"Usually, terrible things that are done with the excuse that progress requires them are not really progress at all, but just terrible things." - Russell Baker

***

Quotes:

I actually look okay in this picture. [Me: So you look like shit normally? Okay.]... You're supposed to contradict me. [Student 2: It's a girl game.]

[Me: It's her second UTI? {Urinary Tract Infection}] [Student 2: Third.] *** has interesting friends.

[Lecturer: Today's lecture deals with a somewhat empirircally oriented theoretical subject. What does that mean?] *Sotto voce* It means usually econs is useless. Here it's useful.

A variational technique or a perturbation technique. I am fond of big words.

In economics there are many Euler equations. Euler was just so creative.

In the real world there're borrowing constraints. Suppose you go to the bank and say 'Today I'm a poor student. In 10 years I'll be the Prime Minister of Singapore'.

C1 is excessive sensitive to W1 (excessively)

[On Jensen's Inequalty] I'm in Applied Maths, not Pure Maths.

S papers are supposed to make you more creative... If you just do Maths, Physics, More Maths, More Physics - I'm sorry to the Maths and Physics people.

[On purposefully mistranslating propaganda songs] We were trying to find the government-approved version, but we couldn't, so we took some artistic license.

[On Semoga Bahagia and Propaganda] I sang this song for 6 years in Primary School and I never knew what it meant.

Reasons why you should go to SMU: the girls are hotter, you can develop relationships with your project mates because there're so many projects, you can talk to professors to upgrade your grades

I remember when my friend started using Friendster, she used her picture, then no one messaged her. She change it to a picture of her stroking her cat. Then all the guys started to message her.

Just think about your experience in groupwork... 2 people in a group - probably okay. 3 - you have the problem of free-riding. And that's only three.

[On a presentation] I'm gonna skip some animations which I did last weekend and have forgotten why.

I went to Japan one day. I went to Toyota. Every morning they pledge allegiance to the flag of [Toyota]

In Japan, reputation is so important. if you are accused of a crime, the proper thing to do is commit suicide. The Livedoor chief is an exception.

[On criticism] As the saying goes, as my mother tells me, if the tree has a lot of ripe fruit, everyone will be throwing stones at it.

I'm going to make a heretic statement (heretical)

an'trer'prer'neer (entrepreneur)

[Lecutrer: What is democracy?] Chaos.

Do you enjoy having long hair? [Me: Do you think I'm masochistic?]... Are you attracted to girls?... Some guys are not attracted to girls [, some are asexual and not necessarily gay]... [Me: Half the people think I'm gay.] You're not gay. [Me: Half the people think I'm asexual]... Does it bother you?

[Student: Do you think the longer your name is the more zai {brilliant} you are?] No. The PRC scholars are all 2-syllables. (all have 2-syllable names)

[On the goverment] They ignore the post-modernist, who is just standing around making noise.

[On stopping NKF corruption] You can pay him more so that he can afford to take First Class flights on his own salary.

You're not allowed to quote me without my express permission.

*** - is that your real name? There's this friend of his. I don't know her name. He calls her 'Frigid Girl'

Here maybe I did [something] wrongly. No no, it's ok, it's ok... I hope I solved [the problem] correctly here.

First degree. Second degree. Third degree price discrimination. It is hard to remember... I had [a] discovery. I came to [a] conclusion. First degree price discrimination is not hard to remember. (made)

Uncertianty is the last topic where you will have real exercises. The rest, small topics. Just blah blah.

[On my hair] Damn nice. Can I kope [take] from you?

I wake up in the middle of the night and ask you: utility should be concave or convex? [Student, sotto voce: I'll tell him I want to sleep]

There are two important numbers in the world. First is this [e]. Second is pi.

[On someone] Her shopping bag is bigger than her school bag. That tells you about her priorities.

I'm sure all of you have been eagerly awaiting - optimal control theory. Today you will finally learn simple optimal control theory.

You're not required to know the proof of the Pontryagin Maximum Principle. I also don't know it. You just employ it. Like a recipe - cook book.

You can look up another book by Alpha Chiang. 'Fundamentals Methods of Dynamic Optimization'... forget the 'Fundamentals'.

Next week we'll have an even more exciting problem.

[On her survey] Are you done? [Me: I'm deconstructing your methodology] [Student 2: You shouldn't give a survey to Gabriel]

Is it okay to be massaged by a guy with a girlfriend?... [Student 2: There's no such thing as a clean massage... and there's nothing wrong with that]

[On anonymous feedback] Even if you put it anonymously, everyone will know it's Gabriel. (give)

[To me] I can see the mockery in your expression, the slight smirk in your smile.

I like Frigid Girls... De-frigidifying them.

The one ironical thing about NUS to me is that girls come to lectures in the shortest skirts and shorts, and then wear a big jacket because they're cold.

[On chili and endorphins] Now you know why people walk on ifre.

[On his term paper] I had to stoop to consulting a children's encyclopedia.

[On not answering her handphone] You know why? Because I like this song so i let it ring freely.

difficult is notation (notation is difficult)

[On becoming more risk averse when you become richer] Why it may happen? People are greedy, for example... I have 5 billion dollars. I don't even want to lose $10.

I think more gays have hit on me than women. [Student: Sadly, I think that's the case for me too]

[On a survey] Why [do] you ask me for my hobbies? [Do] You want to find a boyfriend is it? (boyfriend)

[Me: The have 'Harvard College in Asia'. Do they have 'NUS College in Harvard'?] That's the first question I asked last year.