Interesting articles about various topics

[Mt_Rider]

https://marker.medium.com/inside-the-flour-company-supplying-americas-sudden-baking-obsession-623034583579

 

This was an informative and kinda entertaining story of how COVID hit the King Arthur Flour company and the various ways they're adapting to America's Great Bake Off. 

 

https://www.calnewport.com/blog/2020/05/22/the-lost-satisfactions-of-manual-competence/?utm_source=pocket-newtab

 

This is a philosophical article about how we MIGHT feel the collective need to be involved in REAL things after staying home with COVID.  Folks doing only computer work for a decade, suddenly making bread and homeschooling their kids might rethink being someone who frantically tries to punch in enough 0's and1's for a living. 

 

I found both to be interesting.  Similar but different reflections on this COVID WAVE that hit us all.

 

MtRider     ....as snow falls, so does our temperature!   

[Mt_Rider]

In the second article, I read some of the comments.  This one caught my attention:

 

QUOTING.....

This weekend, I sat down and read through a chunk of The Knot Book (a textbook on knot theory – for those who don’t know, this is a branch of topology in mathematics). I have no background in topology, or in math beyond undergrad calc/diffeq. I have no use for this in my day to day life, in my job, or in my future career plans. Yet it was very real work (in that it was concrete effort for my brain). And it was driven by pure curiosity.

That’s the value I’m finding in this forced deep reset. It has made it easier to cut away things that get in the way of my life. It allows me to refocus on my most important goals. Which means the rest of the time, my brain can simply explore. It’s a throwback to your 2008 entry on the “activity vacation” – which I wish I’d taken more to heart at the time, though I wasn’t quite ready for the necessary paradigm shifts – but I’m seeing similar effects now.

Perhaps it’s a little silly to re-engage my academic side given that I am not in academia, but the increased room to engage in randomness, serendipity, curiosity… I’m finding it’s bringing meaning to my life. And though this topic is not relevant to my career, similar dynamics have led to me recently engaging in other things that *are* relevant to my career. That can only be a good thing.

I’m excited to see where this reawakened curiosity will take me.

 

END QUOTING...... Bold is mine

 

 

This is how I feel about learning Hawai'ian language.  Will it serve any purpose for my time spent?  Even if I move there, very few speak the language now...tho there is a resurgent movement.  But ...   ..... it's simply interesting.  It pleases me.  AND I've read several articles that say it's likely having all sorts of beneficial affects on my older brain.    I also pursue other odd, random, peculiar articles to learn about things that will never really have an impact on my life.  YET finding them INTERESTING is quite rewarding enough to continue.  ...... Of course, over the years, you all have heard about my "odd, random, peculiar articles" .....  

 

MtRider     .....my only complaint is that it leaves me less time for reading fiction!   

Edited May 25, 2020 by Mt_Rider
confusing typos