In this long memoir that spans eight decades and five continents, Asoka Mendis (Emeritus Professor of Space Physics, University of California, San Diego) recollects the seminal events in his life, as he grew up in Sri Lanka (then Ceylon), did his post-graduate research in England, and subsequently followed a career in research and teaching in the United States following a brief stint in Sri Lanka. Much of the memoir is devoted to copious reflections, that are often triggered by these recollections. A clear thread that runs through the entire narrative is his uncompromising skepticism, and his deep commitment to the application of the empirical or scientific method of investigation (which is combining reason with observational verification) in all spheres of human thought. He states that the guiding principle of his life has been just a single, yet all-encompassing word that was inculcated in him, very early on, by his rationalist father, which was: Think. In its overall scope, this book is not merely an autobiography of the author but a biography of the entire universe (both external and internal), that is skillfully woven into the narrative, and the topics range from the mundane to the profound. While the level of attention required of the reader varies from chapter to chapter, increasing significantly towards the end, even the most profound scientific ideas are presented simply and transparently, and quite often lightened by a touch of humor.
About the Author: Professor D. Asoka Mendis was born in Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) and is presently a United States citizen. Having received his BSc degree in mathematics from the University of Ceylon, and having lectured in the Mathematics Department there for several years, he proceeded to England on a University Scholarship, in 1964 and obtained his PhD in Astrophysics from the Victoria University of Manchester in 1967. The same university conferred the degree of Doctor of Science (DSc) on him in 1978, for his research contributions to cosmic physics. Following his return to Sri Lanka in 1967, he lectured for two more years in the Department of Mathematics. In 1969 he joined the faculty of Applied Electrophysics (subsequently the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering) University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and retired as a Distinguished Professor in 1994. Since then he has continued his research as an Emeritus Professor at UCSD, where he has been recognized as a member of the "Founding Faculty." Prof. Mendis has researched extensively over a wide area of Astrophysics, Planetary and Cometary Physics, Space Physics, Physics of Dusty Plasmas, and Quantum Plasmas, over a long career spanning almost five decades. He is perhaps best known for his pioneering work on the physics of comets and the physics of dusty plasmas, a field in which he has been described as "the founder." Among his early astrophysical research, particularly noteworthy is his contribution to the interstellar gas dynamics in the vicinity of the newly formed stars. Foremost among Prof. Mendis' interests, outside his scientific research is his abiding concern for the explosive growth of the world's human population and the attendant problems of over consumption of resources and environmental pollution. Among his other interests is travel to exotic places. Prof. Mendis resides with his wife, Janine in San Diego, California, where they have lived for over forty-five years.