Status Update
Hello everyone, I hope you are all doing well. Here in Sydney, we are in lockdown, so I haven’t been going anywhere. A few updates on my end: I joined the Foster cowriting program with a scholarship Learning Japanese is going exceptionally well Conversation Culture is still running weekly,...
Notes about notes
Smart notes are a way of recording ideas that aim to free our minds from the arduous task of holding and juggling our ideas and enables us to focus on rewarding creative work....
What I'm doing now
I haven't sent out a new letter in a while. Here's a quick update as to how I'm doing. 21/4/2021...
On Peacock's tails
Hello everyone, Perhaps it should go without saying, but I hope you are all doing well. I mean, it's not like I want you to suffer — that would be rather strange, wouldn't it. I sincerely hope you are happy, dear reader. I don't have an essay for you this week...
A Good Explanation
The quest for good explanations is at the heart of science and all of our fields of knowledge. In this piece, I discuss the different between good and bad explanations. Namely; that they are hard-to-vary....
Good Marketing, Bad Marketing
Why not use marketing principles to keep people happy? Why not use them to empower everyone to behave in ways that will improve the lives of themselves and others? Much like a knife can be used to wound or simply cut vegetables, marketing is ultimately a tool that can be used for good or for ill....
Learning and Language
I have been wondering how much of this is also applicable to learning any language, and how much of this even applicable to learning *anything at all*. What are the mistakes we all tend to make when learning, and how is it that we can overcome them?...
A Change of Plans
Hello everyone, I hope you are all doing well. I've had a realisation, actually this has been floating in my mind for a while. When I started out writing these letters, I had so much to say, so many things I wanted to tell you. The words would flow almost...
Freedom and Incrementalism
Hello everyone, I hope you are well. I woke up early this morning to find out that we have a new President-Elect of the United States of America. It is my hope that with Joe Biden taking the reins everything can return to normal, that the pandemic will be addressed...
Zen and the Art of Monastery Maintenance
I spent a month living pretty much like a monk, in the local monastery. Here is what I learned....
The Contemplative Life
I am about to leave on a one-month meditation retreat. Here is why....
The Puzzle of Liberty
In this letter, I want to make the case for libertarian principles and introduce you to a problem I have been thinking about; *how do we get everyone to cooperate without coercion?*...
The Dawn of Life
Hello everyone, As usual, I hope you are all well. I want you to contemplate all the factors that your wellness depends on. Many of you will think instinctively to your loved ones; your friends and your family. You may also be thinking of the material things needed to sustain...
A Culture of Conversation
Hello everyone, It feels good to write to you each week like this. I sincerely hope you have been finding benefit in what I have to say. The reason I write these every week is because I have something to say, I have ideas that I believe will benefit others...
The Fountain of Youth
Hello everyone, I hope you are all well, and that you will continue to be well for decades to come. In today’s letter, I will be telling you all about the quest to ensure this happens, that is; the science behind what we have done to address the problem...
The Self-Liberating Mind
Hello everyone What does it mean to be doing well? There are two answers resonate with me here. One is when you feel like you are making steady progress on accomplishing your goals, and the other is when you are entirely carefree. The latter of the two tens to be...
The Spirit of Science
Hello everyone, I hope you are in high spirits. Wait, what does “high spirits” mean again? Does it imply that you are filled with vigour? I take that back; my concern is that you are feeling well not necessarily that you are overflowing with energy. I hope you have been...
Precious Jewels
Hello everyone, Is everything going well for you? I sure hope it is, and that you are all not taking it for granted. As expected, the United States is doing among the worst in the world regarding the pandemic. They are now experiencing hundreds of deaths per day. Amid everything...
Emptiness and the Real Blue Sky
Hello everyone, I sincerely hope you are as well as the laws of nature allow. Today's letter will be a little different. More casual. I want to share with you two stories, that I believe will shed light on some concepts in Buddhist philosophy. These are both stories I have...
The Bigger Picture
Hello everyone, The world seems to be falling apart. At the risk of sounding completely delusional I must ask — is it really? It was not long ago that the world's gaze was on bushfires ravaging Australia, and without time to recover the coronavirus has run rampant across the globe. We...