In the late night of October 1996, in a villa in Berlin, Germany, Dr. Juan Castro was carefully stuffing the last manuscript into his briefcase.
He was a Mexican materials scientist who had worked at the Max Planck Institute in Germany for twelve years.
A week ago, he received an unbelievable job offer from the Mexican National Advanced Technology Company (NTSC), with conditions too good to be true: a salary three times his German annual income, an independent house south of Mexico City, unlimited research funding, and most importantly, the promise to lead the establishment of a national materials laboratory.
"Dad, are we really going back to Mexico?" His eight-year-old daughter Sofia rubbed her sleepy eyes and peeked out from the bedroom.
Castro squatted down and gently stroked his daughter's hair, "Yes, sweetheart. That's our homeland, and Daddy has a very important new job."
