damned statistics

Statistics are a tricky thing:

Mark Twain famously popularized the saying, “There are 3 kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.”16 He referred to his own difficulty in understanding figures, and to the idea that statistics can have persuasive power, even when used inappropriately. Statistics can be—and often are—used to bolster weak arguments. As such, many view statistics with skepticism.

Lies, Damned Lies, and Surveys - PMC

Lies, damned lies, and statistics - Wikipedia

For example:

Even when statistics are carefully checked, and don't have the decimal point equivalent of a typo, things don't always look right. During the same August week two different media stories broke: one painting a grim picture of breast cancer rates in the UK; the other a much more optimistic picture.

Monday 9 August: "Breast cancer rates in the UK are more than four times higher than those in eastern Africa, the World Cancer Research Fund has revealed." This is the original press release.

Thursday 13 August: "Death rates from breast cancer have fallen more dramatically in the UK than any other European country, cancer researchers have said." Original report.

Both reports were using completely accurate statistics, but simply used different measures to back up their message.

The simple truth about statistics | Mathematics | The Guardian

The place to go to sort all of this out is the BBC of course:

Tim Harford explains the numbers and statistics in the news and in life.

BBC Sounds - More or Less - Available Episodes

BBC World Service - More or Less

For example:

How much does a man’s height affect his chances of becoming a professional basketball player in the NBA? Tim Harford talks to Seth Stephens-Davidowitz to slam dunk the numbers.

BBC World Service - More or Less, NBA basketball: Is height more important than skill?

Or:

Libertarian populist Javier Milei won the presidential election in Argentina on a promise austerity and economic “shock” measures for the ailing economy. Just a few months in, some are hailing the falling rate of inflation as showing those measures are working. Economist Monica de Bolle, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, explains whether that thinking is correct.

More or Less - Has Milei fixed Argentina’s inflation problem? - Has Milei fixed Argentina’s inflation problem? - BBC Sounds

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using design in the esol classroom

What is 'design'?

to make or draw plans for something that will be produced:
    Who designed your website?

to intend for a particular purpose:
    This dictionary is designed for people using English in a business situation.

the way in which something is planned and made:
    I don't like the design of this control panel.

DESIGN | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary

Here's a useful framework:

Function & Form

Function relates to purpose. It answers the question, “why?” and defines the reasons you have to do something. Understanding function leads you to consider the necessary preconditions or assumptions for an activity and the desired outcomes. The 5 Whys is an excellent exercise for surfacing the function.

Form is the visible shape or configuration of something. It encompasses the methods and strategies. Form answers the questions of “what?” and “how?” After clarifying the function, form fills in the details and plan for how to realize the purpose.

Form or Function... - Everyday Design

For example:

Porsche Design staged by Hollywood - YouTube

Here's another approach:

Design Thinking is a term adapted from architecture and engineering and is often referred to as a “toolkit for innovation”. Its framework can be applied across a wide range of fields and its approach adapted to suit the needs of the user.

It involves 5 key stages – Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype and Test. This approach is most effective when addressing problems that are unknown or ill-defined. In the language learning classroom design thinking can help bridge the gap between creative problem solving and structured learning. It gives teachers additional tools to build understanding and provide students with frameworks for critical thinking and problem solving.

Design Thinking in the ESL Classroom | by Rishma Hansil | Medium

And here are some more suggestions:

Design Thinking Activities in the ESL Classroom | Express Publishing

Teacher's Corner: A Story of Design Thinking in the Classroom | American English

With a video:

How Design Thinking can be applied in language teaching? | Ms. ESL

There are very broad areas to look at:

ESOL: Speaking About Art - The Courtauld

And:

Jay Doubleyou: advertising

Jay Doubleyou: architecture

Jay Doubleyou: dismaland from banksy

Jay Doubleyou: land art

And check out these pages in the search facility:

Jay Doubleyou: design

Finally, back to design:

A design presentation | LearnEnglish

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how nations are invented

Is 'the nation' a 'natural' thing?

Nationalism is natural, multiculturalism is unnatural and foolish. : r/unpopularopinion

If you look at the history of the 'nation-state', it certainly doesn't seem 'natural':

Nation-state | Definition, Characteristics, & Politics | Britannica

Most 'nations' are in fact political creations - as this excellent BBC series with Misha Glenny has shown:

BBC Radio 4 - The Invention Of...

Including:

A four-part history of us - our borders, our peoples, the stories we tell ourselves.

