Interviewing David Hahn
By Valerie Benzinger
Intro to Science
David: I think I was around four years old.
Me: And what was the experiment you were testing?
David: Well I was in the bathroom and I mixed various medical supplies an some ashes in a metal bowl, and when I was dissapointed to see it wasn't a magical substance, I added a drain cleaner which made the substance bubble and it almost boiled over! I then dumped the contents of the bowl down the toilet.
Family
David: Sure. My parents, Ken and Patty divorced when I was young. They both ended up married again, so I guess everyone ended up happily.
Me: That's nice. Who did your parents remarry to?
David: My dad remarried to a woman named Kathy Missig and my mom started dating a man named Micheal Polasek.
Me: Did you ever bond with your parents new partners?
David: Not excactly. I never was fond of neither Micheal nor Kathy. I remember Kathy absolutely couldn't stand me.
Me: Do you have any step-siblings?
David: Yes I do. I have a step- sister named Kristina. Kathy always treated her like the princess and me like a peasent. It made me feel kind of sad, but I simply focused on my love for science.
High Scool Life
Me: Did you ever have a girlfriend?
David: Yeah, my girlfriend through highschool was Heather Beaudette. She actually was cool about me loving science as much as I do.
Me: Did you ever have a part-time job in high school?
David: Yes, I worked at a local Kroger's. Once, another worker there was pushing a full cart and dropped eight containers of ammonia. I knew that if you breathed in too much ammonia, it could result in death. I had to do something! I knew that The Works, a toilet bowl cleanser, had a high level of hydrochoric acid, which can neutrilize ammonia, and poured it onto the spilled ammonia. It produced a cloud that my boss thought was some toxic vapor and fired me. I got my job back after the poison control said I had done the right thing.
Me: That's incredible, David! I think everyone who found out is proud of you. Now, I know you are very advanced in science, but did you ever find interest in other subjects?
David: No. I never was an all A's student. I got A's in science but I concentrated so much on science that I couldn't focus on other subjects.
DIY Experimentation
Me: Did your experimenting ever bother your parents?
David: My mother and Micheal never really were bothered by me working away in their shed out back. Kathy, on the other hand, couldn't stand me experimenting in her house. I very frequently woke them up at night whilst experimenting with chemicals in my room. I even suffered various explosions from mixing too much of this, too little of that, you know how it goes. But one day, Kathy had enough. She moved my room down to the basement and forced me to stop my experiments by taking me with them on short errands and leaving me at the library or a friend's house if they were going to be gone longer.
Me: I'll bet that bothered you.
David: Not at much as you would think. I just did my experiments at night in the basement-which I preferred to my old room- and read chimistry books at the library and friend's houses.
Me: I think this interview is at an end. It has been very great speaking with you, David.
David: Alright, it has been very pleasant speaking with you. Goodbye!