On 25 November, I defended my thesis and obtained my degree as a doctor in law during a public ceremony in the University of Amsterdam church aula. And a ceremony it was: a rather dramatic affair, complete with magic wands, fake candles, druid robes, hobbit-hats and sciency spells – all set in holy surroundings. I couldn’t have imagined a more suitable finale to the innings. Here are some pics and the slides of my introductory talk. Thanks to my Committee and all of you for being there in spirit, or in the flesh. You’ve all made this a finale I’ll always remember fondly. 

My slides give a very brief overview of some of the issues we discussed during the defense. Click on the image below to open a lowres .pdf.

The fantastic Jos Kuklewski completely rose to the occasion, and painted Rembrandt-like portraits of many of you in the audience. I won’t post them here for obvious privacy reasons. Feel free to contact me if you were there and want to see whether Jos has made a Rembrandt of you too. And remember to hir him if you’re in need of brilliant pics for your event.