Doubly Tagged?

It would seem that two people circulating in a similar part of the blogosphere (first Twice Tenured, but it was Rebecca's that I noticed first) have sequentially ! tagged me with the latest meme. Amusing. I'd already seen this meme elsewhere, but had not given it much thought.

The Rules:

• I have to post these rules before I give you the facts.
• Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
• People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
• At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
• Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.
  

Hmmmm. Both of my taggers skipped that last rule!

Names of those tagged are inside the full article.

Where to begin with the eight random facts? Well, since a computer scientist in the applied math world got my attention ...

• I took a year of PhD-level Numerical Analysis as an undergrad math major. If I had not grown bored of math (in a junior class, not that one) and gotten recruited into physics, I probably would have gone to grad school in Applied Math. I still owe Dr. G for getting me into this physics career that I love so much.
• But I still have a very nice PDE solver. Old School stuff: partial pivot plus various bells and whistles. On cards. Somewhere.
• I have oatmeal for breakfast every morning, even in the summer.
• I scored all sorts of goals in intramural soccer despite never playing it until I was in grad school, but am pathetic at basketball, which I "played" my whole life.
• Not too many people take quantum mechanics as a senior just to fill out their schedule, but I did, the same year I took grad applied math. My QM prof recruited me into physics, but it was the sophomore QM prof that actually hooked me on it.
• I always play a game of Free Cell while the computer finishes booting up Windoze.
• I once turned down a tenure-track faculty job, and still have no regrets about that decision.
• I personally know (on a first name basis) the Drug Czar.

Now, who to tag.

I should tag The Little Professor, for using xyzzy in a post last week. That was a flash from the past. Would it violate the spirit of the meme to mention that I know how to get a perfect score by leaving the magazines somewhere and then not doing something? And that we figured out how to get (actually keep) that last point by disassembling the computer program? Plugh!

Next up:
The Thomas (who comments here and there but has not posted anything new in months), Astroprof, Sherman Dorn, Dean Dad (eight facts from his blog vacation?), Profgrrrrl (where I'd like to hear some unexpected things about Thailand), and Chad, over at Uncertain Principles, should consider themsleves tagged, along with anyone else who wants to play.