City College of New York + Cornell Medical School + Duke. While a youngster, I was enthralled by the miracle of insect metamorphosis and followed the transformations of pet caterpillars to pupae and then to gloriously beautiful butterflies and moths. This led naturally to an interest in biology. but mere description was not totally satisfying. One hoped for explanations at the molecular level: so at the City College of New York I majored in both chemistry and biology. It was Abraham Mazur who set me on the professional path I was to follow all the days of my life. He taught a course in Biochemistry, in which I enrolled during my senior year (1950-1951). He was an enthusiastic and effective teacher, both in the lecture hall and in the laboratory. Abe Mazur made it clear that biochemistry was the highest use of chemistry and could lead to real, testable explanations for the processes of life. Toward the end of that senior year Abe Mazur asked me about my post-graduation plans and then offered a job. It developed that he had two jobs; one teaching biochemistry at City College of New York and the other doing research at Cornell Medical School. I was delighted to accept his offer and then spent a happy year at Cornell Medical School isolating a vasopressor material from hog kidneys. Toward the end of that year Abe suggested that I consider graduate study and I asked him to what schools I should apply. His response took me entirely by surprise. “You have already been accepted into the Department of Biochemistry at Duke University School of Medicine and should go there in early September.” At that moment I did not know where Duke University was located, but soon found