Axioms Cii-Ciii

From "Axioms"
I drew diagrams of heavenly spheres in my notebook as I sat in the back of my astronomy class, thinking myself a genius all the while. I loved to use graph paper, because graph paper is sophisticated. Geniuses use graph paper; everybody knows that. I drew arrows and symbols to mark the rotation of the stars’ axes or the paths of the planets through the firmament. I had grandiose ideas about the structure of the universe. But it was all meaningless. I am not a genius, and I never...