There's nothing quite so gratifying as finding out that a student I've worked with for years, and who I know has overcome much, is receiving a well-deserved honor. It reminds me why I do this. Go forth and fly (in an airplane, to another… View More

Some tasks we do so often that it's worth taking a few minutes or hours to streamline the activity, saving minutes and hours down the line. During my work day, I generally live in Terra Dotta, the online software often used for study abroad management. Terra Dotta is powerful but sometimes navigating between sections of the system is a bit slower than I'd like, so it's a bright opportunity for streamlining. In particular, three… View More

Previously, I outlined how to use AutoHotKey (AHK) to speed up access to searches in the study abroad software Terra Dotta, and speed up various other functions. AHK is only available for PC, but luckily it turns out that we can use Keyboard Maestro to replicate the same functions. First, the sad news is that Keyboard Maestro isn't a free option like AHK. Initially, I tried… View More

On the… View More

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This week I decided to get serious with studying Japanese and started with Wanikani, an online system for learning kanji. Using a system of mnemonics and spaced repetition software (SRS) WK is designed to help you learn radicals, kanji, and compounds. First, you cram the new material into your brain, and then a few hours later WK will quiz you. Do well, and it'll extend the time until it asks you again. Miss one, and you'll see it again… View More

The whole arrangement seemed so straightforward. We bloggers simply shared what we thought was interesting or helpful, and whoever agreed would congregate around, and we’d have a good talk about it, or maybe just think about it at work that day. The blog was just a microphone, and the internet only an aid to sharing our thoughts, like we had always done, in cars, in pubs, in school. From:… View More

Much like research 50+ years ago was mistreating the research subjects, internet service providers (social media etc.) are mistreating users through engagement goals at the expense of mental health, monetization of data, and other forms of data mining. Expecting individual users to be experts on the practices and outcomes for every online service is unrealistic. Research needs an IRB (institutional review board) approval, why can't we do the… View More

Happy lazy… View More

Last Caturday before school starts… View More