Happy New Year

Well, what do you want the new year to be?

Sometimes I get asked how I do what (how much) I do. This question people should really ask Michael Mitzenmacher or Terry Tao or ... I tend to focus on what I don't do. One of my regrets is that while I read others' blogs, I haven't been able to contribute to the discussions there as much as I like. Commenting needs different personality from writing a blog, so I need to find this new personality, this week, year or decade.

And a note to self: I often face the divide between theory and practice, first hand (when I do my work), second hand (when I referee or hear a talk) or third hand (when someone describes others' work). Mostly I see people respond with pseudo-theory, or pseudo-practice. Must recognize and resist this temptation!

ps: What is new year without fun? Give the setting of 3rd century China and a cast of thousand to John Woo and watch arrows fly. It was the time when Generals fought on the battlefield. Real warriors will ignore the crossbow -- the wii of bows -- at the end.