Neil Garg: ‘My brain is always turning’
The synthetic chemist and communicator on parenting and putting on a show
Neil Garg holds the Kenneth N Trueblood endowed chair in chemistry and biochemistry at UCLA. Alongside his work on organic synthesis, he has developed a number of innovative ways to communicate research to students and the wider public.
The number of hobbies I have has steadily declined as I’ve had more children. I have four, including two three-year-olds, identical twins. I try to spend most of my free time with my kids.
I love to watch movies. I used to work at a Blockbuster video store many years ago, and my wife studied film. We always enjoy watching movies. Most recently, more than anything, I watched Game of Thrones.
I like to go hiking. I have two favourite trails in the Los Angeles area. One is Switzer Falls, and very close to that is a place called Mount Disappointment, which is not disappointing at all. Whoever discovered it thought they were climbing to the highest area and they brought all this camera gear to take photos. When they reached the top of this mountain they realised there was another point very close by that’s just slightly higher. Nowadays there’s a trail that connects the two peaks.