a dreamt visit to Malta, the land of model theory

[krasnoludek]

I had an interesting dream last night, which I first just dismissed as a meaningless dream with pleasant images. But then when I started thinking about it more, the significance started showing through

Comments

[abooth]

It's a good job you remember it! Whenever I come up with a `good idea' while trying to go to sleep, I'll jot down notes or it definately won't be there when I wake up.

Of course, I often wake up and discover the `good idea' was complete nonsense: like the time I was working on a take-home exam problem for 225A and went to sleep very happy that I'd just worked it out, thinking the problem would be simple if I just ran the argument on one orbit at a time. I then went to sleep, woke up, looked at it and threw it straight in the bin when I remembered there were no groups in the problem!

(Yeah, I know model theorists often bring algebraic structures to play on problems which don't at first sight mention them, but this is rare in a 225A problem)

[krasnoludek]

well, I did write down some of my ideas, because I sometimes fall victim to the scenario you described. But the ideas I wrote down didn't sit entirely well with me, and it took those moments right before falling asleep for me to come up with a satisfactory explanation of them.