Explaining the subprime mortgage crisis
John Mauldin, describes this article in Fortune, as “simply the best explanation of the current meltdown in the subprime market I have read anywhere”.
Thinking Through Writing
in today’s sunday times, janadas devan wrote about how his son was penalised by his teacher for writing an essay without a proper introduction and conclusion (the thesis-proof-conclusion model).
this model, while popular for 400 years, is not the only model and devan describes a good alternative - the writing of george orwell who “starts in medias res, in the middle of things, with an arresting incident, observation or fact.”
Orwellian writing:
‘Soon after I arrived at Crossgates… I began wetting my bed.’
How a delightful account of how his boarding-school days begins
‘In Moulmein, in Lower Burma, I was hated by large numbers of people - the only time in my life that I have been important enough for this to happen to me.’
The first sentence of one of his most famous pieces, Shooting An Elephant, an account of his stint in the Imperial Police in Burma
‘As the corpse went past the flies left the restaurant table in a cloud and rushed after it, but they came back a few minutes later.’
The beginning of an essay on Marrakech
devan recommends Susan R. Horton’s Thinking Through Writing as “one of the most useful textbooks on expository writing” he has seen.
how big is singapore?
when i travel and people ask me about my country, i always say it’s a small place.
but exactly how small?
the answer - 704 km² or 272 square miles.
it’s always useful to compare so i did a bit of research and found the following:
- Sydney is 17 times bigger
- Shanghai is 9 times bigger
- Dubai is about 6 times bigger
- Tokyo Metropolis is about 3 times bigger
- Bangkok and Greater London is about 2.5 times bigger
- Singapore is 3/5 the size of Los Angeles
- Singapore is 4/5 the size of New York City
why i created this website
more than once, you have heard adults blame their lack of knowledge and ability on the educational system.
so i thought i set up a website to be a resource for adult learners, who are keen about learning and want to share their knowledge and ideas.
what exactly that means, i’m still not sure. but i’ll fumble along.
there will be mistakes, terrible writing and general silliness but it’s all in the name of learning and a bias for action.
do share with me your ideas, especially if you want to be a contributor. my email address is isaiah@ihadapooreducation.com
stop the blaming, start the learning.