Doctoral qualifying exams cover a broad range of disciplines. The subject de jour is matrix eigenvectors. Now if that hasn't gotten you excited...

I took a study break to watch "Journey to the Center of the Earth." It features scenes filmed in Carlsbad Cavern. Several scenes were noticably Left Hand Tunnel, at least one was in the King's Palace. It's painfully obvious when they cut from a scene filmed in an actual cave to a hollywood set with transparent rocks, giant mushrooms, and canabalistic iguanas. But man I love those plaid trousers...

OK, the movie sucks. If you haven't seen it, here's the spoiler: they escape a bluescreen salamander by shooting out of a volcano in a bathtub from Atlantis. My eyes hurt.