Categories
links and ideas

“frank sent this”: a talk on children, education and creativity

i said it before, i don’t usually link to videos. in fact, i rarely watch them on other people’s blogs too. but this is presentation is just too important not to. here’s what ted says about sir robinson presentation:

Sir Ken Robinson makes an entertaining (and profoundly moving) case for creating an education system that nurtures creativity, rather than undermining it. With ample anecdotes and witty asides, Robinson points out the many ways our schools fail to recognize — much less cultivate — the talents of many brilliant people. “We are educating people out of their creativity,” Robinson says. The universality of his message is evidenced by its rampant popularity online. A typical review: “If you have not yet seen Sir Ken Robinson’s TED talk, please stop whatever you’re doing and watch it now.“

do that. several times.

Categories
in china

the unwritten rules of chinese culture

“… cultural interpretation is a key business skill, as your writer points out. of course, that’s easier said than done. i have studied english for more than a decade, but I still become lost in some situations.

one time i attended a housewarming party held by a foreign friend. when asked whether i wanted a second helping of food, i replied politely in the traditional chinese way: “no, thanks” which actually means “yes, i do, but just a little“. needless to add, i went home hungry, and i’m sure many foreign businessmen have gone home “hungry” too due to miscommunication.

and so, when in china, it would be wise to “ask twice” when discussing matters of import. after all, for chinese, “beating around the bush” is a form of politeness, one that saves the face. “

spotted on a letter to the editor of a local magazine.

Categories
just life

boosting family coolness since 1992

i’ve had my name on the newspaper a few times before. usually because of some tech article, postcrossing, or crocs-related interview. none of them had any special impact on my family, in fact, most of them they never knew about any of those.

the one thing that made all my cousins proud was this photo,

splashed on page 55 (i think) of a certain portuguese religion book. that girl there, drowning the plants? that’s me.

every cousin would in turn discover this picture one day and proceed to brag to the whole class they knew this girl, their cousin ana! they felt cool – and i did too :P

ps – that’s my mom on the yellow suit (hi mom!), which is ironic since she never liked having her picture taken :)

Categories
just life

meet grub

grub

lilo has been featured on flickr and anitanachina. he’s the lazy cat, our own garfield, the one who manages to stay still (ie., to resist the urge to attack the lens) long enough for me to shoot a picture.

grub is the hyper-active one (“what is this? can i see? can i see? come here!”), the one that always comes to the door when we arrive home, to promptly lay on her back and receive some patting on her belly. acting cute works everytime and she knows it :)

Categories
geek

postcrossing v2

so finally, after 1 year or so on the works (and the meter getting close to the “1 million postcards received” mark), there’s a fresh new face on postcrossing.com, and a ton of new features.

(congratulations!, maybe now we can enjoy a bit of free time? :P )