most grad students understand that very few people in this world actually care about their research. so as a survival skill, we often learn to summarize our years' work into "the 10-minute version."
i think i can both (1) reduce the time to five seconds (no, seriously!) and (2) make it sound alarmingly comprehensible and elementary; the second condition isn't so alarming, come to think of it. as all mathematicians know, upon solving a problem, it immediately becomes obvious.
anyways,
the 5-second version: i study second derivatives.
Don't tell my mother I'm doing ...; she thinks I'm doing algebraic geometry.
ReplyDeletefrom MR1754768 (2001d:00002)
For the non math inclined: I study changes in the rate of change.
ReplyDeleteFor the practical people: I study acceleration.
I have to get back to work. You know, parallel parking my car on Mars.