Cheery Tuesday greetings from Learning How to Learn! Apr 19, 2016

Cheery Tuesday greetings to our Learning How to Learners!

Taiwan MOOCs!

It’s another early greeting for you all this week! This time, our message is early because Barb’s just arriving in Taiwan to help introduce an International Conference on MOOCs which runs on April 21 and 22nd. The Taiwanese government is visionary in their emphasis on the value of online education—if you happen to be able to attend, Barb would love to meet you!

Remember that Learning How to Learn has an simplified Chinese version of the entire course: 学会如何学习：帮助你掌握复杂学科的强大智力工具. The traditional Chinese version of the course supplemental text, A Mind for Numbers, is 用對腦，從此不再怕數字：學會如何學習，以如何創意思考，解決(幾乎)所有的問題. The simplified Chinese version of A Mind for Numbers will be coming soon. (The meticulous publisher, China Machine Press, has worked with Barb to prepare some special extras that you’ll enjoy).

Barb in Colombia (Bogotá and Medellín)

And yes, right after Taiwan, Barb will be off to speak in beautiful Colombia to celebrate the 25th anniversary of COLFUTURO. This fantastic organization provides financial support to help Colombian citizens access high-quality postgraduate study programs abroad. Here’s some information about Barb’s itinerary to support COLFUTURO in Colombia by helping spread information about learning. Barb would love to meet you, so if you are in Colombia, please plan to attend one of her talks!

We should point out that Learning How to Learn’s complete Spanish version of the course, Aprendiendo a aprender, which includes all quizzes and webpages in Spanish, is exploding in popularity. So is the Spanish version of the course supplemental text, Abre Tu Mente A Los Números. If you’re a Spanish speaker, or have Spanish speaking friends, these are for you (and your friends)!

Our new Spanish Lead, who will complement Terry and Barb’s instruction on the Spanish platform, is Orlando Trejo, a Professor of Engineering at the Universidad Simon Bolivar in Venezuela. Orlando has a wonderful heart, and he is dedicated to helping Latin Americans improve their learning. Sign up for Aprendiendo a aprender and you will soon begin receiving Orlando’s emails about learning in the Spanish-speaking world!

Exercise and a Healthy Brain

Here’s an interesting article from Gretchen Reynolds of the New York Times: “Walk, Jog or Dance: It’s All Good for the Aging Brain.” As she notes: “It turns out that regular walking, cycling, swimming, dancing and even gardening may substantially reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s.” That’s a very big deal! If you’ve been toying with the idea of taking dancing lessons, let this email give you the final nudge. And if you haven’t been thinking of exercise lately, let this email be your initial nudge.

Of course, we can learn even more about exercise’s importance from MOOCs. Here are interesting upcoming MOOCs from the University of Edinburgh-Coursera: “Sit Less, Get Active,” which starts on May 1st; and “Exercise Prescription for the Prevention and Treatment of Disease,” from Trinity College Dublin-FutureLearn, which just started on April 18.

Our favorite book on the value of exercise is Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain. (Just skim the in-depth science parts if it gets a bit deep for you.) Exercise allows new neurons to sprout—learning on top of exercise helps those new neurons to survive and thrive.

Amy Alkon’s HumanLab: The Science Between Us

One of the most perceptive writers we know of is Amy Alkon, who specializes in understanding the science behind human interactions. Here’s an interview of Amy and Barb discussing how to be more productive at work. Remember, part of the reason we want to be more productive is so that we’ll have more time to play. Actually, giving yourself time to play also helps you be more productive when you’re working.

Here are two of Amy’s thought-provoking, marvelously funny books: I See Rude People: One woman’s battle to beat some manners into impolite society and Good Manners for Nice People Who Sometimes Say F*ck.

Have a happy week in Learning How to Learn!

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