In my computer graphics research, a lot of the effort just goes into figuring out math. The math is the hard (and interesting) part. Once you get the math right, programming the computer to do what you want is fairly straightforward.
I find that airplane rides are just about the best place to figure out those math problems. You can’t really do anything else, you’re basically stuck for a few hours in a place where you don’t want to be, and the best thing you can do is to mentally be elsewhere.
Math is perfect for that. When I’m trying to figure out the mathematics behind some computer graphics thing, I completely tune out everything else.
And that includes all of the annoyances that go along with being stuck in an airplane seat. Before I know it, I’m at my destination, and I’ve solved the math problem.
I guess the moral is this: Wherever you are, math is a great place to visit.