Ardith Hinton wrote to James Bradley, "Speed Racer" on 06-10-05 11:06

 AH>           Exactly.  Are we being asked to translate 1/365th into the
 AH> equivalent in decimals... bearing in mind that we have to
 AH> do this with pencil & paper in a moving vehicle, along with
 AH> various other tasks... or does the term "light year" take
 AH> into account that the universe operates on its own
 AH> timetable regardless of what human calendars say??  The
 AH> mind fair boggles!  There's an example of why I didn't
 AH> always do very well as a student.  Before I could answer
 AH> "correctly" I'd have to figure out what sort of response
 AH> the teacher was looking for... (sigh).

Trick question. NEXT! 

 AH>           Ah... but you'd have to figure out exactly what
 AH> you were doing wrong, and that requires intelligence.  So
 AH> you weren't wearing your lucky sweater when you crashed...
 AH> does that count?  Some folks think it does.  And they may
 AH> have a point if wearing that particular sweater makes you
 AH> feel more confident....  :-)

I guess boys and skinned knees go together, no matter what sweater we wear.
Opps... I just included myself in the boy category.

Yesterday, I ventured out in the yard again, where I proceeded to tear up my
right hand. Nothing serious, but I've got scabs all over it. Feels GREAT! The
hip suffers for it, but what the hey. That's going to happen anyway, I just
exacerbate it.

 AH>           No, I generally avoid dangerous sports....  :-))

You'd never run with our pack of troublemakers growing up. 

 JB>  Mom taught business ed at a vocational school for most
 JB>  of her career. She started at a High School, and toward
 JB>  the end, she spent some time at a teen pregnancy facility,
 JB>  and again finished up at an old-money High School. She was
 JB>  in charge of a lot of computer training, which surprises
 JB>  me how little she is able to absorb about them. 


 AH>           Okay... that's useful information!  I imagine her reasoning

You gathering ammo? O-8

 AH> style may be similar to that of the average primary teacher, in some
 AH> ways... although she was teaching a different level... because of
 AH> her chosen subject area.  It seems to me that business ed
 AH> is highly structured.  There's little need for decisions of
 AH> the sort one often makes in English & music, e.g. where to
 AH> put the adverb or which finger to use to produce a certain
 AH> note.  In both examples the answer may vary depending on
 AH> the context.  And the computer training was probably
 AH> oriented more toward the use of certain programs than
 AH> toward the technical aspects.  :-)

Well, from what she tells me about her teaching - computers specifically - was
her yearning to introduce the social element into the curriculum. They may have
spent a week on the technical aspects under moms' insistence, but I'm sure
there was more tedium then she preferred. Mom was somewhat a rebel, and tended
to introduce topics to an eager-to-learn crowd then caught the wrath
afterwards.


 AH>           I'd say that's to your credit!  I try to give
 AH> such people the benefit of the doubt & figure out what's
 AH> going on in their minds too.  I find it rather frustrating,
 AH> however, when (for example) I think I've found a delightful
 AH> bit of family history & their immediate response is to
 AH> "correct" my perceptions.  It's almost as if they can't
 AH> stand to see anybody happy even for a moment... (sigh).

They would make a poor teacher, except maybe in a military situation.

 JB>  Too often their quest for superiority is rewarded,
 JB>  but short lived.


 AH>           Uh-huh.  Sooner or later, I guess, others will catch on....
 AH> :-)

And those who *don't* catch on, *don't* know what they are missing. (-|

... It is easier to get forgiveness than permission.
___ MultiMail/Linux v0.46

--- Maximus 3.01