Tuesday November 21, 2006 5:20 am Lethbridge Sunrise 7:52 Sunset 17:42 Hours of daylight: 8:50

A. Morning Musings

5:20 am It is +3 C at the moment with a high of +12 C forecast.

I am thinking of going to the Southern Alberta Model Train club meeting this evening. Joining the club would bring me in contact with many people who have a tremendous amount of expertise in this hobby. There is also the possibility that they could use someone to help with a web site for the club.

This still leaves the rest of the day to fill in.

My mathematical activities are beginning to wander off in all directions. While the focus is still number theory, I am now reading "Fearless Symmetry" which is largely about group theory, Galois groups and representations. I have four books on abstract algebra from the university library, two of which are substantive textbooks on the topic. I am also reading one of the early classics on symmetry by Hermann Weyl.

In addition to mathematics, I am trying to maintain a reasonable time commitment to model trains. This will require even a greater commitment if I decide to try to meet the criteria for a master model craftsman.

A relatively new addition to my schedule is the strategy game of Go. I am at the early stages of this at the moment, but am enjoying it.

I have been able to maintain a fairly regular schedule of literature reading, which is good.

But I am having difficulty finding the time to finish the book on the French Revolution.

Another good piece of news is that I am getting up at 5 am again. That gives me some quiet time early in the day. Now for today.

From rear window	South patio
Both images taken at 10:40 am

B. Plan

Immediate
Health	Walk & exercise	1 hr
Mathematics	Read "Fearless Symmetry" chap 9: Elliptic Curves	1 hr
	Make notes on the beginnings of number theory	1 hr
History	Continue reading & making notes for "Citizens"	2 hr
GO	Play 3 games of 9x9 GO++; Solve problems from Graded GO Problems for Beginners	2 hr
Literature	Continue reading "The Southern Gates of Arabia " by Freya Stark	1 hr
Later
Chores	Investigate water softeners for home
Technology	Read manual for cell phone
	Make notes for chap. 4 of "Switching to the Mac"
	Begin reading "iPhoto"
	digital photography - learn about using the various manual settings
Philosophy	Read "The Art of Living" by Epictetus
Mathematics	Larson "Calculus"
	Read "Symmetry" by Hermann Weyl
	Read "The Computational Beauty of Nature" Chap 3
	Gardner "The Colossal Book of Short Puzzles"
History	Watson "Ideas"
Model Trains	Build oil refinery diorama: add ground cover
	Assemble second oil platform kit
	Assembly of CN 5930, an SD40-2 with a NAFTA logo
Puzzles	The Orange Puzzle Cube: puzzle #9

C. Actual/Notes

	GO 05 November 21
GO Chronology
Notes for Learning to play the strategy game of GO. 5:50 am Play 3 games of GO++ on a 9x9 board, playing black against a level 2. Review each game as soon as it is over. Continue "Graded GO problems for Beginners Volume One Introductory Problems" Here are the results of my 3 games of GO++: Game 1: I lose by 19.5 points. The computer advanced down one side and I lost too much territory. Game 2: I lose by 21.5 points. Same problem. Game 3: I lose by 7.5 points. Better, but no offense. "Graded GO problems for Beginners Volume One Introductory Problems" Level Three Section 1 Making Life. Problems 121 - 146. I missed 125, 136, 139, 140, 142. I am going to return to GO++ and try three more games, this time playing white and letting the computer move first. Game 1: I lose by 74.5 points. I failed to see an atari and my position fell apart. Game 2: I win by 3.5 points. This is encouraging. Game 3: I lose by 13.5 points. The encouragement was short-lived. I played a 9x9 game of GO++ where at each move I played the move most favored by the experts. I ended up losing by 16.5 points. Fascinating. SUMMARY of the session: The 9x9 games were better than yesterday but I am still losing. The computer is only playing at level 2 (there are 5 possible levels) so I am not doing that well. The graded problems gave me some difficulty. I missed 5 out of 25 which is not very good. Next day I will repeat Section 1 on Making Life. I have the basic idea of forming two eyes, but some of the sequences fool me as I fail to realize when I am in atari. Playing white was a good idea. I could see how black was taking the initiative. I had one good game, but one careless move can be fatal in a 9x9 game. 7:30 am

D. Reflection