R. Michael Alvarez is a political scientist at the California Institute of Technology specializing in elections, voting behavior, election technology and research methodologies. Before participating on a panel about why Californians don’t talk about politics, he answered questions in our Green Room.

Q. What would you do with a million extra dollars?
A. I think I’d put most of it to my research, and maybe a little bit to buy a nice vacation house for my family.

Q. If you had another profession in another life, what would it be?
A. You know, to be honest, I can’t imagine anything better than being a professor, so I can’t say I’d switch.

Q. What superpower would you like to have?
A. Flight. I’d like to fly.

Q. What would we find you doing at 10 am on an average Saturday morning?
A. Working in my yard or working around our house.

Q. What is your greatest simple pleasure?
A. Just drinking coffee in the morning, enjoying the beautiful weather.

Q. What was the last thing that made you laugh really hard?
A. The other night, just watching “The Office” with my wife.

Q. How are you different than you were 10 years ago?
A. Older and grayer.

Q. What was the best decision you ever made?
A. Getting married was the best decision I’ve ever made. We’re coming up on our anniversary – 24 years on Monday.

Q. What are you afraid of?
A. I’m most afraid of big changes in my life, like losing a family member – my wife, my children, my parents.

Q. How do you procrastinate?
A. By doing email, going online.

To read more about the panel in which Alvarez participated, click here.

*Photo by Aaron Salcido.