Inside View

Learned about uplifting vlogger h/t @ArcticKnave

IT WASN'T UNTIL the eagle-eyed Peter Curran presented his findings on The Inevitable topic of interacting that I was aware of how Barbie Vlogs could brighten our sitting room through its mantra of "positive attitude changes everything". Although I will admit that nobody in our home is the target audience of this virtual host.

Listening to pandemic survivors #COVID19

I HAVE BOOKS on my shelves that teach me lessons from generations ago. One of those books is written by Thucydides who explains how the citizens of Athens survived a major pandemic in the fifth century. The story is wonderfully told during a two part Ideas Podcast from the CBC. (Subscribe to Ideas from the CBC.)

Getting Paid to Read

I HAVE A 12 YR OLD daughter who reads 300 pages a day because she loves the written word. I plan to pay her a tenner whenever she ploughs through a recommended text that we can use as a springboard for a recorded discussion. We have a big collection of Young Adult titles. I also want to introduce Mia to some selections that show her more about the life I had in the States.

Now Automating Checklist Reminders h/t @tinnion #GTD

I'M TRYING TO IMPROVE my productivity by automating a series of important reminders, some stemming from a daily task list and others related to a lifelong goal of finishing critical tasks on time. As the above image shows, I've been checklisting from before touchscreens. It often helps me to talk to myself about my progress, as I did during Topgold Audio Clip 531.

Listen to "Echo Show and Bixby Checklists E531" on Spreaker.

Continue to be impressed by @otter_ai

I KNOW IT'S important to offer more than one way of consuming educational material and that's why I'm trying to perfect a workflow that ensures I've a quick-hitting text version of my course materials.

Teaching Lessons in Social Capital

I AM A BELIEVER in the value of social capital. I wish I was better at cultivating it, especially during the post-COVID era when face to face meet-ups have become preciously rare. It's a thought shared by Bill Thompson during the 2020 running of #audiomo and one I talked about in my own podcast below the fold.

Interacting with Tadhg

I STARTED THIS run of text while deeply involved in back-to-back emergency remote teaching. I needed a place to keep text separate from Zoom-equipped laptop while connecting to students outside (above). This is what I wrote for a rundown with Tadhg Briody.

Set Piece from a Locked Down Semester #clonmeldigital

SPRING SEMESTER 2020 enjoys historic standing as the time traditional academics pivoted dramatically into an emergency remote mode. Fortunately for me, I had 20 students near the finish line of the "Emerging Trends and Technologies" module who could produce a set piece that will enjoy critical appraisal whenever anybody looks back at what might be possible through a distance education collaboration of students.

Another Chilling ICU Story h/t @jameshamblin @katlwells

DOCTOR HANDSOME aka James Hamblin (the Preventive Medicine doctor above) and Nervous Nelly aka Katherine Wells (executive producer of many creative things) join me many mornings as I walk our Bedlington Terrier on a tightly constrained two km radius of our home in Ireland. I listen to their prescriptions for Social Distance, because their podcast from The Atlantic seems to drop into my podcatcher around sunrise many mornings just as our dog announces it's time. This morning, I reinforced my prejudice against being admitted to the hospital for something as critical as COVID-19. Actually, I became more acutely aware of underlying conditions that erode my health.

Sunday Reads are Best Long Reads

I'm rarely disappointed when the same long reads appear in both my podcatcher and my blog reader. I recommend a long read from both The Daily and Audm about astronomy and extrasolar planetary science. Few astronomers have contributed to exoplanet research as mightily as Dr. Sara Seager of MIT.

You can hear the brilliant story about The Woman Who Might Find Another Earth" by subscribing to The Daily on all good podcast networks.

Sara Seager