Another free academic courses: Open Learning Initiative of CMU

While reading an article written by Professor Daniel Nagin at Carnegie Mellon University, I ran into the Open Learning Initiative of CMU.  He did not mean to let readers of his article know the program.  I was just curious that what he is teaching at CMU and searched his lectures.  His associate instructor used the OLI site as his instruction material.  This site does not provide a wide range of academic courses yet.  It seems to be worthwhile to take some courses regarding statistics here.  Whereas students need to pay 25 dollars for each course, independent learners don't pay anything.  Thanks to CMU.

http://oli.cmu.edu/

How to choose books to read

While chatting with my colleagues, I realize that I am so ignorant of how nature, the world, and this society work.  I am stressed to read good books to catch up with my intelligent colleagues as soon as possible.  So, I established my own shortcut to select approprite books.  First, read books awarded.  I am going to keep updating a list of book awards.  But, I am not going to read books awarded in Nobel Prize for Literature; the books have been unreadable.  Second, utilize experts' shelves or recommendations.


Pulitzer Prizes

I am not interested in fiction.  Skip the fiction section and take a look at the general non-fiction section.  We can see not only prize winners but also final lists. 

http://www.pulitzer.org/bycat/General-Nonfiction

Financial Times and Goldman Sachs Business Book of the Year

This award seems to be made in 2007.  As you guess, most books awarded are finance books that are boring and full of numbers.

http://www.ft.com/intl/indepth/business-book-award-2012


Newbery Medal and Honor Books

This award is given to authors who contributed to children's books.  Now, I can buy some good books for my kids other than Magic Tree House series and Lord of the Rings.

http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberyhonors/newberymedal


Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books

This award is given to authors wrote science books for a non-specialist audience like me.  We can see that books written by Jared Diamond have been awarded twice.

http://royalsociety.org/awards/science-books/


25 Popular Science Books that have changed the world: New Scientist

Recently magazine New Scientist sorted out 25 popular science books that has changed the world.  Some books are familiar to me.  But, I have never heard most of them.  I believe that this short list plays a important role in selecting readable science books for laypersons.

http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/culturelab/2012/08/what-popular-science-books-changed-the-world.html


Arthur Ross Book Award

This book award is given to books regarding international relations.

http://www.cfr.org/about/arthur_ross-winners.html

Campsites I have ever visited in Europe

Since 2011 when I came to Belgium, I have visited four campsites: Campofeliche in Switzerland, Alpencamping in Austria, Strandcamp​ing Groede in the Netherlands, and de l'Anse du Brick in France.  Of course, these are not representative campsites for each country.  I selected these campsites with my own criteria: at least three stars and higher than 8.0 points in the customer reviews of ACSI campings.  So, generally, my choices are not bad according to my kids' evaluation on the campsites. 


Campofeliche in Switzerland

This campsite is located at the southern end of Switzerland, very close to Italy.  The campsite is so confident in its scale that it does not take reservation.  According to its staff, campers do not need to make a reservation even during the hot season.  Its pitches are well-organized.  Its sanitation facilities are super clean.  Its staff works in professional manner.  But, it does not have outdoor swimming pool.  Lake Maggiore is its own natural swimming pool.  There is a small playground for kids.

http://www.campofelice.ch/


Alpencamping in Austria

This campsite is located at the west end of Austria, very close to Liechtenstein.  This campsite is overall small.  Each pitch is also small.  I could not park my car on my pitch.  I needed to take back my car on a parking lot after unloading my luggage.  How inconvenient!  This campsite has its own small indoor and outdoor swimming pools.  Actually, two swimming pools are interconnected.  Toilets, shower rooms, and sinks are clean.  Its staff were not as nice and kind as the other campsites I have visited.  There are two playgrounds for kids, but all of them looked a little bit crude.  Most campers are German and Austrian.

http://www.alpencamping.at/


Strandcamp​ing Groede in the Netherlands

This dutch campsite is close to Brugge of Belgium.  This campsite is established on a huge plain and has a number of pitches.  There are few trees to make shade.  Each pitch is well managed.  Its staff is quite professional.  Several playgrounds are for kids.  Especially, my kids enjoyed trampolines.  A beach is within walking distance.  But, wind around this area seems to be almost always quite strong.  I had difficulty in setting up a tarp to make shade.  Most campers are Dutch and German. 

http://www.strandcampinggroede.nl


de l'Anse du Brick in France

This campsite is in lower Normandy.  It took about two hours to get Mont-Saint-Michel from the campsite.  Overall, the campsite is not big.  But, each pitch is quite big enough to encompass a tent, a tarp, and a car.  There are three swimming pools.  One is indoor pool.  My kids really enjoyed a slide in a pool.  Some adults looked crazy in sliding in the pool too.  :)  A beach is within walking distance and I could hear the sound of waves from the beach.  All staff is nice and kind.  Campers' ethnicity looks diverse: English, German, French, Dutch, and Belgian.

