that is asking?’ is one of the things that distinguishes mankind from, say, cuttlefish.23 The wizards from Unseen University, being perhaps the intellectual cream or certainly the cerebral yoghurt of their generation, passed through this stage within minutes. Wizards are very adept at certain ideas. One minute you’re arguing over the shape of a duck’s head and the next there are people telling you you’ve been inside a rock for thousands of years because time goes slower on the inside. This presents no great problem for a man who has found his way to the lavatory at Unseen University.24 There were more important questions as they sat round the table in BU. ‘Is there anything to eat?’ said Ridcully. ‘It’s the middle of the night, sir.’ ‘You mean we missed dinner?’ ‘Thousands of years of dinners, Archchancellor.’ ‘Really? Better start catching up, then, Mister Stibbons. Still . . . nice little place you’ve got here .
