Atd : page 542---starts on page 524.Big Ass Spoiler

[robinlandseadel at comcast.net]

Ah, the adventures of a Slut!

"He's also a BDSM enthusiast and hardcore hallucinogenic drug user,
naturally.  :-/"

. . . .never really theought too hard 'bout that one, ya know?
 -------------- Original message ----------------------
From: "Anville Azote" <anville.azote at gmail.com>
> On 12/8/06, robinlandseadel at comcast.net <robinlandseadel at comcast.net> wrote:
> > Dear A.A.,
> >
> > I'm getting the impression that you probably have a better handle on
> > upper division math/physics than most
> 
> "Upper division"?  But I just met 'er!
> 
> >  (I've no handle on that stuff at
> > all) and I've a feeling that lots of the math/physics in AtD is the basis
> > of personal actions for various characters in the novel.
> 
> A reasonable supposition.  Of course, some of the concepts may flow
> the other way:  this detail or that of the mathematics comes out
> because of who the characters are.  (Kit Traverse studied at Yale and
> is a Vectorist, so his "proof" of the Riemann hypothesis is full of
> "upside-down triangles" -- nablas -- which Yashmeen the Quaternionist
> naturally does not recognize.)  Figuring out which way it goes -- and
> identifying the "loose" versus "tight" metaphors, which is a
> distinction I really like -- without doubt requires learning the math
> and the science, but it also promises a whole lot of fun.
> 
> >  Hopefully
> > some of these metaphors/analogies that are over my head will be
> > explained as we go along. I see all sorts of elements of the story
> > having their little convention on pgs. 524-542, but I'm particularly
> > intrigued by Kit's actions on 1079-1081, and I have to wonder if these
> > scenes in the novel are rooted in mathematics or concepts from physics.
> >
> 
> Let me stew on those pages a while and come back with a (somewhat)
> more informed opinion.
> 
> > Of course, throwing the Tuvan/Shambahlan stamp stuff into the
> > mix (along with the free-for-all on 978/979) suggests that
> > Pynchon has been a hardcore philatelist all along. Re-reading
> > COL 49 way the hell too many times has led me to constantly ask
> > where the stamps came from without ever really asking myself:
> > "Is this man a stamp collector?"
> >
> 
> He's also a BDSM enthusiast and hardcore hallucinogenic drug user,
> naturally.  :-/
> 
> > (and now I must break into song):
> >
> > "Who needs a hobby,
> > like tennis, or philately?
> > I've got a hobby,
> > re-reading "Lady Chatterly"
> >
> 
> "But now they're trying to take it all away from us
> Unless we take a stand
> And hand-in-hand we fight for freedom of the press
> In other words --
> Smut!  I love it!"
> 
> -A. A.