Index: doc/theses/mike_brooks_MMath/benchmarks/list/Makefile
===================================================================
--- doc/theses/mike_brooks_MMath/benchmarks/list/Makefile	(revision b0be909fc61fcfe348811de2e8bd3d9c5c30cc8a)
+++ doc/theses/mike_brooks_MMath/benchmarks/list/Makefile	(revision fdc042d752e4d0d4e27f8bb544c73f0b9a8296cc)
@@ -103,4 +103,13 @@
 perfexp--%     driver--%.o     : COMPILER=NO-COMPILER-FOR-$(FX_COARSE)
 
+# Without this %.d rule, ordinary make runs have noise about the recipe for driver--%.o being ill-formed when called on a *.d.
+# https://stackoverflow.com/questions/3714041/why-does-this-makefile-execute-a-target-on-make-clean
+# Whatever you -include gets called as a target first.
+# One such example is driver--upp-upp--stack-insfirst-allhead.d
+# Without this %.d rule, `make make driver--upp-upp--stack-insfirst-allhead.d` leads to the rule for driver--%.o firing.
+# Though my dumb human eyes don't see the pattern as matching.
+%.d:
+	@touch $@
+
 perfexp--% : driver--%.o observation.o
 	$(COMPILER) $(EXTRA_COMP_FLAGS) $^ -o $@