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> That design was heavily based off of number theoretical knowledge I had to dust off

The fact you had to "dust it off" implies that it was not top of mind, which is precisely the argument people have been making; that it's not top of mind, and need not be because it can be "dust[ed] off", and that investing months in prep just to pass an arbitrary hoop is a waste of time.

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I'd argue that if you don't regularly dust it off, you'll forget it. The only reason I remember most of that stuff is because from time to time, I go back and read crypto papers, and then need to refresh my memory.

Think about any foreign languages you learned in high school. If you have never used them in 10+ years, it is very unlikely you'll be able to 'dust off' your second language as languages acquired late tend to require regular use before amnesia sets in.

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