<p>kfc4u: you hit the nail on the head. asian culture is very much based on respect and the notion of being seen and not heard. Disagreement among elders, or making your opinoins known (in contrary to theirs even under a friendly debate/ discussion) is seen as highly disrespectful and rude. The culture stifles most of the asians I have seen here in nyc and does not help dispel common stereotypes. It's also not that asians prefer to go into engineering or medicine, its that the parents push for these kind of careers. Most asians are prestige whores and most immigrant asians believe only in the harvard educated doctor as the key measure of success for their son or daughter. I know i've made a lot of generalizations, but I see and interact and deal with other asians on an everyday basis and most of these stereotypes unfortunately seem to hold true :/</p>