No 32. — 🤔 Twelve questions 📟 Nokiawave 🎄 [little tree]

What, at this moment, am I meant to know

My name is Linda. I write a bi-weekly newsletter about computer science, childhood and culture - and there are 9585 of you listening. If you enjoy this issue, please share it with anyone you think may find it useful.

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Joyeuses fêtes de fin d’année! I’m writing this back in Helsinki, where sun sets at 3.13 PM. I’ve been working on my annual end of year review post. It takes several days, but I love how the fermenting always produces insights and ideas about themes that have meant something to me during the year.

But before that, questions. Asking great questions is not celebrated enough and there are lot of benefit to keeping a loglist of questions (see the famous Patrick Collision list of questions he finds interesting). Sometimes the framing of a question helps scope the problem, sometimes it even suggests a solution.

So 12 open questions I’ve been thinking about during 2021:

• How to design products (playgrounds?) that learn? (by Oio Studios)

• What’s unique about computer science education compared to other DBERs (discipline based education research, like math, physics and engineering education)? (by Mark Guzdial)

• How can playgrounds connect to social learning experiences? How can they respond to the needs of individual learners? (modified from Andy Matuschak’s book questions.)

• What are the criticisms of my own work that I find most interesting? (by Devon Zuegel)

• Who are the non-intuitive entrants to the world of education? (by Ben Nelson)

• Does using this technology require me to think more or less? What would the world be like if everyone used this technology exactly as I am using it? (by L.M Sacasasa’s 41 questions on technology)

• When is it better to work on things secretly and when in the open? (by Ben Reinhardt)

• How do we help more experimental schools get started? What can we learn from some of the most imaginative research labs? (modified from Molly Mielke)

• How can internet learning be better? (by Hyperlink Academy)

• What are things I know I don’t know enough about? (modified from a list Eric Weinstein kept)

• Will this enlarge me or diminish me? (by Oliver Burkeman)

• What, at this moment, am I meant to know? (by W.H. Auden)

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Linked List

In computer science, a linked list is a linear collection of data elements whose order is not given by their physical placement in memory. But here it is a selection of things I’ve been reading lately.

• A new word: Nokiawave, “a subgenre investigating common cinematic motifs and tropes such as borders and motion, espionage and paranoia, city grids and network infrastructures, technology, and the role of administration.”

• Understanding Zero-knowledge proofs through illustrated examples by Nicole Zhu makes me want to start work on a cryptography themed Hello Ruby, maybe with a little stencil, play doh and other props..

• I had no idea NFC-stickers are this cheap nowadays (like less than €0.3). I absolutely love stickers as a technology and projects like this make my brain purr.

• Time for the Little Tree by e.e.cummings. little silent Christmas tree / you are so little / you are more like a flower

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Classroom

I’m hoping to surface and share stories from all of you and I’d love to see your creations! Here are a few teachers using Ruby in creative, fun and inspiring ways:

My friends at upiopi are offering a live online Hello Ruby -themed after school program for 5-7 year old children which you might want to check out. It runs from 6th to 20th of January (with 3 x 45min lessons) 

moi.e.class

A post shared by モイ・e・クラス (@moi.e.class)

This creative, wintery greeting comes from Hokkaido, Japan and utilises the ending of the third Ruby book in a heartwarming way.

eperinda

A post shared by Kovács Anita (@eperinda)

These gingerbread cookies reimagine the CPU and GPU in a lovely way!

Irene G. Abeledo @AbeledoHBST

@HbstLara @HBSTORREJON @jchbst preciosas postales con los amigos de @hellorubyworld en 1.° y 2.° Primaria @HbstLara @HBSTORREJON #RoboticsHBST

These creative holiday card designs from Spain are based on these designs you can print out.