Math-Phys Alma Mater Is Nearly Similar Shared Dna

Last night, I enjoyed the pre-Christmas political party of the Václav Klaus Institute (led yesteryear the Czech ex-president) inwards Café Mozart, a fancy occupation concern merely a few steps from the Prague Astronomical Clock (Orloj) equally good equally from the amazing telephone substitution purpose where you lot silent get CZK xv for i euro. There is a pretty Christmas tree at the Old Town Square this yr – in addition to it's overnice when the house is then alive. Otherwise, inwards a cloudy weather, cities similar Prague (or New York) suck.

The Pilsner Urquell logo in addition to the modern Pilsner Škoda Transportation streetcars are the exclusively pretty things inwards much of Prague. What else would you lot aspect a Pilsner patriot to say?

Lots of famous people attend these events in addition to I am much to a greater extent than familiar amongst them – political soulmates, if you lot wishing – than I was years ago. Yesterday, amidst other things, I exchanged some overnice in addition to interesting words amongst a bright woman mortal economist HL, amongst a scholar in addition to loyal worker of the institute ML, amongst the boss of bosses VK (he has worked on some exciting project) in addition to his charming friend from Salzburg whose initials I volition hide.

But most of the time, I was talking to a top dog manly mortal raise of the Czech voucher privatization DT, mild-mannered sociologist PH who was late known equally an anti-immigration politician, in addition to amongst JK, an ex-mayor of Prague. They are fun folks, said lots of interesting things, in addition to they equally good receive got had many to a greater extent than positions in addition to achievements than I suggested.




One nipper argue why I enjoyed it was that I picked a strategic house that was closer to the sources of nutrient in addition to beverages then I didn't starve similar inwards many previous similar occasions. I've tried eight types of food, drank 3 pints of beer in addition to 1 vino in addition to those things improve the mood. Just to go sure, I felt entitled ;-) because the circular trip educate ticket was $10 in addition to I had to pay $1 to a real miserable guy on the National Avenue – he actually convinced me that he needed much to a greater extent than in addition to he wasn't a fraud. So I wanted to go for certain to swallow in addition to imbibe for to a greater extent than than $11.




But permit me halt amongst these comments that I to a greater extent than oft than non hateful equally jokes. Of course, those weren't the reasons why I would become at that topographic point (or non become there).

Most of this ecosystem of Klaus' soulmates apparently has a real different background than I do. At some similar events, I could encounter lots of people from the occupation concern globe etc. – critics similar to tell that they got wealthy because of the "wild" privatization that Klaus "allowed" inwards the 1990s (I apparently disagree amongst these evaluations completely).

So inwards the past, I could experience at that topographic point similar an extraterrestrial. For example, several years ago, I could exclusively detect i natural scientist there, soil scientist in addition to climate skeptic Mr Kutílek. Soil scientific discipline is rather far from string theory ;-) but it was silent real clear that amidst hundreds of people at that event, Kutílek's background was closest to mine.

Last night, it was different. First, I learned almost some mass planned yesteryear DT, the manly mortal raise of privatization. It's total of equations in addition to he likes to occupation price such equally "maximization of Hamiltonians in addition to potentials" etc. So it's clear that he's been about the physics means of thinking – in addition to despite his existence an economist, his preparation could receive got been closer to mine than Mr Kutílek's was to mine. I learned lots of things almost him – in addition to his brother-physicist. (By the concluding night, DT has abandoned his amusing 2014 view that my having been a Harvard junior professor was merely a Klaus' elaborate hoax LOL.)

But that was zippo compared to the Prague ex-mayor JK. I must receive got known that he's been a theoretical physicist but I receive got largely forgotten almost it in addition to he reminded me of some details. So despite our belonging to different generations of our Alma Mater (MFF UK, the Faculty of Mathematics in addition to Physics at the Charles University), nosotros knew names similar Velický, Kvasnica, Janouch, Bičák, Trlifaj... I am one-time plenty to receive got met most of those people he knew – in addition to I intend that these people were affecting the civilisation of my college fifty-fifty when I was there.

For example, (Slovak) Jozef Kvasnica led the theoretical physics freshman seminar inwards the outset 2 months of my college years, earlier he died inwards Nov 1992 in addition to was superseded yesteryear Jiří Langer. Kvasnica was a legend of a sort. Among other things, he was the 40th out of 43 students who receive got ever penetrated the "Landau barrier" inwards Moscow. Landau was ever proud to "defend scientific discipline against the invasion of morons" in addition to for Czechoslovakia to receive got a non-moron was a rootage of pride yesteryear itself.

