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Horners had a reputation in the non-practitioner world for their conservative opinions on every issue imaginable. Were they making another stand here?
    “I believe people can cast in the same manner, and we can apply the formula to all,” Forscher replied, leaning forward with his elbows on the table. “In general. There may be corollaries to the original equation. That’s one of the situations we must study. Suppose a plumbing spell and a cooking spell are fundamentally the same enchantment, but applied to different objects. Is a plumber heating solder different from a cook heating water? If you have a spell
H
for heat, is
H
for solder the same as
H
for water? The plumber casts
H
-open parentheses-solder-close parentheses and the cook casts
H
-open parentheses-water-close parentheses.” He gestured the parentheses as he spoke. “Same spell, different targets, possibly different amounts of energy needed.”
    Horner looked confused. “I don’t know …”
    Gloriana saw confusion and puzzlement on a number of faces. Throwing parentheses and other such terms around was a sure way to lose his audience.
    Before Horner could ask another question, Ed called on someone else, another man who appeared to be in his thirties.
    “I, for one, welcome your ideas, Dr. Forscher,” he said in a somewhat pompous tone. “I’m Mike Brubaker from the University of Chicago. We need more research into the broader universe of casting. What you’re proposing fits nicely with mathematical theory. I can think of several spells that satisfy the definition of a mathematical object and in combination can be formed into groups and rings. For example, the simple
flamma
spell could be cast as a positive ‘F’ to light the candle and a negative ‘F’ to extinguish it. Also,
lux
can be seen as two spells, ‘L’ for the light energy plus ‘C’ for the cage it inhabits, and that’s a group.”
    “Let’s not get too complicated, here,” Ed cut in quickly. “We’re not all mathematicians.” He pointed to a gray-haired woman who was holding up her cane, but the man who had identified himself as Bryan Pritchart took the mike when it passed him on the way to her.
    “To carry Brubaker’s theory forward, I think he’s onto something,” Pritchart announced as if he were conferring an award. “We need to identify essential and innate features versus those that are merely details or personal idiosyncrasies. We have to consider diffeomorphism and topology and … Hey!”
    The woman whom Ed had called on snatched the mike out of Pritchart’s hand. “It’s my turn, young man,” she snapped and pointed her cane at him, only narrowly missing the person between them. “You youngsters always think you’re smart. You come up with these ‘formulas’ and think you’ve invented something revolutionary. Let me tell you, that is not the way people cast spells. We’ve been doing fine without the blasted thing for millennia. You ought to leave well enough alone.”
    “Look, lady,” Pritchart said, grabbing the mike back. “Casting mathematically will be the wave of the future, and I don’t intend to be left behind with the bunch of you geezers who refuse to accept the idea.”
    “See here, Pritchart, don’t talk to Mrs. Shortbottom like that.” Horner’s voice came thundering out of the loud speakers as he appropriated a microphone from a nearby usher.
    Gloriana jumped. Some audience members turned sharply, and a few snickered.
    Horner didn’t pause for breath. “She and many of us were casting spells before you were born and we’re doing all right. Forscher’s formula may look like manna from heaven to you. To the rest of us, it looks like a gift horse. Foisting it on practitioners who have no need for it is tantamount to forcing us to deny our heritage, to ignore our centuries of casting experience. I, for one, will have no part of it. Let’s go, Loretta. If we can’t carry on a decent conversation here, we’ll leave.” He