626 reputation
15
bio website abundantmichael.com
location Cusco Peru
age 49
visits member for 10 months
seen Jun 13 at 4:27
stats profile views 12

I am interested in many areas of math including topology (point-set, algebraic), functional analysis, Banach spaces and algebras, real analysis, complex analysis, measures and distributions, group theory, rings, fields, Galois theory, number theory, graph theory, numeric analysis, special relativity, matrices, non-standard analysis, foundations of mathematics, logic, categories and probably some others I am not thinking about right now!

I love to question basic assumptions and also like to create new connections between different areas. I have been playing with math since I was about 4 years old (my father was a mathematician too) and also grew up playing with computers too.

My favorite math book right now is the Princeton Companion to Mathematics which contains hundreds of interesting articles and has given me many new insights into topics I thought I already knew. :-)

I have bachelor and masters degrees in math from Cambridge University. I started a software company a few years after that, which is still one of my sources of income. I have lived in UK, Holland, USA and now Permanently Traveling in South America. As part of the PT life I sold and gave away 95% of the contents of my house and stored the rest in 2011. I also sold my car. Less is more!

I have many other interests including language learning (currently Spanish!), dance, painting, improv, 2012 changes, honest communication, energy healing, teaching Kundalini yoga, EFT, gender, futurology, history (especially of WWI and WWII), alternative history, reading science fiction and mystery books. Just like in my math investigations I follow the joy!


Jun
13
comment Advantages of traveling from Lima to Cusco by bus vs. plane?
Check Peruvian Airlines prices too. Note that LAN charges non-locals a higher rate than international travelers whereas Peruvian Airlines and Star Peru do not. The same ticket on LAN could be $300 for foreigners...
Jun
13
comment Is it safe to travel by bus in Peru at night?
The reason they photograph all the passengers is to discourage thefts and hijackers from getting on the bus... seems to work!
Jun
13
comment Can I buy a cheap phone in Peru, that will function in Bolivia and Argentina?
I found cell phones to be similar price in Bolivia as to Peru, at least in the unofficial electronic flea markets in La Paz. Argentina is more expensive for most items, but especially electronics which are imported. The Peso exchange rate right now is also crazy with the official rate being twice the black market rate. I added some more carrier and band details to my answer above.
Jun
13
revised Can I buy a cheap phone in Peru, that will function in Bolivia and Argentina?
Added details on carriers and bands
Jun
12
answered Can I buy a cheap phone in Peru, that will function in Bolivia and Argentina?
Jun
4
answered Is there such a thing as an international mobile wireless provider?
Feb
19
revised Does my government know in which country I am at when I travel?
added 507 characters in body
Feb
19
revised Does my government know in which country I am at when I travel?
add references
Feb
19
revised Does my government know in which country I am at when I travel?
add references
Feb
19
comment Does my government know in which country I am at when I travel?
eff.org/nsa-spying "News reports in December 2005 first revealed that the National Security Agency (NSA) has been intercepting Americans’ phone calls and Internet communications. Those news reports, combined with a USA Today story in May 2006 and the statements of several members of Congress, revealed that the NSA is also receiving wholesale copies of American's telephone and other communications records. All of these surveillance activities are in violation of the privacy safeguards established by Congress and the US Constitution."
Feb
19
answered Does my government know in which country I am at when I travel?
Feb
5
comment Is a Paraguay multiple-entry visa valid for more than 90 days in total?
Mark I took that same bus from Argentina, it didn't stop for visas for me either. I was in Paraguay before I realized it. Rather than going back and re-entering I continued on and exited Paraguay from Cuidad de Este airport. There were some questions but I explained what happened and the guy understood how the tri-state border bus works and gave me an exit stamp no problem. (I did some spiritual work while he was figuring it out thanking him in my mind for being so helpful)
Feb
5
answered Is a Paraguay multiple-entry visa valid for more than 90 days in total?
Dec
4
comment Tipping in NYC restaurants
If you don't like the food ask your server to take it back and replace it with something you do like. In my experience they are usually happy to do so. Then if you are happy with the service (and hopefully the second dish) give a generous tip. Sometime they will even remove the charge for the dish from the bill and then a tip based on percentage of what the bill would have been is fairer to server.
Nov
25
awarded  Revival
Nov
25
answered What is the cheapest travel destination in Central/South America (from Chicago)?
Oct
3
answered Where to exchange US dollars in Peru?
Oct
3
comment Vaccinations and medicines for Peru and Ecuador
I worried about diseases before I got to South America, now I have been traveling here for 22 months I don't worry at all. I would be more concerned crossing a city street here - lots of locals have accidents with cars, which given how many people drive here is not surprising. I have been nearly run over myself a few times and I always look both ways before crossing!
Oct
3
answered Vaccinations and medicines for Peru and Ecuador
Oct
3
awarded  Supporter