mathematical taste
''During my last year in graduate school, William Fulton told me about
working with Joe when Joe first moved to Brown University. Fall semester
that year Joe taught a topics course on Brill–Noether theory. After
reviewing the necessary definitions, Joe begin by working out the theory
of special divisors on a genus 2 curve. The next day of class was spent
on genus 3 curves, which took up one lecture, and Joe then moved on to
genus 4 curves, which took occupied a bit more class time. Fulton said
that he expected Joe to soon run out of examples and then state and
prove the general Brill–Noether Theorem.Joe continued doing examples
until the Thanksgiving break. Right before the break, he was discussing
curves whose genus was in the double digits. When he returned from break,
he apologized and explained that he had run out of examples. It was only
then that he stated and proved the Brill–Noether Theorem. Fulton cited
this as an example of Joe’s excellent mathematical taste...''