BBC Radio 4 - The Invention Of..., Britain

And, amongst many:

Misha Glenny presents a history of Brazil, from the arrival of the Portuguese in 1500 to Brazil's entry in the Second World War

BBC Radio 4 - The Invention Of..., Brazil

The latest takes us to China:

How did the world's greatest civilisation find itself dragged into two Opium Wars and a century of humiliation? Misha Glenny heads to Hong Kong to find out.

BBC Radio 4 - The Invention Of..., China, To kowtow or not kowtow

It's a huge topic.

Here are some more examples:

India - An Unnatural Nation | History Forum

Natural borders of France - Wikipedia

The Invention of Canada: Literary Text and the Immigrant Imaginary

The Contested Idea of South Africa

Richard White’s Inventing Australia: revisiting the invention forty years later

La invencion de Mexico / The Invention of Mexico

Providence and the Invention of the United States

Here's more from these pages:

Jay Doubleyou: imposing one language on china

Jay Doubleyou: china, mandarin and domestic dominance

Jay Doubleyou: culture mix: germany

Jay Doubleyou: culture mix: norway

Jay Doubleyou: exceptionalism today

Jay Doubleyou: the politics of statues

Jay Doubleyou: official languages

Jay Doubleyou: language in ukraine: mariupol greek

Jay Doubleyou: language and politics in ukraine

Jay Doubleyou: not every english/swedish/german/russian-speaker is english/swedish/german/russian

Jay Doubleyou: facing up to your imperial past: the dutch

Jay Doubleyou: inglorious empire - what the british did to india

Jay Doubleyou: english traditions which aren't english...

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decolonizing britain... israel... russia... canada... australia... india...

What do we mean by 'decolonizing'?

to free (a people or area) from colonial status : to relinquish control of (a subjugated people or area)

Decolonize Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster

Decolonization, process by which colonies become independent of the colonizing country. Decolonization was gradual and peaceful for some British colonies largely settled by expatriates but violent for others, where native rebellions were energized by nationalism.

Decolonization | Definition, Examples, & Facts | Britannica

The first definition is very wide, the second very specific.

And starting with the second, we can look at all sorts of examples:

In the two hundred years following the American Revolutionary War in 1783, 165 colonies have gained independence from Western imperial powers.[25]

Decolonization - Wikipedia

It has got much more complicated lately - especially when we consider the general definition - to relinquish control of (a subjugated people or area)

Britain:

There have been academic studies:

Decolonizing Britain: An Exchange | Modern British History | Oxford Academic

On the right, it's about freeing the UK from American control:

How to decolonise Britain - UnHerd

On the left it's about statues:

Jay Doubleyou: all statues are political

And it's everywhere:

Britain has always been an imperial state, not a national one.

Brexit, Empire, and Decolonization | History Workshop

Yes, everywhere in the UK:

Jay Doubleyou: teaching empire in british schools

Israel:

This is perhaps the most controversial use of the term:

The path to peace in Israel-Palestine is through decolonisation | Opinions | Al Jazeera

Why Israel is Not a Settler Colonial State | AJC

The Decolonization Narrative Is Dangerous and False - The Atlantic

What the left gets wrong about Gaza and “decolonisation” - New Statesman

Russia:

It's not just Russia's imperial goals, but the fact that the country we call 'Russia' is in fact an empire:

Is Russia Europe's last empire? Is its invasion of Ukraine a 'colonial war'? Calls to 'decolonise' Russia are growing - but what would that mean?

BBC Radio 4 - Decolonising Russia

Russia’s history is one of almost ceaseless expansion and colonization, and Russia is the last European empire that has resisted even basic decolonization efforts, such as granting subject populations autonomy and a meaningful voice in choosing the country’s leaders.

Decolonize Russia - The Atlantic

As the successor to the Soviet Union, which cloaked its colonial agenda in anti-imperial and anti-capitalist nomenclature, Russia has yet to attract appropriate scrutiny for its consistent and oftentimes brutal imperial tendencies.

Decolonizing Russia: a Moral and Strategic Imperative – CSCE

Both those who believe a Russian collapse is imminent and those who warn against it agree on one thing: The Russian Federation has never truly been, well, a federation. Decentralization is the key, Khodorkovsky said. Whenever the time comes for the West to lift sanctions, it must negotiate with a government that has received legitimacy from the regions.

Is the West’s Talk of Russian Decolonization Wise?

What used to be the main theme of anti-Western Soviet propaganda back in the 20th century is now a favorite toy of hawkish Atlanticists, pro-Ukraine activists and East European ethnonationalists. Talking about the decolonization of Russia (and Russia alone – one hardly hears about returning Tennessee to the Cherokees) has become the surest way of attracting the attention of institutions that fund scientific research and political activism.

