Thank you for spending time thinkng about what I sent you. I’ve been spending time thinking about what you sent me. We probably have a different notion of what a cash flow is. The wonderful thing about math is that it is possible to get to the bottom of propositions that are either true of false. The trick is to come up with statements other mathematicians find interesting. If you think what I have to say is not interesting, just let me know so I don’t waste your time.

I hope you don’t mind me sharing some history with Peter Carr. You took over from him and are in a positon to decide how to run your program. When I asked him about what to teach in the curriculum he always gave me the same answer, “Will it help students get jobs?” I’m not interested in publishing papers. My passion is thinking clearly about prior reseach and making that accesible to students

Peter and I had a falling out after he hired me at Banc of America Securities. I’m sure you have run into the pressures involved with working for Big Banks. Time heals all wounds and we eventually got back on good terms.

He, Carol, and Olivia moved into my neighborhood after he left Morgan Stanley and started at Tandon. We would meet at the latest coffee shop to open on Smith Street to discuss mathematical finance, and his travails at Tandon.

He ran into trouble with Johnett and did not understand the control unions have at NYU. Barry set him staight on that. You seem to have figured out he is a gem. Peter got me positions at Courant, Cornell, Rutgers, and Tandon. Barry has a knack for figuring out the best students.