1) physical, reasons, round, universally, possible
It would work, he was sure it would. It had to be at least possible. There were always reasons - excuses, he called them - why it seemed to be universally considered a physical impossibility.
He said, quietly, that it wasn't a physical effect. Never loud enough for anyone to really hear, though. He slouched back into his seat and pushed back from the round meeting table.
2) use the phrase "there's nothing wrong with a little ..." [fill in the blank]
"There's nothing wrong with a little speculative research," he said.
"There's nothing wrong with a *little* of it, no. But ten years and not a single positive result? You need a different project."
"I'm not taking away any of your funding."
"You're affecting our reputation."
He crossed his arms. "All I want is another year in my office on campus. I'm close, I'm sure of it."
"That's what you said five years ago. Nothing in your data suggests a direction for refinement. You're still stumbling around blind."
3) Write about walking.
He stood up. "I'm following my plan, eliminating different areas one by one. Walking in different directions to explore, not stumbling."
"Uh-huh."
He turned and walked out the door. He already had his data backed up somewhere safe; every night before he left. He was never sure when he'd come in one morning and find that his office and lab locks had been changed.