The Controversy of the Decolonization Discourse

With a couple of academics looking at the issues:

Dr Kevork Oskanian | Politics | University of Exeter

The fraught complexities of ‘Decolonising Russia’ – Riddle Russia

Nationalist Myth-Making and Western Notions: Studying Eurasia in the 21st Century | ISPI

And:

M.K. Bhadrakumar — Valdai Club

Russia_Disinformation

No respite for France as a 'New Africa' rises

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ask yourself 'why?'

This is one of the most viewed TED talks:

How great leaders inspire action | Simon Sinek | TED - YouTube

And this is why:

Why is Simon Sinek’s TED Talk So Important? — Speeko - the #1 public speaking app

But, then, 'why' is at the heart of what he's telling us:

Start with Why - Wikipedia

Start With Why Book | Simon Sinek - Simon Sinek

We can also look at 'how':

How to Find Fulfillment at Work - Big Think

Here's a summary:

Start With Why-Book Summary. How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to… | by Teja Kancherla | Medium

But not everyone thinks 

As it stands, this method of finding one's WHY can only present a real danger for all those who choose it to define their reconversion and find themselves. It would also be a huge problem if it were offered to students who are often particularly influenced and gullible on this issue.

If it is about inspiring leaders and helping them recruit inspired and happy employees, fine! However, if it is used as a tool to define one's career path, to find one's way or to orient oneself, beware.

I also encourage you to read the negative reviews on Amazon of 1, 2 and 3 stars only where you will find a number of very pertinent criticisms.

Critical review of Simon Sinek “Find Your Why”, a dangerous method

Finally, it might not be such a bad thing to ask ourselves 'why?':

Thinking is such an energy-intensive task that most times we try to avoid it, content to live a zombie life. A study funded by Marks & Spencer showed that up to 96 per cent of people in the UK make decisions on autopilot, avoiding any active thinking and assessment.

Worse still, the study showed the most people find life and living so difficult that they switch into what neuroscientists call “zombie mode” (i.e. living on autopilot) the most when they are at home, environment which feels to them safe and predictable.

Always Ask Yourself “Why” You Do What You Do

And:

The Importance of Asking Why | Psychology Today

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shonibare - gorgeously recognisable artist

The Serpentine Gallery shows some fabulous contemporary art:

Yinka Shonibare CBE: Suspended States - Serpentine Galleries

With the artist talking about their latest show on BBC radio:

Front Row - Yinka Shonibare, Sean Shibe, cinema and digital decay - Yinka Shonibare, Sean Shibe, cinema and digital decay - BBC Sounds

With more photos and examples here:

Yinka Shonibare Builds a Sanctuary of Safety at Serpentine - Ocula Advisory

Some reviewers think it's just the same as before:

The British-Nigerian artist’s first solo London show in more than two decades is full of his signature beautiful African fabrics subverting familiar colonial figures – just like the last one

Yinka Shonibare CBE: Suspended States review – gorgeously recognisable, but is that enough? | Yinka Shonibare | The Guardian

Other reviewers look at the politics:

Yinka Shonibare considers the tangled relationship between Africa and Europe at Serpentine South

Yinka Shonibare presents ‘Suspended States’ at Serpentine South | Wallpaper

Artist Yinka Shonibare has brought Winston Churchill down to size

Here he is ten years ago:

Jay Doubleyou: yinka shonibare - artist at the royal academy

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earth day 2024

This year's Earth Day promises to be very big indeed:

Earth Day: The Official Site | EARTHDAY.ORG

The theme this year is Planet vs. Plastics:

Earth Day 2024 | Activities & Resources for April 22 - Earth Day

As reported today:

Over the past 60 years, around eight billion tons of plastic has been produced, according to a recent study in the journal Science Advances — 90.5 per cent of which has not been recycled. As a result, this year’s Earth Day theme— “Planet vs. Plastic”— demands a 60% reduction in the production of all plastics by 2040.

Just how big of a challenge is this? What type of numbers are we talking about? Here’s some perspective:

• In 1950, the world produced just two million tons of plastic. We now produce over 450 million tons.
• Half of all plastics ever manufactured have been made in the last 15 years.
• Production is expected to double by 2050.
• More than one million plastic water bottles are sold every minute.
• Every year, about 11 million tons of plastic waste escapes into the ocean.
• Only 9% of plastics ever produced has been recycled.
• Plastics often contain additives that can extend the life of products, with some estimates ranging to at least 400 years to break down.

