by Dwayne Phillips It sure is hard to understand fill-in-the-blank. Or is it hard to understand what someone wrote about it? I recently experimented with Jekyll. Good grief! That’s complicated! I also experimented with Git and GitHub. Good grief! Those things are complicated! And then I read several textbooks on machine learning and convolutional neural […]
Entries from November 2020
What is Complicated, the Thing or the Description of the Thing?
November 30th, 2020 · No Comments
Tags: Clarity · Learning · Simple · Teaching · Writing
Responsible Reactions
November 26th, 2020 · No Comments
by Dwayne Phillips We are responsible in that we are able to choose our response. This isn’t a new thought, but one that bears repeating. Around the first century in the world or Rome and Greece lived a man named Epictetus. He is the first persons recorded to have written the thoughts in this blog […]
Tags: Adults · Choose · Reaction
Learnering
November 23rd, 2020 · No Comments
by Dwayne Phillips After being asked the same question for years, perhaps I have found the answer to, “What is it that you do?” I have spoken to many job recruiters. I have spoken to many persons in job interviews. Some of these persons ask a variation of the question: What is it that you […]
Tags: General Systems Thinking · Learning · Management · People
Just do It! Are You Kidding?
November 19th, 2020 · No Comments
by Dwayne Phillips We “just” … Nothing is easy. We might as well describe the situation as it is. Everything is easy if someone else is supposed to do it. When I have to do it, not so easy. Yet, we describe things as easy. We’ll just do this and that and be done with […]
Tags: Authentic · Competence · Conversation · Expectations · Humility · Word
I’m Glad 2020 is Over
November 16th, 2020 · No Comments
by Dwayne Phillips The year 2020 got you down? Declare it over. Person A: I’m glad 2020 is over! Person B: Huh, we have another 6 or 8 weeks of 2020 to go. Person A: No, 2020 is over, gone. We’re in 2021 now. Person B: Huh, we, uh, what? Person A: 2020 is gone. […]
Tags: Calendar · Choose · History · Ideas · Myth · Reaction
The Essence of Data Science
November 12th, 2020 · No Comments
by Dwayne Phillips After a few years, I think I understand the essence of Data Science. It isn’t that complicated. I have been working in, around, above, below, to the side, and every which way but loose of Data Science for the past few years. Perhaps I have learned what Data Science is. There are […]
Tags: Data Science
Don’t Try So Hard
November 9th, 2020 · No Comments
by Dwayne Phillips Sometimes we are trying so hard that we fail to notice the simple and wonderful things right in front of us. Person A: I don’t see. It can’t find it. That idea, that concept, that thing that I’m trying to write. Where is it? Person B: Don’t try so hard. Person A: […]
Tags: General Systems Thinking · Notice · Observation · Thinking · Work · Writing
The Curriculum Designer
November 5th, 2020 · No Comments
by Dwayne Phillips We have a new profession in our world of virtually online distance custom learning. Don’t “go to a college” as that wastes too much money and time. Create your own training program, work hard, spend little money, get the same learning. The trouble is, if you don’t know a topic, how will […]
Tags: Education · Learning · Teaching
The Delegated Task Test
November 2nd, 2020 · No Comments
by Dwayne Phillips When delegating a task to another person, clear communication is key. It is unfortunate that clear communication is also rare. Here is a simple test. Person A: Are you doing task such-and-such? Person B: Not myself. I delegated task such-and-such to Person C. Person A: Oh, good. Task such-and-such is intricate and […]
Tags: Clarity · Communication · Testing · Work