Learning Strategies

Recent Posts - page 15

• You think it’s a coincidence…

  By ljd42 on July 5, 2023

  

  In my post of June 25 I wrote: Was “42” ever a Jeopardy clue? If so, I suspect that most readers of this blog would respond with “What is the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and… Read More ›

• Instead of the Neponset Cafe…

  By ljd42 on July 4, 2023

  

  Barbara and I used to go to our local Neponset Cafe (the Dorchester one by that name) whenever we needed a ramen fix, as their ramen was the best around. But alas they were another victim of the pandemic and… Read More ›

• Fireworks

  By ljd42 on July 3, 2023

  

  And not just puppies. Cats too. Not to mention veterans who suffer from PTSD. And homes that catch fire because of fireworks. Leave the fireworks to the official sites!

• Flicka says…

  By ljd42 on July 2, 2023

  

  Flicka says that I don’t really want to sit in my favorite chair. And that I take altogether too many pictures of her brother anyway, so she needs an opportunity to show off her extra toes and her stripey nose.

• What do you do when you’re too exhausted to cook?

  By ljd42 on July 1, 2023

  

  So…think about this schedule: you teach a one-hour class of 33 high-school juniors, immediately followed by a one-hour faculty meeting in a different building, immediately followed by a four-hour class of 39 high-school sophomores in yet a third building! And… Read More ›

• Somebody is confused.

  By ljd42 on June 28, 2023

  

• 42

  By ljd42 on June 25, 2023

  

  Was “42” ever a Jeopardy clue? If so, I suspect that most readers of this blog would respond with “What is the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything?” or maybe just “What is the meaning… Read More ›

• Where do you go for that special occasion?

  By ljd42 on June 23, 2023

  

  It used to be easy. We always went to the Ashmont Grill. Sadly, the Grill is no more. Happily, there is Tavolo. Same owner, same manager, some of the same staff. So we went to Tavolo for our special occasion… Read More ›

• Randy Rainbow for President!

  By ljd42 on June 20, 2023

• What happened in Peekskill? And why have I never learned this?

  By ljd42 on June 18, 2023

  

  All across the nation the people heard the taleAnd marveled at the concert, and knew we had not failedWe shed our blood at Peekskill, and suffered many a painBut we beat back the fascists and we’ll beat them back again!… Read More ›

• Listen to Me

  By ljd42 on June 15, 2023

  

  No, not the movie by the same name. I’m talking about Tess Gerritsen’s excellent new Rizzoli and Isles novel. As you expect from a Rizzoli and Isles story, there is a medical angle to the plot of Listen to Me…. Read More ›

• Rethinking grading

  By ljd42 on June 12, 2023

  

  “You got an A in Algebra One in your previous school, but you clearly don’t know very much algebra. How did you get that A?” was my question to a certain high-school freshman I was teaching. No, it was not… Read More ›

• The Freedom Caucus shouts “Ban these books! It’s the American Way! Freedom!!!”

  By ljd42 on June 10, 2023

  

  What does it remind you of? 1984? Fahrenheit 451? I don’t mean that people want to ban those particular books (though I’m sure they do); I mean that both of them are cautionary tales that remind you of the dangers… Read More ›

• Don’t forget to make reservations!

  By ljd42 on June 8, 2023

  

  So here we are, eating a delicious dinner at our third monthly visit to Via Cannuccia, and we look out the front window. We see three reservationless couples on the sidewalk waiting patiently for a table to open up; they… Read More ›

• Like, Literally, Dude: Arguing for the Good in Bad English

  By ljd42 on June 7, 2023

  

  If you enjoy the English language, but aren’t a professional linguist, you will definitely enjoy this book. If you are sometimes, often, or (yikes) always a prescriptivist, but have an open mind, you’ll not only enjoy it but will also… Read More ›

• Finland is part of Scandinavia, isn’t it? And Finnish is a Scandinavian language, isn’t it? Well…no.

  By ljd42 on June 5, 2023

  

  More than 90% of Americans believe that Finland is part of Scandinavia and that Finnish is consequently a Scandinavian language. Actually, I made up that “more than 90%” claim. But it wouldn’t surprise me at all if it turned out… Read More ›

• Among mysteries, novels are usually better than short stories. In science fiction, short stories are most often better than novels.

  By ljd42 on June 3, 2023

  

  IMHO, the claim in the overly long title to this post is correct. YMMV, of course. If you agree with my conclusion, the natural question is to ask why this should be so. Here we have two similar, occasionally even… Read More ›

• A new Agatha Christie? How can that be?

  By ljd42 on June 1, 2023

  

  What have we here? It’s apparently a new collection of short stories by Agatha Christie (who died 47 years ago). Something is amiss! Midsummer Mysteries, subtitled Tales from the Queen of Mystery, is indeed marketed as a new collection of… Read More ›

• Some experiences with ChatGPT

  By ljd42 on May 31, 2023

  

  In recent months I’ve been desultorily exploring ChatGPT, for better or for worse. In the following examples you might want to note GPT’s impressive use of English syntax and vocabulary, combined with an impressive amount of lying/inaccurate facts: Finally, as… Read More ›

• Just Thai Kitchen keeps getting better and better…

  By ljd42 on May 29, 2023

  

  Now with more local competition, Just Thai Kitchen is even better and has a greatly enlarged menu. No way to try everything! Barbara and I decided to get delivery from there last night. We chose three old favorites and two… Read More ›

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