Plastic is literally everywhere

An advertisement from the American Plastics Council in a 1997 edition of the New Yorker suggested that plastic wrappers and containers were the “sixth food group” that were there to keep contaminates out of our food.

Earth Day 2024: Planet Vs. Plastic

Here's some background:

Earth Day is a global event which aims to highlight the importance of protecting the environment. It takes place every year on 22 April.,It was set up in 1970 by Gaylord Nelson, a US senator and environmentalist, and Denis Hayes, a graduate student at Harvard University...

The 2024 theme, "Planet vs. Plastics", aims to raise awareness of the harms of plastic pollution for human and planetary health. Previous events have covered a range of environmental issues, from climate change and clean energy to protecting species and the benefits of tree planting. This year's focus comes ahead of an historic UN treaty on plastics, which is expected to be agreed by the end of 2024. More than 50 countries, including the UK, have called for an end to plastic pollution by 2040. But the organisers of Earth Day want to go further, and are calling for a 60% reduction in the production of all plastics by 2040.

What is Earth Day, when is it and what has it achieved? - BBC News

Corporations are getting in on the act - although how effective these promotions are...

Win Disney+ National Geographic Galápagos Islands Cruise: How to Enter

Apple Celebrating Earth Day and International Dance Day With New Apple Watch Activity Challenges - MacRumors

Or is it greenwashing, again...

Reclaiming Earth Day from corporate greenwashing – The UCSD Guardian

How Capitalism Stole Earth Day

Earth Day 2024: Greenwashing is the order of the day

Perhaps more importantly, people are doing things:

Rochdale News | News Headlines | Family event to celebrate Earth Day to be held at Number One Riverside - Rochdale Online

Discounted unlimited travel on Salisbury Reds buses for Earth Day | Salisbury Journal

Celebrate Earth Day in Lancaster district - Beyond Radio

And around the world:

Armenia Changes the World, One Sapling At a Time - Earth Day

Earth Hour 2024: Hyderabad monuments to turn dark today evening; All you need to know | Mint

World Earth Day 2024 Matters In South Africa - iAfrica

And very locally:

Celebrate Earth Day in the Brockton, Taunton area with clean ups 2024

Loose Women films at Eden Project for World Earth Day - Cornwall Live

It's not just plastic:

Earth Day 2024: Importance Of Reducing Carbon Footprint

On Earth Day, don’t forget fish - The Korea Times

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the key language learning benefits of graded readers

There are some great resources out there to help students on their way:

Jay Doubleyou: graded english readers

With many of these resources also coming with something to listen to:

Jay Doubleyou: english easy readers - audio books

Here's a good introduction:

What are Graded Readers for ESL Students? | Wiki | Twinkl

Here's a further guide from the British Council:

Using Graded Readers | TeachingEnglish | British Council

And here's an excellent overview from the latest EL Gazette:

Some are turning their nose up at graded readers, but teachers Willy Renandya and George Jacobs argue that the books are a valuable tool to improve the reading skill.

As language educators, we constantly seek effective ways to support and enhance our students’ language learning experiences. One powerful yet often neglected strategy is the use of graded readers.

Graded readers are widely acknowledged to be highly beneficial for many areas of language proficiency. They are specially written or revised reading materials tailored for various proficiency levels and designed to meet the varied interests of our students. Students can experience the joy of reading a fiction or non-fiction graded reader on practically any topics that pique their interest at any proficiency level. Graded readers provide beginning students with an excellent bridge to gradually move to reading non-graded, unabridged texts.

Here are some of the key language learning benefits of graded readers:

...

Top grades for graded readers! - E L Gazette

With some further academic research here:

The Benefits of Graded Reading - ProQuest [also: (PDF) The Benefits of Graded Reading]

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listen to bbc radio 4!

How do you wash your dishes?

Is it better to wash your dishes by hand or use a dishwasher? This question from listener Eve has got to be among the most hotly contested debates out there. She wants to know which method uses more water and which is more energy efficient. To find out, we speak to a man who's spent decades studying the differences - Professor Rainer Stamminger from the University of Bonn in Germany.

Sliced Bread - Dishwashers - BBC Sounds

How often do you spend time in the garden?

Michael dons some gardening gloves and gets grubby. It’s no surprise that digging, hoeing and heaving bags of soil around is great for our physical fitness. But Michael learns how gardening can also impact our microbiome from Dr Hannah Holscher at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She explores how gardening can boost the gut microbiome, benefitting our health and wellness. Our volunteer Caspar, tests his green fingers by growing some kitchen herbs and visiting a community garden.

