The tales of Japan can be both motivational and cautionary. I love Japan as a tourist, its culture and its people. In the past, I used to associate Japan with productivity, but now I find it something different. If there is such a thing as working-class aristocracy, I think it can be found in Japan. …
Being overwhelmed: Paris syndrome
When I drive I occasionally listen to the radio. One of the shows discussed a syndrome called by the name of a city. I knew nothing about it, but once I hear something I remember. So I checked out here, here, and here and decided to write about similar experiences. To see Paris and die …
Extra meaning: experts and dilemmas
Suppose you have an absolutely wonderful idea. You are afraid someone will steal it. You share the idea with people you trust the most. And they give you a cold shower. Probably this will have a strong effect on your confidence… But really, should it? Today’s reading can be found here, here, here, here, here, …
Using a reading diary: 5 types of diary
One of the important skills for massive speedreading is reading diary maintenance. The subject sounds a bit dull, but it is more important and more complex than it appears. Occasionally I write articles about various kinds of reading diaries. Here I want to focus on getting the best return on the time invested maintaining such …
The holes in our knowledge are like bugs in a weather-sealed lens
A saw a story about bugs living inside a weather-sealed lens. That’s a place where there should be no bug of any kind, and yet they were there. What else do we miss? How often do we see profoundly rare outliers? More reading here, here, here, here, here, and here. Visualizations created by life itself …
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Addicted to comfort
I am addicted to comfort, and here I acknowledge that I have a problem. Why do I say that and how can I treat it? Let us discuss it together. I think the issues are quite common for people over 40. Today you are invited to read here, here, here, here, here, and here. Long …
Physical meaning method
When looking for visual associations we can use the physical meaning of the concept. This method was so intuitive for me, that I never actually wrote about it. Only recently a student helped me figured out it is not used enough, and that very simple words are totally abstract for many students. I will use an …
Alternative facts and wise decisions
With facts, “alternative facts” and statistics, how can we make wise decisions? Which numbers can be trusted? This article focuses on decision making. Today I welcome you to read here, here, here, and here. Decision making vs information gathering When we make decisions we can be biased. In fact, it makes sense to be biased. …
Patterns in history: War and weather
I love history. When learning history, I try to capture long-term patterns and remember events through these patterns. Unlike conspiration theorists, I do not assume these patterns have meaning beyond mnemonic devices. And then again… 9/11 and temperature History is full of patterns. Some of these patterns are real, others are like objects we tend …
Learn to speedread better from synchronous translation
Language is one of the primary tools in any career. We use language to formulate ideas, collaborate, express ourselves, and inspire others. There is a group of people who use language differently and spectacularly. Moreover, all of us can learn from them. These are the professionals involved in synchronous translation. Read more here, here, here, and …
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