…
Chow Yan Chi Vinci
ECON 301
Self Introduction
My name is Chow, Yan Chi Vinci but I usually go by Vinci. I am a second year graduate student in the Department of Economics in Berkeley. Ethnically I am Chinese, born and lived in Hong Kong until college. I did my undergraduate in Cornell. I originally intended to major in urban planning, but the introductory microeconomics class taught by Robert Frank—who also happens to be a Berkeley economics PhD graduate—permanently changed my academic interest. Perhaps it was not merely coincident that I ended up in where I am.
Now about my life in Berkeley. Despite the fact that I am an economics graduate student I am also a freelance multimedia producer, specialized in animation and computer generated architectural drawing. I also have a very strong interest in portrait and sport photography as well as the piano. I consider myself comfortable at the computer, in the sense that I can usually answer computer related questions and fix computers—something many computer science majors actually not knowing how to do.
You might be wondering at this point I do not seem to be focusing on my studies. In some sense that is true; I value my outside-study life a lot more than inside. Not that I frequently go clubbing or socializing—these I actually have never participated—but that I believe life is truly a lot more than just my intended profession. Besides, I find all my aforementioned interests make me a much more needed person in this world than my qualifications in economics have, at least at this stage.
As an end to this short self introduction I would speculate on my future. My future probably ties with my home Hong Kong. Academic interest is one reason; I am interested in what differences do the lack of anti-trust laws bring. The other reason is life. Beside the obvious benefit of living close to my family I really love dinning out, and there is just no better place in the world than Hong Kong for doing that.