First Blog

Learning is the task of schools and us all.  Yet, learning has its own components: memory, understanding, application. The first step, memory, precludes all others.  A person with no memory of the “something” can never learn much about anything. From memory, a student has a chance of understanding through various mechanisms, not the least important of which is analogy through previously understood concepts.  Thus, understanding and learning are bootstrapping processes. But now comes the most important stage of learning, and that is applications or better known as problem-solving.  We  conclude… The greatest learning engine is problem-solving.  Give a lecture and only a fraction learn. Call for a group involvement and more learn.  Ask them to solve a problem, and all learn. Not solving a problem is a key learning experience.  It exposes gaps in understanding. It points to needs.  It is an essent...

Bad teachers are worse than tyrants in a way.   The tyrant will usually ruin one generation in huge numbers.   Bad teachers don’t make those numbers, but can ruin two or three generations in their tenure. Bad teachers favor turning the lecturn into a pulpit. Bad teachers look at students as does the vampire, tasty things fit for consumption.

Poor little thing. It has at best a 0.01% chance of survival to adulthood. This is 1 in 10,000. (This is far less than you might read. And it is almost all predation with some harvesting.)

Learning is the goal of schools.  Yet, learning has its own components: memory, understanding, application.  The first step, memory, precludes all others.   A person with no memory of the “something” can never learn much about it. From memory, a student has a chance of understanding through various mechanisms, not the least important of which is analogy through previously understood concepts.   Thus, understanding is a bootstrapping process. But now comes the most important stage of learning, and that is problem-solving.   We   conclude… The greatest learning engine is problem-solving.  Give a lecture and only a fraction remember. Call for a group discussion and more remember.  Ask them to solve a problem, and all remember - and learn.

Opportunity knocks but doesn't make house calls.

Today, we are discussing all those cameras being placed all over our cities.   Officials tell us it's for our protection.   Citizens are worried. Movements are afoot to reduce this camera presence.   Is it justified?   Remember, its not just the picture, it what comes with it. Pictures plus a thousand words?   Artificial Intelligence (AI) can put together your picture with all your personal data. Subversives should be nervous.   So should we all. Dossiers for all. In the West we need to trust our government to restrain its natural instincts to use any information they have to stay in power.   The comes to ethics, and ethics is rapidly becoming a theoretical subject, a historical artifact, a quaint quality. Deprecated at last review.     I don’t care what your politics.   Can you say with certainty your party would not use this information to track political opponents in looking for damaging information?   Like the old song,...

The Dark Side of Big Data, IV – Deadly Algorithms It is important to look in advance of the information, to establish what is possible before the possibility becomes reality. Every truth discovered begins as a possibility. The promise of artificial intelligence (AI) and big data is that it takes the human out of the decision process.   The promised truth of AI (the algorithms) in tandem with big data is better analysis, faster execution of decisions, safer driving, correct diagnoses, or whatever lies on the table.   What could be bad about that? Everyone has heard of algorithmic data analysis with built-in triggers for action.   The most prominent example is with the stock market.   Algorithms are so entrenched within the buy-sell patterns, many brokerage firms are now controlled by news reports and financial input for potential transactions. Oil problems in the Middle East signals sell, and baby, they sell.   China trade deal is near signals buy, and ...

In education as in medical care, there is so much government money it has become a "neon welcome sign" for every fraudster, pitchman, politician, ed-author, and peddler looking for a quick buck or more influence. They offer easy cures, cheap fixes, and sure-fire programs. While data should prove points and move arguments, it is more often misused, fudged, disguised, forgotten, or ignored. So, forget data! The pissing contest in education is all about liquefied data. Experts tell us, "Charter schools, yes! Public schools, yes! Counselling services, yes! More equipment, yes! Higher salaries, yes! Stronger unions, yes! Smaller classes, yes! More testing, yes! Less testing, yes! Group learning, yes/no!” To be honest, there are too many tricksters, some massaging data, some taking fees, some writing books, some supporting political parties, and others gathering votes. The whole pot is something of an expensive, mostly tasteless, non nutritious stew - served to ...

I'm not talking about climate change or global warming here.  Our discussion is about climate risk.  Just a couple of decades past, all the buzz was about global cooling. Now it is about warming.   Unhappily politicians have become involved.  You must ask yourself, and answer honestly.  If I support party A and they claim this, do I believe them?  Or if I support party B, and they believe the opposite, do I believe that?  Short answer.  Believe neither.  Any politician supporting or denying "climate risk" is being political, not scientific.   NOBODY understands it.   If you really want to know, here's a very short list what to do and know. Remove most of the $$$. Establish theories of reflectivity of solar energy by atmospheric particle suspension, particulate and aerosol (micro and nano). Understand the nature of oceanic currents, historic and current. Establish consistent locations and equipment for thermal mea...

Today’s word is passion : as emotion, an intense, driving, or overmastering feeling or conviction. Notes : If you listen to business shows and the entrepreneurs they interview, you will note one characteristic they all have about their businesses and what they view makes them successful.  Passion.  They always had passion. Passion compels its holder to work harder, work smarter, and work longer. It gives a sense of mission, of caring, and of importance. It makes the labor easier, hours shorter, and satisfaction greater.  Passion is an important component of all success. Do you have passion for what you do?  If no, then consider a switch. Does passion create success, or does success engender passion?  Maybe a little of both. History shows passion is a quality that perseveres without success.  Yet, a little success surely helps your passion IQ.  On the other hand, success without passion is less certain. Get passion. 

Here’s the title of a book from the educational world, Dystopic Optimism and Postalgic Realism in University Life.   What on earth does this mean? Dystopic : referencing  an  imaginary   place  or  situation  in which everything in  society  is  extremely   bad . Postalgic  - The good old days yet to come. (compare: nostalgic) So, it seems like this is an academic crisis book about what in university life is now not good but promoting optimism that it will be better in the future.  Wow.  Both words are not really in the dictionary.  This does not stop academic types. They like big words no one understands.  Sells  books. Makes them feel smart. Trivial usage : I feel so  postaligic  about taking out the trash this morning, which will be collected this afternoon. This evening, I will have nostalgic   twinges   about my now gone-forever tra...

Educational experts always wax on about their pedagogies, their philosophies, and their whatever-centered teaching.  They rarely discuss the classroom itself except for their dreamy platform where all parties learn together.  This simply equivocates the dumbest with the  smartest.  Most forget, the teacher is the expert and is supposed to be. Students don’t want to  challenge an equal, they want to test their new knowledge and abilities against a true source of knowledge. But do teachers want to be challenged?  So,  ... On education.   (For teachers and students alike.) If you don’t challenge your teacher by the time you‘re senior, maybe you’re too scared. Not good. If your teacher doesn’t encourage challenges, maybe he/she is too scared. Worse. -------------------------- On Life. (Helping you get all the way to tomorrow.) Important it is to reflect on every day.   Look for progress, love, and happiness. These give las...

Love life and it just may love you back.