A bowl of fruit and a violin...
On the edge of what we know, in contact with the oceans of the unknown, shines the mystery and the beauty of the world--Carlo Rovelli
This weather. It seems like a whisper of possibility--of something shinier just around the corner. I queued up a playlist of podcasts covering ultra running, culture, data science, economics, medicine, and literature. You would think these are disparate topics united only by an individual runner’s eclectic preferences but you would be wrong. Edges are where I get my best ideas. Think of your interests. The books you read, the ones you don’t--the music you like or hate. I use these early morning runs to clear my mind--and if it is a good morning, I might learn something new.
After the Fact is a podcast produced by Pew Charitable Trust. Conversations on Science: What Makes Science, Well Science is a brilliant series. Here is the transcript. Theoretical physicist and writer, Carlo Rovelli reminds us that we need to gather many lenses to make sense of our world.
I discover most books from author interviews on podcasts. Seven Brief Lessons on Physics* is the latest. *I get a few shiny nickels if you order the book from the link--full disclosure--but cost to you is the same. It is about as far into advertising as I can lean. It makes sense to me. Its like you are tossing a few nickels out of Jeff Bezo’s pocket into mine. Thanks!
This book is great for many reasons but my favorite is why Carlo decided to write it. I remember college physics, it was many things but brief it was not. He says he doesn’t like details. For example, we can be interested in butterflies for example--without reading a 700 page book on everything there is to know. Maybe some things you are willing to absorb at face value. He shares the beauty of physics without having us calculate which train arrives at the station first.
Something that has stuck with me is how he defines science or better yet provides context.
"Science is a tool that we have. And we should not mistake a tool with our ideology or our objective."
Boom. This reminded me of professionals teaching data skills or data visualization. I lead my workshops with a bit of context. I approach data problems as a tool agnostic professional. Yes, I spend a lot of time working with Tableau but the more tools you have--not restrained by ideology--the better you will navigate the alluvial framework of our new remote work lives. Think about Python, R, ArcGIS, and SQL.
I am finishing up this post listening and watching the Tableau Conference-ish, reimagined for virtual hijinks, knowledge, and networking. I was at Tableau conference in 2016 when election results were announced and I attended the Tableau conference held at Mandalay Bay days after the massacre at an outdoor crowd of 22,000 attending the Route 91 Harvest Festival. Conference has been a time post of the last 7 years.
Here we are again, now ravaged by a pandemic and struggling with racial inequity. I hope we can look to data. I hope we can ask better questions. I would like to see more folks at the table. Many of us have been standing at this table for a long time.
I hope we are ready to add more chairs.
A table, a chair, a bowl of fruit and a violin; what else does a man need to be happy—Albert Einstein