A rare mid-day update: finally, after weeks of delays, I'm getting the analytical data run on my most recent set of experiments. These are based on what looked like successful results back in April (see these posts for the details), and if I have any idea of what's going on, they should work.

And that's the scary part. Late this afternoon or tomorrow morning, I'll either know that I'm on the track of something interesting, or I'll have slid most of the way back down the hill. Again. It's been like this every time I've come up to a crucial experiment in this work. As I've said, scientific progress depends, to an unappreciated extent, on the willingness to look like a fool. It's tough work, waiting to find out if you are one or not. . .