I don’t regret having done it at all. I think everything that I went through was worth it. I am very proud. But I would not do it again.

I am most proud of the legacy of my students and postdocs. The real triumph, for me, is witnessing the transformation of the individuals who have passed through my lab. They arrive with potential and leave making substantial impacts. Seeing them flourish professionally and contribute meaningfully to our field is, without a doubt, my greatest accomplishment.

And then in 1974 I started to work on phosphorous chemistry which is the area of which I’m most proud as it turns out. I’m most proud of my work on carbon phosphorous chemistry.

Melissa, to have the opportunity in my life to serve my country for 10 years as Minister of Finance and Planning was the best gift that my life gave to me. I was born under the colonial period. I experienced the independence of my country.

Well, I'm proud of my gender. I think, you know, and I've said this to my Berkeley colleagues this morning, but my feeling is that I think among women and girls that, you know, sometimes there's a sense that no matter what they do that their work will not be recognised the way it would be if they were a man. And I just … I hope that this prize and this recognition changes that at least a little bit, and that it's encouraging to other women who are in science, or even in other fields, to realise that, you know, their work can be honoured and that their work can have a real impact.