Lonnie Bunch III, the first Black secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, is retiring at the end of 2025 after sustained political pressure from the Trump administration. Trump issued executive orders accusing the museum of divisive ideology, attempted to fire staff, and demanded content changes, forcing Bunch to navigate institutional defense while choosing which battles to…
A Dhamma teacher reflects on returning to the US in 2020 and finding people’s hearts ‘ragged with talk of the news’ despite living beautiful lives. He explores the Buddhist concept of ‘appropriate attention’ (yoniso manasikara) and argues for the sangha as a non-political refuge space where people can come together as practitioners rather than partisans,…
Peter Gombos, creator of Moments (a photo journaling service), addresses user concerns about long-term sustainability by implementing full data portability. While he cannot promise the service will exist forever, he has built complete export functionality that includes not just photos but the entire journal as a static website, ensuring users’ work remains accessible independent of…
University of Michigan kinesiologists published a framework showing smartwatch sensors (accelerometer, gyroscope, GPS, PPG) collect accurate raw data, but proprietary algorithms that convert this into health metrics introduce significant error. Metrics close to sensor data (heart rate, step count) are reliable, while derived estimates (calories burned, sleep stages, blood glucose, hydration) are less accurate and…
A personal essay praising the Nintendo 3DS XL as the greatest handheld console due to its vast game library spanning multiple generations, portability, customization options, and convenience features like suspend mode. The author chose it over larger devices for travel and uses it regularly instead of social media scrolling. Teaching: • The 3DS suspend feature—open,…
A software developer describes losing the creative spark that drove his lifelong computing hobby. AI tools have made problem-solving feel pointless, leaving him staring at his desktop unsure what to do, mourning the loss of a core part of his identity since age twelve. Teaching: • When students say they ‘can’t feel’ a pose anymore…
A federal judge ruled the Department of Defense illegally retaliated against AI company Anthropic by labeling it a supply chain risk after Anthropic refused to let the military use its technology for mass surveillance of U.S. persons. The court found this designation violated the First Amendment, though it left open whether a company’s technology use…
MapQuest surged to the top navigation app in the US App Store after refusing to rename Lake Ontario to ‘Lake America’ following Trump’s executive order, while Google Maps immediately complied. The principled stand resulted in a ten-fold increase in downloads week-over-week, demonstrating how corporate neutrality claims can backfire when users value integrity over convenience. Teaching:…
A personal monthly recap from a blogger in Tokyo covering hiking, cafe visits, a Hokkaido road trip, book reviews, and a concert. The author reflects on self-imposed busyness during unemployment, building out niche content sections on her blog, and balancing social connection with creative output. Teaching: • Self-imposed busyness vs necessary structure: students often fill…
Gayathri Narayanan’s Lion’s Roar essay examines Fred Rogers’ television work as an embodied practice of metta (loving-kindness), emphasizing his consistent, unconditional acceptance of children and his capacity to see inherent goodness in everyone. Rogers’ approach—slow, patient, direct address, radical presence—modeled relational care as a deliberate, repeatable method rather than sentiment. Teaching: • Cue students into…