从荷兰代尔夫特理工大学得到数学博士后不久,我就觉得是该换换新鲜空气的时候了。考虑了半小时后,我便明白该怎样把我的两大爱好——旅游和杂技结合在一起。我做博士生期间,就旅游了好多地方,或者去参加学术会议,或者去访问数学同行。在这期间,1989年我第一次访问了中国,与南京大学的一位著名教授一起工作了两个月。为了不至于变成书呆子,我把杂技作为我的业余消遣。当我给学生上数学课时,在一堂课的最后,我总是给他们表演一些戏法。学生都很欣赏我的表演。我决定去一个中国杂技团呆6个月,这样也许能学会耍5个球,学会更多的空竹技巧,并提高我的汉语水平,当然也为了历险。下一步就是与中国的杂技团联系。首先,我用英语 Shortly after receiving a Ph.D. in mathematics from Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, I felt it was time to exchange fresh air. After considering for half an hour, I understood how to combine my two hobbies - tourism and acrobatics. During my Ph.D., I traveled a lot of places, either attending academic conferences or visiting math colleagues. During this period, I first visited China in 1989 and worked with a famous professor at Nanjing University for two months. In order not to become a nerd, I use acrobatics as my spare time. When I give math class to students, I always give them some tricks at the end of a class. Students appreciate my show. I decided to spend six months with a Chinese acrobatic troupe, so I might learn to play five balls, learn more diabolo skills, improve my Chinese and, of course, adventure. The next step is to contact the acrobatic troupe in China. First, I use English