http://www.anse-du-brick.com

Duinrell in the Netherlands

This is the best campsite that I have ever visited, even though it a little bit expensive.  Duinrell has not only an indoor swimming pool but also amusement park with several kinds of roller coaster.

www.duinrell.com/

I have not examine this website thoroughly yet.  But, it looks fun not only for kids but also adults.

http://www.woodwardenglish.com/

360 degree panoramic views

Trips need many things: money, time, energy, and patience.  So, when we plan to visit attractions in which we have never been, we are inclined to rely on websites introducing the attractions and ask others who are familiar with the attractions in order to avoid wasting money, time, and energy and losing temper.  But, in many cases, tourism websites attract tourists with well-taken pictures of scenic spots; which have quite often misled tourists.  Many people may have some experiences of being disappointed at big discrepancies between the pictures and the actual scenes.

However, here is a good solution to such problem.  We can see 360 degree of scenic spots without being deceived by glossing pictures capturing only one dimension of a scene.  While making a trip plan to Normandy of France, I discovered an excellent website providing panoramic views.

http://www.360cities.net/

Kayaking in Belgium

I bought two kayaks in the U.S. two years ago for my family.  Here in Belgium I have not discovered good places for kayaking until yesterday.  There are good rivers for kayaking in Belgium, such as  River Ourthe and River Lesse.  But, these are "rivers" where water runs one way.  How can I bring back my kayaks to my car parked at a starting point after enjoying kayaking?  Some experts say that kayaking on river requires two vehicles to transport kayaks. Let's suppose that there two persons who want to enjoying kayaking on river.  They drive their cars separately to a certain point around a river and put down their kayaks there.  They drive their cars to a destination point and park a car there.  They return to the starting point with the other car.  They enjoy paddling downstream.  Then they load their kayaks on the car parked at the destination point, return to the starting point, and leave together with their cars.   It is a quite complicated process.  What if there is no second car available?  Then, we can use a bike.  When you leave for kayaking, you need to load not only kayaks but also a bike on a car.  Arriving at a starting point, you need to unload kayaks and your co-kayakers.  You drive your car with the bike to a destination point, park the car there, and return to the startingpoint, riding the bike.  And, you can enjoy padding to the destination point and load the kayaks on the car.  You drive back to the starting point and bring back the bike.  This is also quite complicated.  And, if the distance between the starting point and the destination point is quite long, then riding a bike between the two points makes a kayaker exhausted before paddling.  That is why kayak rental services are provided around rivers.  Kayakers who rent kayaks don't need to come back to a starting point to take a car or a bike.  All that they should do is just enjoying paddling downstream.  But, it is expensive to rent a kayak (e.g., 10 to 20 euros for an hour).

http://www.belgiumtheplaceto.be/outdoor_activities_kayaking.php

Then, is there no place for kayakers who own kayaks in Belgium?  Of course, coast wise paddling is a good option.  There are nice beaches and shores in Belgium, such as De Panne and Ostend.  But, kids are afraid of paddling on shores because of big waves.  Another option is paddling on a lake.  Is there a lake in Belgium?  You may say that "I have never heard about a lake in Belgium and Belgium is not Switzerland".  But there are a few lake in Belgium and you can enjoy kayaking there.  I discovered a website that we can enjoy paddling on Les Lacs de l’Eau d’Heure.  According to the website, we can rent kayaks and use our own kayaks there.  So, gladly I visited "Espace fun - Laurent Hubeaux" with my family.  The lake - Les Lacs de l’Eau d’Heure - looked excellent.  The facility - Espcae fun - provided kayak-rental service but does not allow me to access their own shore with my own kayak.  What a disappointing.  That was different from their advertisement!

http://www.lacsdeleaudheure.be/leh-fr/de-25-activites/eau/kayak/index.html

I did not want to frustrate my wife and kids and drove back a little bit downward.  I found out a decent shore where many people were doing picnic and swimming and some of them were riding inflatable kayaks.  There are many small-size wind yachts too.  It was wonderful.  We enjoyed kayaking on the peaceful lake more than 2 hours.

Learn Python the Hard Way

I wanted to develop my own software when I was a teenager.  Regardless of what I am now doing for a living, I still want to make a piece of software and show it to my kids.  I encountered a piece of news regarding Rapsberry Pi, which is a creditcard-size computer and designed for computer programming. 