Just One Thing - with Michael Mosley - Get Gardening - BBC Sounds

How do you like your history?

Greg Jenner is joined by chocolate historian Alex Hutchinson and British TV legend Richard Osman to explore the culinary and cultural history of chocolate - Britain's favourite confectionery. Just what did the Maya use to flavour their cacao? How did cacao become chocolate and find its way into our shops and hearts? And why did a family feud change the entire branding of a much loved chocolate bar?

You're Dead to Me - The History of Chocolate - BBC Sounds

How much do you know about the Irish actor Cillian Murphy?

Cillian Murphy played Tommy Shelby in the BBC drama Peaky Blinders, a role that brought him a huge audience and much critical acclaim. Before that he’d played Scarecrow in The Dark Knight trilogy, starting his collaboration with filmmaker Christopher Nolan, and has most recently starred in Nolan’s Oppenheimer winning a Golden Globe and receiving an Academy Award nomination. The Irish Times named him as one of the greatest Irish actors of all time.

BBC Radio 4 - Desert Island Discs - Seven things we learned from Cillian Murphy's Desert Island Discs

How much do you know about professional wrestlers?

Professional wrestlers Drew and Lee have been like brothers ever since adolescence. When one betrays the other in the heat of a tumultuous night in Glasgow, the two men find themselves entangled in a bitter grudge that goes way beyond the confines of the wrestling ring, with violence and bitterness spilling over into the real world…
In Radio 4's Sideways – the podcast about the ideas that shape our lives – Matthew Syed delves into the world of pro wrestling to shed light on the hidden values and harsh consequences of grudges.
Can grudges ever be beneficial? Or will they always be destructive?

BBC Radio 4 - Sideways, 57. Grudge Match - Why do we hold grudges and can they ever be good for us?

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dumbing down high culture

What do we mean by 'high culture'?

Jay Doubleyou: high vs popular culture

Jay Doubleyou: high culture > popular culture --- high register > low register

Jay Doubleyou: romeo + juliet and west side story

And what do we mean by 'dumbing down'?

Jay Doubleyou: dumbing us down [and school]

Jay Doubleyou: education: dumbing us down [and Prussia]

Jay Doubleyou: brexit, trump and dumbing down [the cult of ignorance]

What about opera? Does it have to be 'dumbed down' to make it 'popular'?

I'm a young opera fan - we don't need them to be dumbed down for us (March 2024)

Daily Research News Online no. 8123 - Research 'Dumbing Down' Opera? (March 2008)

But what a snob! Or is this critic criticising with tongue firmly in cheek?

What’s so good about young people? I only ask because English National Opera seems so desperate to entice the yoof that it is willing to let them through the door in their pyjamas and slippers, and possibly in nothing more than their birthday suits if that whole dressing-up lark feels like too much effort.

This week, ENO enlisted the help of Blur’s Damon Albarn (well into middle age) and Terry Gilliam (old enough to start resembling a badger) in an attempt to woo a younger audience. Albarn and Gilliam, who both dress like 14-year-old boys, launched the Undress for the Opera initiative, which invites newcomers to turn up in their jeans and trainers instead of the usual suits and frocks. The London Coliseum will also offer beer promotions, “club-style bars” and “specially themed cocktails”. Come to the opera and get as drunk as you like, kids!

If you don’t like the music, Gilliam (hopefully) joked that you could “wear your earphones”. Meanwhile, the ENO’s artistic director, John Berry, said that “there are lots of people who are put off by the way opera is presented…We’re going to greet you when you come through the door, look after you and make sure you have a really fantastic evening.” Eeww! Please don’t!

Why are we so obsessed with courting young people? They’ve got no money, and when they do they spend it all on super-strong alcohol, rolling tobacco and condoms. The few young people who do want to spend their savings on Don Giovanni hardly need the promise of hooch as an incentive. Does this craven appeal to young folk make an institution look cool? No. It just makes it look like a sad teenager trying to attract the focus of their unrequited love.

I have never been to the opera – not because you have to dress up, or because, in the words of Gilliam, I think it is “for a bunch of old farts – the bourgeoisie in dinner jackets”. I haven’t been to the opera because it generally costs a small fortune. So while it’s great that ENO will be making 100 seats available for 25 quid, it would be even better if we could sit in those seats in our finery, without the threat of a pint of beer down our backs. You don’t need to lure people to The Magic Flute by turning it into The Pig and Whistle.

Dumbing down won't attract the young to the opera

Finally:

Jay Doubleyou: register: populism, culture wars and woke [how Trump speaks, defining populism...]

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