I don't know whether the "old legends" are silent go at MFF UK. But they were real go during my undergraduate years. Newly accepted students undergo the summertime army camp at Albeř inwards Czech Canada (near the Austrian border) in addition to the indoctrination yesteryear the specific MFF UK mythology starts at that topographic point (and maybe earlier that camp). There is a "Booklet of the Matphysack" that teaches many of import things to the students.

For example, MFF UK was founded inwards 1952 when legendary mathematician Dr Vojtěch Jarník proved the creation of V.I. Lenin from an ape yesteryear mathematical induction, climbed the staircase to a higher house Albertov (the house of the Faculty of Natural Sciences where mathematicians in addition to physicists belonged earlier the secession), in addition to declared himself the dean of the novel Faculty of Mathematics in addition to Physics at Karlov (above Albertov, adjacent to the Karlov church, 100 meters from the huge Nusle bridge).

The traditional civilisation includes lots of non terribly flattering, self-critical tales almost the geeks at MFF UK in addition to the ugly girls of MFF UK. Needless to say, these stereotypes aren't ever true. But they're truthful to a greater extent than oft than what you lot could explicate yesteryear chance. There were iii girls, i of them was real ugly, the minute i was blind, in addition to the 3rd i was equally good an MFF UK student. We've been exposed to lots of this stuff.

I oft speak almost indoctrination of the students inwards contemporary colleges – which I view equally a bad thing. However, I practise realize that all those legends that create a uniform civilisation at MFF UK – which differs from the "average of the society", nevertheless – are equally good a form of indoctrination. As you lot tin dismiss guess, it's an indoctrination I basically approve of.

For example, students of mathematics in addition to physics – in addition to peculiarly theoretical physics where the sentiment gets amplified – practise believe that social sciences are inferior in addition to the Prague University of Economics (VŠE, where Klaus in addition to many people from the political party concluding nighttime are employed) is basically a high school. Many of these semi-serious, semi-friendly appraisal of other schools be at many places that could go considered "the most prestigious ones" at to the lowest degree from some viewpoint. People naturally intend that the schoolhouse they picked is in all likelihood improve than others inwards some means – that's why they picked it, unless they picked it because they wouldn't receive got a direct a opportunity to practise anything else.

I intend that the University of Economics (and similarly economic science departments of other universities) is a rare hotbed of some conservative, or at to the lowest degree staunchly pro-capitalist, ideas – a characteristic that makes it superior relatively to many other places of the Academia (not exclusively inwards Czechia). But equally nosotros agreed amongst JK, at to the lowest degree during communism, mathematicians in addition to physicists receive got equally good enjoyed a special condition that has protected MFF UK in addition to maybe similar schools from the distortions yesteryear the Marxist ideology. Even the communists had to receive got a for certain abide by for these "weird but apparently smart people" who are responsible for much of the progress. After all, Marxism should go built on science.

In effect, physicists in addition to mathematicians were relatively costless inwards their thinking in addition to spoken language in addition to they could oft move to the West rather easily. JK in addition to me both shared a particular inwards the CV – both of us were automatically accepted to the college because of some victory inwards a mathematical or physical olympiad etc. Given my solid unit of measurement background amongst uncles-emigrants on both sides, my admission to the college could go unlikely if whatever politically flavored mortal were allowed to influence the admission process. But it merely didn't happen.

The communist political party existed at MFF UK but it was largely stripped of the toxic content, nosotros similar to believe. As a fellow member of the archive commission of the Academic Senate of MFF UK, I figured out that my diploma adviser (and co-author of our linear algebra textbook) had been a commission fellow member of the communist political party at MFF UK's branch inwards Karlín. This surprised me because he was i of the people who were clearly non sharing many of the left-wing things, peculiarly the "modern progressive" stuff. But it was possible – in addition to the finding didn't modify my positive attitudes towards him. The local branch of the communist political party at MFF UK could receive got defined itself yesteryear different characteristics in addition to goals than the communist political party at generic places of the country.

There are lots of – mainly humanities and/or social-scientific – departments where the adoption of the "most left-wing or progressive opinions available" is completely dominant. And at that topographic point are merely several exceptions. Economists are those who tend to go pro-free-market in addition to inwards this particular feel right-wing. Physicists in addition to mathematicians are those who experience strongly almost the divergence betwixt the difficult sciences in addition to the soft sciences – similar those "researched" at the departments where the victim civilisation in addition to PC rule. Because of this version of the civilisation wars, this makes many mathematicians in addition to physicists naturally oppose the "near left-wing consensus" of the Academia – for somewhat (but non completely) different reasons than what makes the economists different.