A little over a year ago, I wrote a post in which I speculated about whether 88 Wharf was going out of business. I had liked this Milton restaurant a lot back in 2009–2011, but by 2012 it had gone downhill…. Read More ›
Month: February 2014
“Off-track geometry”
JD2718 is always worth reading. I used to know his real name, but I’ve lost track of it. No matter; he teaches geometry, studies cryptography, and just turned 50, so we know he’s a good guy. A few months ago… Read More ›
Voynich
“A mysterious document that has bedeviled scholars and top cryptographers for more than a century,” says the Boston Globe. Is it written in code? Is it art? How old is it? Read the article for some tantalizing information — and lack of… Read More ›
What do teachers do?
Must reading: The Teachers, by Sarah Blaine. Click on the link. Go read it before you get any further in this post…. … Finished? Read Blaine’s last paragraph again: The problem with teaching as a profession is that every single… Read More ›
Why private schools are better than public schools…or are they?
Everyone knows that private schools are better than public schools, right? Of course that’s a gross generalization — for instance, no one would claim that a third-rate private school is better than Weston High School — but surely it’s true… Read More ›
Don’t keep calm.
A refreshing change:
The Outer Limits of Reason
Science and math can tell us everything there is to know about the universe, right? There must be people who believe that. If such people exist, they should definitely run out and read Noson Yanofsky’s new book, The Outer Limits of… Read More ›
What works in education
It’s hard to know where to begin this post. Perhaps I should simply ask you to read “What works in education” by Grant Wiggins — including the comments. Wiggins discusses John Hattie’s extensive statistical studies that compare the effectiveness of… Read More ›
William in a box
I guess William wants to be sent by Priority Mail.
Bring Your Own Technology: A brief progress report
Six months ago I wrote a post about the “Bring Your Own Technology” initiative at Weston (BYOT). It’s time for an informal progress report (from my own point of view — which of course is objective and completely unbiased). On the… Read More ›
Come to the Fair!
Come visit Weston’s Twelfth Annual Fractal Fair, which is being held on Valentine’s Day this year! That’s Friday, February 14, 10:05-12:15 in the Weston High School Library. The exhibits and presentations by 70 Honors Precalculus students (mostly juniors) will focus on… Read More ›
Affluenza
I’m uncharacteristically speechless. As Dr. Boyce Watkins puts it, “Rich, white kids have ‘affluenza,’ poor, black kids go to prison.” Here’s the story: A wealthy teen who killed four people in a Texas drunk driving accident will not go to… Read More ›
Jamaica Plain: No comment.
So I’m in the lobby outside Bella Luna Restaurant in the Brewery Small Business Complex in Jamaica Plain, looking at the bulletin board, and I spot the juxtaposition of these two notices on their community bulletin board. I’ve drawn blue… Read More ›
Suppose math tells you something that goes against your preconceived beliefs. What do you do?
Yale Law School’s Dan Kahan and three other researchers make the case that those more skilled at math are less likely to come to the correct conclusion on controversial matters—even when the numbers to support that conclusion are clear, empirical,… Read More ›
Cryptology? Cryptography? Crypto?
One of my students claimed that I was being inconsistent because I sometimes wrote cryptology, sometimes cryptography, and sometimes just crypto. What’s going on here? I suppose I could quote Walt Whitman on the subject of contradicting myself, or I could quote Emerson on the subject… Read More ›
Learning Strategies 