Articles by other authors
Articles of interest on many subjects, by different authors, found online and republished with permission.
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How recess helps students learn
Published: February 14, 2022 3.03pm EST Author William Massey Assistant Professor of Public Health and Human Sciences, Oregon State University As parents and schools seek to support students’ social and emotional needs – and teach them what they need to learn – some education leaders are missing one particularly effective opportunity. The U.S. Department of Education has offered guidance on how to help students navigate the stress and trauma of the pandemic and readjust to in-person schooling after long periods of closed schools. But as someone who studies recess in connection with child development, I couldn’t help but notice recess was missing from the federal guidance and from many local…
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Kids’ access to recess varies greatly
On any given day, young children have their recess taken away for academic or behavioral reasons and must stay inside, walk laps or sit on a sidewalk and watch their friends play.
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A Boy Went to a COVID-Swamped ER. He Waited for Hours. Then His Appendix Burst.
To have so many ICU beds pressed into service for a single diagnosis is “unheard of,” said Dr. Hasan Kakli, an emergency room physician at Bellville Medical Center in Bellville, Texas, about an hour from Houston. “It’s approaching apocalyptic.”
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American Amnesia
I happen to love “today”. Little Orphan Annie sang about tomorrow, but I’m a “today” fan. Big time. We only get it once. You see, today is one unique day in all the days that will ever be. And according to actuarial tables, I don’t have many left. I want today to be peaceful, tranquil, and filled with joy. But you know, folks, I find this polarized, divisive country we live in to be incredibly annoying and distracting. I’m constantly amazed at the length people go to find fault, hate, and spew venom. All this poison attempts to invade my “today”, and although I’m pretty good at keeping it at…
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The psychology of roller coasters
BY RICHARD STEPHENS, SENIOR LECTURER IN PSYCHOLOGY, KEELE UNIVERSITY Can differences in brain chemistry explain the sensation seeking behaviour seen in theme parks? Roller coasters may seem like a very modern type of entertainment – constantly getting bigger, faster and scarier thanks to advances in technology. But they actually date back to the mid-1800s. Gravity-propelled railways built to transport coal from up in the mountains down to the town in Pennsylvania, US, were hired out at weekends by fare-paying passengers riding purely for the fun of it. Today theme parks are big business. But with queues occasionally as long as eight hours for an average ride of under two minutes – not to mention reports of…
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Misophonia and me
Growing up, I spent several summers in the backseat of my parents’ car trying not to kill my little brother as my parents ventured to various historical sites. Most of these places were not interesting to us, so we were essentially captives on these historical journeys throughout this country. My father would sometimes chew gum on these road trips, and if he did, I did everything I could to block out the sound. He chewed the gum with fierce intensity, as if the piece of gum held every bit of tension that filled his body. Perhaps that wad of Big Red chewing gum represented opposing counsel in his latest…
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This Cathedral for Boys, This Cathedral of Dreams
in the summertime,within the ivy-covered walls,upon the sun-drenched grass, the green, green grasswhere full grown boys lived out my dreams,in nine inning shares of timelessness,to hear the thunder of Ted Williams’ bat,to watch the smooth, smooth stride of Willie Mays,to sit in awe of lads once like me,but who grew up somewhere to become so much more,these mythic figures of a mythic game,a game once began on sandy backlots,now continued on fields in majestic ballparks,they are all grown up these once little boys,grown-up beyond the reach of mortals who wear tailored grey suits as they go to work,they live in realms of near perfection,they walk in air beyond our own,they…
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Trump May Make History As a ‘Great’ President
By Madan G Singh | Submitted On April 28, 2018 When the United States election campaign commenced Donald Trump was not expected to win. Everybody including the political pundits had forecast that the winner would be Hillary Clinton. However, it did not happen that way and the Dark Horse Donald Trump stormed and won the election. He did not have the popular vote when he became president but that is because of the convoluted system of votes in America. Political stalwarts made forecasts that Donald Trump would be impeached. They also said he was unfit to be the president of the United States of America. Water flows down the river and like the…
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It Was Lights Out At The Old Ballgame
by James L. Snyder June 24, 2006 | Someone yelling, “Let’s play ball,” officially announces spring. Springtime and baseball seem to go together, as if God created springtime just for the national pastime. Something about that first baseball game seems to shake away all the gloomy aspects of the past winter. As soon as Old Man Winter strikes out for the last time, good old springtime steps up to the plate and a new game is afoot. Of course, baseball is for the young. One downside of growing older is the fact that you grow out of certain things. For example, as you grow older you grow out…
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Why I teach math through knitting
Sara Jensen, Carthage College One snowy January day, I asked a classroom of college students to tell me the first word that came to mind when they thought about mathematics. The top two words were “calculation” and “equation.” When I asked a room of professional mathematicians the same question, neither of those words were mentioned; instead, they offered phrases like “critical thinking” and “problem-solving.” This is unfortunately common. What professional mathematicians think of as mathematics is entirely different from what the general population thinks of as mathematics. When so many describe mathematics as synonymous with calculation, it’s no wonder we hear “I hate math” so often. So I set out…
