So my advisor from MIT, Molvig, is in town for the week. John and I just had dinner with him. And he said the most confidence-boosting thing I've ever heard. We were discussing what areas my thesis topic could cover, and he said, "Well it can be about anything you want within computational physics. All you have to worry about in terms of nuclear engineering is passing this damn qualifyer! I shouldn't say it like that, you will pass."

In fact, he mentioned it twice. That I would pass. Not a statement of confidence, but a declaration. Meaning he's going to do everything in his power to see that it happens.

Before dinner today, I held little hope of passing. I do not think I'll get a high enough grade to pass on performance alone. But the grading system is highly subjective, and with Molvig there, willing it to happen, I can do it. Current outlook: I still need to do a lot of studying, even Molvig can't champion me through if I get 30% or something. But everything is looking a whole lot better.