TLDR 140

Too Long; Didn't Read Issue 140

Published: 2018-03-09 • 📧 Newsletter

Welcome to Issue 140. Let's have a toast for the scumbags.

I'm writing this week from Richmond, Virginia where I'm presenting an address on Friday afternoon. The focus of this talk is detailed in this post. The slides for this talk are available here.

Here's some other stuff I posted this week:

What is creativity? - This post shares a ton of insight into creativity from a recent lit review we conducted. It's been helpful (for me) in inspiring new ideas for research and pedagogy.
Memento Mori: Learning about life, by knowing you die - This post was one of those that I didn't want to write...but had to write.

Please subscribe to make sure this comes to your inbox each week. You can review archives of the newsletter or on Medium.

Say hey with a note at hello@wiobyrne.com or on the socials at wiobyrne.

🔖 Key Takeaways

Apple Ecosystem Integration: Understanding how Apple devices work together is key to workflow optimization, with seamless handoff between iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch creating productivity advantages.
Gaming Violence Distraction: White House gaming violence summit criticized as purposeful distraction from gun control measures following Parkland shooting, with expert Constance Steinkuehler providing measured perspective on video games' role in society.
Print Newspaper Experiment Flawed: Farhad Manjoo's two-month print newspaper experiment showed benefits of disconnecting from social media, but Columbia Journalism Review revealed he didn't actually fully disconnect, undermining claims.
Screentime Requires Nuance: Harvard research emphasizes that screentime debate for children requires moving beyond simple rules to focus on interaction quality—talking with your child creates measurable brain changes more than word count alone.
Professional Development Alternatives: Traditional PD models failing educators, with Jennifer Gonzalez sharing nine alternative approaches that work better and should be demanded from institutions.
Baloney Detection Essential: Carl Sagan's baloney detection kit provides toolkit for separating sense from nonsense, recognizing that falling for deception doesn't make us stupid but we need tools to protect ourselves.

📺 Watch

The Apple Ecosystem: Explained!

I get a lot of questions from people about the devices they should use. I mean...A LOT. I've even had family & friends go to the Apple Store, and put me on the cell phone so I can tell the sales person what my family member/friend wants to purchase.

One of the key things I bring up, and one of the elements that I focus on when I discuss my workflow and process is the "ecosystem."

In this video, Marques Brownlee explains everything you need to know about what the heck we mean by "the ecosystem."

Finally, if you don't already, subscribe to Brownlee's YouTube channel. It's one of my favorites.

📚 Read

Yelling at "scumbags"—inside the White House's last gaming violence summit

This week the White House brought together top executives from the gaming industry, parents groups, and members of Congress for a meeting to discuss violence in video games.

Announced last week as part of President Trump's response to the Parkland shooting, the meeting was hastily assembled and has been criticized as a purposeful distraction from more concrete gun-control measures.

The post I shared above is a piece that contains a lot of guidance from Constance Steinkuehler, who served as President Obama's White House senior policy advisor for digital media in 2011-2012. I think Steinkuehler presents one of the best, most measured voices on video games and their role in society.

For Two Months, I Got My News From Print Newspapers. Here's What I Learned

Farhad Manjoo spent two months disconnecting from social media, and only using print sources as his primary newsfeed. He turned off his digital news notifications, unplugged from Twitter and other social networks, and subscribed to home delivery of three print newspapers — The Times, The Wall Street Journal and the local paper (The San Francisco Chronicle) — plus a weekly newsmagazine, The Economist.

He notes that he feels less anxious and less addicted to the news, while also being more widely informed. He also indicates how much free time he now has. He suggested that he has managed to read half a dozen books, took up pottery and became a more attentive husband and father.

Please enjoy this story with a critical stance. According to Dan Mitchell in the Columbia Journalism Review, Manjoo claimed he left social media for two months...but he didn't.

When to give your child a smartphone

I've been thinking and writing a lot about screentime lately as part of some upcoming research projects. The topic of screentime frequently brings about a lot of discussion, and (sometimes) consternation from parents, educators, and researchers.

This post from the super-cool Usable Knowledge blog from the Harvard Graduate School of Education shares all of the research you'll need to know to make a good decision.

The key takeaway for me...it's a small element of a larger discussion. The post states:

Don't just talk to your child; talk with your child. The interaction, more than the number of words a child hears, creates measurable changes in the brain and sets the stage for strong literacy skills in school.

OMG Becky. PD is Getting So Much Better!!

Another great post from Jennifer Gonzalez and the crew at the Cult of Pedagogy.

This post shares nine alternative models for professional development that make sense...and all work better than traditional PD.

Definitely check this out, and demand this from your institutions.

Carl Sagan's "Baloney Detection Kit": A Toolkit That Can Help You Scientifically Separate Sense from Nonsense

Carl Sagan was many things, but above all, he endures as "our era's greatest patron saint of reason and common sense, a master of the vital balance between skepticism and openness."

In a chapter titled "The Fine Art of Baloney Detection," Sagan reflects on the many types of deception to which we're susceptible. These range from psychics to religious zealotry to paid product endorsements by scientists, which he held in especially low regard. Rather than preaching from the ivory tower of self-righteousness, Sagan approaches the perspective of an individual that just lost both of his parents. He connects with the all too human allure of promises of supernatural reunions in the afterlife, reminding us that falling for such fictions doesn't make us stupid or bad people. But, we need the means to equip ourselves with the right tools against them.

🔨 Do

10-week cooking class from Instructables

I can cook. I'd venture to say that I'm a pretty good cook.

I cannot bake. I don't mean baking cakes or cookies, I mean REAL baking. As an example, I spent the last two years trying to make (not even perfect) a recipe and process for biscuits. Biscuits in my area are almost a religious experience. They are large, flavorful, and heavy. I have been trying...and failing to make them.

This 10 week class from the Instructables website covers everything you'll need to become an expert in the kitchen.

🤔 Consider

"Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will." — Suzy Kassem

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🌱 Connected Concepts:

Apple Ecosystem MKBHD — Marques Brownlee explains Apple ecosystem workflow integration across iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, demonstrating seamless handoff and productivity advantages of staying within single vendor's platform, key element for understanding device purchasing decisions and workflow optimization.
Gaming Violence White House Summit — White House brought together gaming executives, parents groups, Congress for meeting on video game violence as response to Parkland shooting, criticized as purposeful distraction from gun control measures, with expert Constance Steinkuehler (Obama's digital media advisor) providing measured voice on games' societal role.
Print Newspapers Digital Detox — Farhad Manjoo's two-month experiment switching from social media to print newspapers (Times, WSJ, Chronicle, Economist) claimed less anxiety, more books, pottery, family time, but Columbia Journalism Review revealed he didn't actually fully disconnect, undermining digital detox narrative.
Screentime Children Harvard — Harvard Graduate School of Education research emphasizes screentime debate for children requires moving beyond simple rules to interaction quality—talking with your child (not just to them) creates measurable brain changes and sets stage for literacy skills, more important than word count alone.
Professional Development Alternatives — Jennifer Gonzalez and Cult of Pedagogy share nine alternative professional development models that work better than traditional PD, should be demanded from institutions as current approaches fail to meet educators' needs for meaningful growth and learning.
Carl Sagan Baloney Detection — Carl Sagan's "Fine Art of Baloney Detection" chapter provides toolkit for separating sense from nonsense across psychics, religious zealotry, paid scientific endorsements, approaching from perspective of bereaved parent vulnerable to supernatural reunion promises, recognizing falling for deception doesn't make us stupid but we need protective tools.

Part of the 📧 Newsletter archive documenting digital literacy and technology.