Inside View

Feeling for Millennials Left Behind by New Social Order

WHILE READING MAX READ in the New York Times Opinion section, my thoughts go out to all the millennials who have passed through my social networking classes.

Here's what Max Read shared in the NYT:

Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses First Impressions

by Bernie Goldbach in Clonmel

WE GOT TWO Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses and I believe they are the best piece of tech I've purchased this year. Their design, audio performance, camera quality, and charging case deliver value for the €495 I spent to get the two sets of glasses. And I believe I will open new opportunities to spam friends with live streams before the end of the spring semester 2024.

I discovered a few things during the first two days of ownership.

TL;DR This is the time for you to consider wearing connected eyeglasses as you walk, run, and drive.

Higher Education For Good Launches

by Bernie Goldbach in Clonmel

CATHERINE CRONIN launches Higher Education for Good in Galway today and I've asked our main library to add the book to our local reference section. In the book, editors Catherine Cronin and Laura Czerniewicz break down neoliberalism in higher education through a critical lens. They argue that the neoliberal influence has led to a pervasive austerity logic that constricts not just budgets, but every facet of what higher education does.

Christmas Approaching and I Need MX Anywhere Mouse

by Bernie Goldbach in Clonmel

I NEED A NEW Logitech MX Anywhere mouse because my long-serving Logitech MX Anywhere 2 has walked away from one of my classrooms. I used that faithful mouse for more than six years and want to replace it with a newer and pinker version of itself.

Yes, kids, Twitter Used to Be Great

I REMEMBER NOVEMBER 2006 as the month when a dozen students in one of my university classrooms were comparing and contrasting Twitter to Jaiku. Both were simple microblogging services that were redefining how we consumed and shared information. Both are gone now.

Ireland's Ban on Smartphones for Pre-Teens

by Bernie Goldbach in Clonmel

WE HAVE A tech-savvy 12yo in our home and he's facing restrictions on his use of a smartphone while on school grounds. Even though he doesn't bring a phone to school, he's watching with interest as the Irish Minister for Education Norma Foley writes a memo to Cabinet. The Minister wants a nationwide policy where parents are discouraged from buying smartphones for children of primary age.

What if the King could just turn a wheel

by Bernie Goldbach in Clonmel

WHILE CHATTING WITH Larry Maguire, he scrolled back before the Industrial Revolution and asked a thought-provoking question, "What would it mean for humanity if the King of England could just sit on his throne and turn a wheel to produce whatever he needs for his kingdom?" I thought of the time I walked the crypt of Canterbury (above) where I snapped a shot of a window that appears to be a representation of cogs on a wheel.

Bernie's Knowledge Management Tools #PKM

by Bernie Goldbach in Clonmel

FOR THE PAST THREE MONTHS I have wanted to identify the core tools I use to manage and curate my personal knowledge management PKM system. 

TL;DR Readwise, Instapaper, Mem, and Obsidian are my key PKM services.

Hope in Higher Education for Good

"Hope" by George Sfougaras 

I SPENT A WHOLE DAY reading hundreds of pages of Higher Education for Good, an outstanding compendium of writing, sketches, and thoughtful ideas edited by Catherine Cronin and Laura Czerniewicz.

Many of the illustrations moved me, including this sketch of "Hope" by George Sfougaras. His explanation is equally moving.

 

Generous Irish Refugee Offers Coming Under Fire

by Bernie Goldbach in Clonmel

I LISTEN TO BANTER about living in Ireland and during the past three months, the temperature has gone up with Ireland continuing to make generous offers for accommodation to refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine. This week,  a heated row erupted between Irish Ministers. [1] Coincidentally, I was working with colleagues in the Netherlands and in Finland as we questioned the level of refugees that European countries should accept. 

If the EU average of five immigrants per 1000 inhabitants was the level accommodated by Ireland, the pressures on social welfare and housing would dop significantly. According to Eurostat, Ireland is accepting 15 immigrants per 1000 inhabitants. [2] This is significantly higher than the immigration numbers from 2015.