A notebook kept by Roger Tsien when he was eight years old gives us insights into his view of the world and how his interests evolved during his childhood years. The notebook contains lists of countries and major cities, and drawings of complicated traffic junctions and famous bridges, which fascinated young Tsien. His father's work in the air force is also reflected in his lists of plane models. Tsien’s blossoming interest in chemistry is evident in the lists of basic elements, minerals, vitamins, and medicines, and in the many sketches of chemistry experiments he copied from a book. Some pages are filled with Chinese words, although Tsien found this quite boring.
Roger Tsien donated the notebook to the Nobel Prize Museum in 2008.
