It’s taking me a long time to overcome decades of muscle memory associated with hunt-and-peck typing and become a touch typist. After trying out several online typing trainers, I've settled on Monkeytype. Its easy-to-use interface, helpful feedback, and diverse range of exercises have made it my go-to resource. By spending just five minutes a day on the site, I'm slowly but surely improving my typing skills. — MF
My friend Jean told me about The Cabinet of Wikipedian Curiosities, a web page of interesting bits, lists, and links culled from the open source encyclopedia.
Samples:
In 1897, Indiana nearly legally declared pi to be equal to 3.2. It would have passed were it not for the intervention of a mathematician passing by.
On 19th January 2038, all 32-bit computer systems will crash, and no one is prepared for it.
Michael Lotito: the man who literally ate an entire plane.
— MF
HistoryMaps uses interactive maps as a timeline so that as you read (and scroll) you can visualize where events in time took place. There’s also a Timelines Game that you can play, and according to the creator of the website there are hidden features and puzzles for added fun. — CD
My favorite food science guru, Adam Ragusea, explains what science currently knows about lactose tolerance and lactose intolerance. It’s way more complicated than it appears, but given how prevalent lactose food is, you’ll want to watch/listen to this video/podcast on “Why some people can eat dairy and others can’t.” — KK
Wikenigma is the wikipedia of unanswered questions and gaps in human knowledge for the curious-minded. For example, words of unknown origin, the dilemma of free will, or the purpose of the human chin. It's a jumping-off point for the imagination. — CD
“Principle Of Humanity: Every single person is exactly what you would be if you were them. This includes your political opponents. So instead of dismissing them as evil or stupid, maybe seek to understand the circumstances that led them to their conclusions.” Read 39 other useful concepts in this issue of The Prism. — MF
Here are a few of my favorite end-of-year lists, with two samples from each:
“Keep your identity small. ‘I’m not the kind of person who does things like that’ is not an explanation, it’s a trap. It prevents nerds from working out and men from dancing.“
“Cultivate compassion for those less intelligent than you. Many people, through no fault of their own, can’t handle forms, scammers, or complex situations. Be kind to them because the world is not.”
40 Ways to Let Go and Feel Less Pain
“Channel your discontent into an immediate positive action—make some calls about new job opportunities, or walk to the community center to volunteer.”
“Remind yourself these are your only three options: remove yourself from the situation, change it, or accept it. These acts create happiness; holding onto bitterness never does.”
37 per cent of the world’s population, 2.9 billion people, have never used the Internet. [International Telecommunication Union]
A deep learning model trained on 85,000 eyes can tell male from female eyeballs with 87% accuracy but no one knows why. [Edward Korot & co]
— MF
The Museum of Failure is a collection of failed products and services from all over the world. It’s kind of weird, kind of sad, kind of funny. You can check out the collection here. — CD
The Manga Guide to Cryptography is a 190-page comic book that clearly explains the fundamentals of cryptography. You’ll learn about the foundations of encryption, symmetric-key algorithms, public-key encryption, practical applications of encryption, told in the form of a fun and engaging story. — MF
Wikipedia is so valuable to me that I have a mini version of it on my phone so I have access to it anywhere in the world anytime. I use Kiwix, a free app for iOS and Android, that parks a 13GB file with 6.6 million Wikipedia articles – without images. (The version with images is ). With Kiwix I can get Wikipedia on a boat, in the wilderness, or anywhere beyond cell service. You’ll want to download via wifi it cause it takes a long while. – KK
I’m learning a lot from scrolling through this list of common misconceptions. These are concise summaries that are linked to longer articles on Wikipedia. I like that they are worded as a correction, with the misconceptions implied. I’m relieved to dispel the misconception that the pyramids of Egypt were built by slave labor. I’ve also learned that dogs sweat mainly through their footpads and the Pacific Tree Frog is the only frog species that actually makes the “ribbit” sound. — CD
This stone ID app called Rock Identifier (Google Play, iOS) works fast in scanning and identifying rocks, minerals, and crystals. It’s got an extensive database so you can compare your stones to other images, as well as learn its chemical and physical properties, locality, uses, etc. I use it as an encyclopedia to learn more about how to identify minerals and how to tell real from fake crystals or gemstones. There’s a 7-day free trial, but for me it’s worth the $29.99 yearly subscription. — CD
I love poring over this gallery of physical visualizations. Each artifact is a representation of data from our history dating back to Mesopotamian Clay Tokens from 5500 BC. Some of them are so interesting and beautiful, like the brainwave weaving of dreamers, or this Yakima Time Ball meant to record major life events. Others are useful like this abacus ring from the Qing Dynasty, or mysterious, like South American Quipus. Maybe not useful, but really cool are these 3D-Printed Thoughts. There’s currently 370 artifacts listed — all of them equally captivating. — CD
By far the nerdiest food YouTube channel out there is Adam Ragusea with 2 million followers. He dives deep into the chemical nature of foods, such as what happens with smoking meat at the molecular level, why fennel and liquorice taste the same, or what is the chemical that makes the smell of rain. But also definitively answers many useful questions like “do the eggs of happy chickens taste better?” He references obscure scientific journals, does his own experiments, and mixes in delicious recipes you can follow yourself. He is one of the best science communicators working today. I recommend Ragusea’s food science playlist for the full course. — KK
If you spin this globe and zoom in you can learn the birthplaces of the most notable people in culture, science, sports, or leadership (from 3500BC-2018AD). Clicking on their names will take you to their Wikidata page where you can learn more about them. I learned about an indigenous princess who was born near my parents hometown in Mexico. — CD
It’s amazing how quickly my eyes got used to the detail captured by the new Webb telescope. You can compare the vast difference between the Hubble images of nebulas and galaxies and Webb’s new images on WebbCompare.com. Just slide back and forth and be amazed. — CD
As a Latina who grew up in California, anything I learned about my indigenous culture was by word of mouth or books I had to check out on my own. I’ve learned more scrolling through this visual essay of the Aztec Pantheon than I ever did in school. It’s a beautiful and colorful collection of 137 gods and their iconography. — CD
What came first: Watts Towers or The Beatles’ Abbey Road? The film Tom Jones or Eagles’ Their Greatest Hits? The Dream by Henri Rousseau or England’s Natural History Museum? This Google quiz asks questions like these (and shows relevant images) and challenges you to click what came first. A faster answer will yield a higher score. — MF
Before oil, empires fought over gold. And before gold, empires fought over spice. There were six spices that opened up the Americas, and bound Asia and Europe together permanently. Kate Humble, a BBC host, journeys to the remote geographical sources of these 6 spices in her series The Spice Trail. The depth of her research and travels are astounding. I am in awe of how ignorant I was about these substances, and now I am grateful how intimate with them her travels made possible. There are 3 sessions available on YouTube: 1) Pepper and Cinnamon. 2) Nutmeg and Cloves. 3) Saffron and Vanilla. History + Travel + Food. Highly recommended. — KK
Freelearninglist.org is a directory for finding the best education resources on the internet — including links and descriptions to free courses, YouTube explainer channels, podcasts, subreddits, effective thinking newsletters, how-to websites and more. Each listing is scored on effectiveness, design and popularity. It makes me want to never waste time on the internet with so many mind-enriching resources like this available. — CD