10958 is a Hard Problem! I was talking to my nephew Jack-Jack the other day about the 10958 Ascending debacle. If you are unfamiliar with it, check out my post from 10/21/19. It is a nasty little piece of ostensibly simple math. Jack-Jack and I were trying to find an answer to the 10958 problem […]
Random Thoughts from a Nonlinear Mind: Volume 2: The Athena Chapters, Chapter Ten: Beef Stroganoff “What the hell do you think you are, some kind of rocket scientist?” A question asked (with just a hint of anger) of a guy named Derek by some random Townie at a hole in the wall drinking establishment […]
When I decided to start a blog, I let everyone know that this space would always be available if anyone ever had something they wanted to say. I have asked several people on numerous occasions to submit an essay, an opinion piece, or some fiction. They always tell me they will think about it and […]
Random Thoughts from a Nonlinear Mind: Volume 2: The Athena Chapters, Chapter Nine: Dissonance “You goddamn sissy-eared mollycoddle! When you hear strong music like this, stand up and take your dissonance like a man!” Charles Ives ***** Buford Lister leaned back in his chair, the big one at his favorite desk. He sipped whiskey […]
Random Thoughts from a Nonlinear Mind: Volume 2: The Athena Chapters, Chapter Eight: Cinema Paradiso (Brenda’s Essay) “Best dressed, my ass.” Those words, the ones you just read, are the only four words my high school principal ever spoke to me. ***** Buford Lister spied her across the room. Shy (well, yeah), but not […]
One day when I was a graduate student at Harvard, I was given a sheet of paper, just a single sheet. On this page were examples of common grammatical mistakes that we were to avoid at all costs. There was a short paragraph about the difference between their, there, and they’re. It was that kind […]
Random Thoughts from a Nonlinear Mind: Volume 2: The Athena Chapters, Chapter Seven: The Big Texas King Snake When I was an undergraduate, I started off as a general mathematics and science major. The university I attended allowed you to take a certain number of these courses, along with all the other required stuff, […]
Legos for Adults I made it through high school and my undergraduate degrees without ever using a PC. How is that? They were rare, few people had them. If I recall correctly, I didn’t even see a PC until I was at Harvard. I arrived at Harvard in 1986, typing my papers on a typewriter. […]
Bonus Eruptus Redux! A Few Thoughts on COVID-19 Testing SARS-CoV-2 is the virus that causes COVID-19. For what it is worth, SARS-CoV-2 stands for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. This post is not about the virus, it is about the mathematical and probabilistic problems the virus presents to those who wish to test for […]
Random Thoughts from a Nonlinear Mind: Volume 2: The Athena Chapters, Chapter Six: Nuggets of “Wisoom” Don’t tell me he was a good writer; he had the worst penmanship I ever saw in my life. Mel Brooks, as the 2000-year-old man, commenting on the writing ability of William Shakespeare I have the collected works of […]