Clearly, there are many places where diesel is king or gas-turbine is king, or IC engines will win, but there are many places in the world where, as we've seen, they just won't do the job. The modern version of the Stirling engine has some very, very attractive characteristics, and we're trying to optimize it for some of those applications.

I don't work on a project unless I believe that it will dramatically improve life for a bunch of people.

Kids are intimidated by the way science and technology is presented. It's made, frankly, quite boring and it becomes part of a curriculum that chases particularly women and minorities away.

Some broad themes brought me where I am today. At a very young age, my hobby became thinking and finding connections.

You have teenagers thinking they're going to make millions as NBA stars when that's not realistic for even 1 percent of them. Becoming a scientist or engineer is.

I think an education is not only important, it is the most important thing you can do with your life.

Everybody has to be able to participate in a future that they want to live for. That's what technology can do.