A miracle occurred.

The most amazing thing just happened. I just started watching an episode of Futurama that I'd never seen before.

At least, that's what I thought. About ten minutes into it, I realized that it was just an episode that I'd never entirely seen before. I've seen the last five minutes of it a couple of times, but that's all. (This is the episode, by the way.)

I remember being a little freaked out by it, just as I'm freaked out generally by werewolves and the incredible Hulk. I think if I were able to catalog all the nightmares I've ever had and form a subject index, the Hulk would have the most references.

The title of this entry makes me chuckle, because of another Futurama episode. (This one.) Fry and Bender enlist in Earth's military in order to get a discount at the convenience store. Just after signing up, the fellas ask the recruiting officer if they can just quit after using the discount. He replies, "Sure, unless war were declared." Then huge sirens go off all over the place, and Fry and Bender yell, "What's that?" The officer replies, "War were declared."

Bwahahahahahaha!

On a different topic, I've just rediscovered that I really really really really really ought to just sit down and read through the textbook Lie groups, by Duistermaat and Kolk. Several times, I've been trying and trying to figure something out for myself, or figure out the details of something my advisor has told me about, and I've finally cracked open that book and found it all written out.

The detail of the book is somewhat excruciating, and there's an analytical and/or differential equations feel to some of it, but that's just what makes it such a good book. The authors actually worked it all out and wrote it all down.

Plus, Professor Duistermaat was my advisor's advisor, which is really cool. Plus, I exchanged emails with Professor Kolk once, and he seemed very friendly.

Plus, in the forward of the book, after thanking various mathematicians for their assistance, input, etc. Professor Kolk thanks his cardiologist for his contribution in helping the book get published.

How cool is that?