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Education Innovation Reading

Latest Read: The Talent Code

The Talent Code Greatness Isn’t Born. It’s Grown. Here’s How by Daniel Coyle. Daniel is the author of The Culture Code, a New York Times bestseller. He is also a contributing editor for Outside Magazine.

The Talent Code Greatness Isn’t Born. It’s Grown. Here’s How by Daniel Coyle

Is there a secret formula to gaining talent? Daniel is sharing with readers and probably more specifically parents, coaches, and companies insights to maximize talent.

In fact, the lessons include future MLB players developed in the Caribbean, and even a music academy in upstate New York. Daniel’s story outlines how these key elements can work within your brain. However there is an element that you must have a gift and certainly the grit to achieve new levels of performance.

Myelin, is a microscopic neural substance that adds vast amounts of speed and accuracy to your movement and thought. However, this is no miracle cure, take a pill solution. In fact, scientists have are beginning to view myelin as type of ‘holy grail’ and foundation for various types of success.

Daniel also identifies the three key elements that will allow you to develop your gifts and optimize your performance. Daniel relays some the new research on neurology. Added to this is data from geographic locations to more accurately identify three elements that are driving success:

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Design Education Reading

Latest Read: Skin in the Game

Skin in the Game: The Hidden Asymmetries in Daily Life by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. Nassim is a mathematical statistician, and risk analyst. Today he is a Distinguished Professor of Risk Engineering at New York University.

Skin in the Game

He is a co-editor-in-chief of the academic journal Risk and Decision Analysis since September 2014. Nassim has also been a practitioner of mathematical finance, a hedge fund manager, and a derivatives trader.

His previous book The Black Swan is via The Sunday Times (London) one of the 12 most influential books since World War II. Simply cannot believe it has been 14 years since I read this book. In addition, it would appear that having The Black Swan under your belt helps keep his messaging here accurate.

He has written a five volume set regarding uncertainty called Incerto. In Skin in the Game, Talib mixes a series of ancient fables and maps them to modern subjects. In the age of iPhones and COVID however, these stories seem out of the ordinary in standing up a fable from 2,500 years ago.

However, attempts to apply Wall Street commissions seems like a phish out of water today. As an example, Robert Rubin, the former US Secretary of the Treasury accepted $120 million in compensation from Citibank as the bank was trading at $0.97/share. Rubin’s position was declaring a ‘Black Swan’ event.

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Education Reading

Latest Read: There Is Nothing for You Here

There Is Nothing for You Here: Finding Opportunity in the Twenty-First Century by Fiona Hill. Fiona holds History and Russian degrees from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. At Harvard University, she earned a Masters in Russian and modern history, and a Ph.D. in Russian history.

There Is Nothing for You Here: Finding Opportunity in the Twenty-First Century by Dr. Fiona Hill

Today Fiona is a senior fellow in the Center on the United States and Europe in the Foreign Policy program at The Brookings Institution.

She served as deputy assistant to the President and senior director for European and Russian affairs on the National Security Council from 2017 to 2019. In addition, from 2006 to 2009, Fiona served as the leading national intelligence officer for Russia and Eurasia at The National Intelligence Council.

Fiona is certainly delivering an immensely personal view of her life. If you approach this as an impeachment tell all, look elsewhere. This is a well told story regarding repeated bias Fiona has encountered from childhood to The White House.

This is an invaluable lesson that bias reaches far and wide and the impacts are indeed life changing. However it should not overshadow her role as an expert service our country. Her last service ran into a wall of bias and ignorance. Life in Bishop Auckland, England, her place of birth also mimics many post World War II industrial regions. All were hard hit by economic reforms in the 1980s.

From England to Russia to America

I found a very striking message: the failing economies of the UK and Russia now appear across the US. That is a growing concern indeed.

Her journey from a coal mining town to Harvard University, then to the White House is impressive. Better still is now Fiona shares how she overcame many biases to achieving success. This includes vulnerabilities to the slightest email bias.I am confident this resulted in policy written by less than the best qualified.

Bias begins in school

It is refreshing to learn how Fiona earned top marks in her middle school while taking her country’s standardized testing. This permitted her the luxury of entrance to a top tier school at St. Andrews University. Yet, bias in UK schools is not different from American schools in the lack of female students perusing STEM careers.

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Education Reading

Latest Read: The Plague Year

The Plague Year: America in the Time of Covid by Lawrence Wright. He is a former reporter in Nashville, Tennessee. In 1980, Wright became a staff writer for Texas Monthly and became a contributing editor to Rolling Stone. In 1992, he joined the staff of The New Yorker.

The Plague Year: America in the Time of Covid by Lawrence Wright

His previous book, The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 won the Pulitzer Prize is an amazing read and cannot believe it has been over 15 years since reading that book.

This book simply defines why Biden won. It is a certainly stunning read. The pandemic could not have been a slow motion fumbling any worse, and at certainly the most critical point. The months leading up to the discovery is staggering.

Lawrence clearly defines, regardless of political views how this contradicted G.W. Bush’s pandemic playbook for the country. So from the first intelligence indicators of the impact in China, he tripped over what should have been a clearly defining moment.

There is certainly little doubt the White House was downplaying the threat. Lawrence in fact reveals how policymaking was being established by insiders with little knowledge. However, Deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger lobbied the White House to take this threat more seriously. Nevertheless nothing came of his efforts. In addition, nothing was even reflected in White House press briefings.

Lawrence even stressed CDC delays in rolling out virus test kits including an initial batch that was faulty. In addition, reflecting back at the time, the lack of personal protective equipment for hospitals in major metropolitan regions led to fellow citizens producing masks for health care workers via their own personal 3D printers. The country rallied around our health care workers and first responders.

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Education Reading Technology

Latest Read: Permanent Record

Permanent Record by Edward Snowden. Ed’s story moves from his early childhood to his military service post 9/11, to his role implementing technology surveillance for the CIA and NSA.

After sustaining stress fractures in both legs during special forces training he left the military. In fact, Edward then joined the NSA as a contractor in 2006. The following year he was stationed at the CIA office in Geneva Switzerland with diplomatic cover.

Yet, after six years of work within our country’s intelligence communities Edward became a whistleblower by leaking files revealing a global surveillance network was being conducted not only against America’s enemies in the new war on terror, but also against American citizen.

However, his real message is in fact, the most advanced technologies leveraged by the government are used against America’s enemies AND against our fellow citizens. Edward certainly documents how the United States government was able to collect every single phone call, text message, and email from every US Citizen. This results in a new, unprecedented (and certainly mind boggling) mass surveillance across the entire globe.

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