Its developers claim that every body can learn computer languages with this tiny computer.  Really?  It sounds perfect for me.  Then, what kind of computer language should I learn first?  C++?  It souds too difficult.  Java?  It looks complicated too.  But, I don't want to come back to BASIC which I tried to learn 30 years ago.  The language looked goopy.  Python?  I have never heard about it.  So, it sounds nice.  But, I want to learn it for free because I may give it up all of sudden.  I don't want any sunk cost any more.  Who is a guru in the field of Python?  There are tons of people.  But, the name of Zed Shaw drew my attention.  He appears a guitarist.  He has his own paid audio lecture series and provides free HTML-based book.

http://learnpythonthehardway.org/

Human Intelligence Collection

I have been curious how to collect intelligence, especially human intelligence.  This is a good start to read.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/khadr/readings/humint.html

Quick and Dirty Tips in English writing: Grammar Girl

I have learned English grammar since middle school and have not much difficulty in communicating in English.  But, as a non-native English speaker, I have always troubled with writing something official in English.  I often encounter delicate usage issues.  I have received some help from Grammar Girl, even though it does not cover every issue in detail.  When we have spare time, it is worthwhile to skim the website because it provides short and quick tips about English writing.

http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/

 

Three Different Kinds of Public Transportation Lines in Brussels

There are three different kinds of public transportation lines in Brussels.  Some people may think that those lines are subways, tramps, and buses.  Of course, there are subways, tramps, and buses in Brussels as in any other European cities.  What I am going to talk about is a little bit different dimention in public transporation in Brussels.  This unique characteristic of public transportation systems of Brussels originates from two different language areas.

All subways, tramps, and buses running within Brussels-Capital Region are run by STIB-MIVB.  Buses connecting Wallonia to Brussels are operated by TEC whereas those linking between Flanders and Brussels-Capital Region are run by De Lijn.

Why is it important for us?  That is because we cannot use STIB-MIVB tickets in either TEC buses or De Lijn buses.  Tickets for either TEC buses or De Lijn cannot be used for STIB-MIVB buses.  However, don't worry.  There is an omnipotent ticket.  This is cash.  If you did not buy a ticket before getting in a bus or a tram, you can buy a ticket from a driver.  In a subway, you cannot buy a ticket because you cannot approach a driver.  Ticket inspection in a subway is very low likelihood.  Ticket inspection is done in a subway station, not within a subway car.

Belgium Guide from Eupedia

I have been living in Brussels, Belgium over a year.  I have been quite disappointed at both Brussels and Belgium, seemingly because I have been in NYC and Vienna of Virginia, the U.S. before coming to Brussels.  There are few natural attractions in Belgium compared to those in the U.S.  Most people in the Wallonia do not or cannot speak English at all.  Everything is slow in Belgium except driving.  Belgians seem to become crazy if they sit behind the wheel.  How can Brussels be called the heart of Europe except that it has the European Commission?  I have believed that the only advantage of Belgium is located between France, Netherlands, and Germany and it is quite convenient to travel to other big countries in Europe.

However, after finding out the website below, my impression on Belgium is likely to be changed a little bit.  I have not encountered a decent Belgium-related website written in English so far.  It is worth visiting it when you plan to visit Belgium.

http://www.eupedia.com/belgium/

Science News

I subscribe to two American science magazines: Scientific American and Discover.  Some serious scientists seem to complain that Scientific American was filled with quite professional articles but now its articles are written by amateur-like freelancer writers.  However, I love this magazine because its editor and writers seem to try to avoid technical jargons and use plain English.  It is quite useful to encourage kids to have interest in science.  This magazine can be subscribed overseas with about 40 dollars.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/

Recently I began subscribing to Discover to complement Scientific American.  I am now regretting the decision.  Discover is less sleek than Scientific American in terms of its overall design and editing.  In particular, contributing writers of Discover look worse than those of Scientific American in terms of their academic background, depth of knowledge, and reputation.  Scientific American rarely has commercials, whereas Discover contains several cheesy commercials, such as watches, jewels, and hardware tools.  How funny in a commercial of hardware tools in a science magazine!


Sometimes I visit Live Science to get recently updated science news.  We are now living in such society that needs recent science information in order to have conversations with friends and colleagues.

http://www.livescience.com/

I guess that Popular Science is less academic than Scientific American but better than Discover.

www.popsci.com

Most science magazines concentrate on natural science, such as biology, chemistry, physics, and computer science.  However, unlike its title, Phys.org seems to cover various fields including social science, economics, and business management.

phys.org

Watching Korean TV shows overseas: TIMON, Dabdate, and BADA TV

1. Most broadcasting systems prevent their TV shows from being watched overseas.  It is almost impossible to watch American TV shows in Europe without installation of a satellite TV receiver dish, buying a cable television service, or subscribing to a streaming television service, such as Netflix or Hulu.  However, if they are hooked up to the Internet, Koreans can watch Korean TV shows overseas via TIMON for free.

mytimon.com/mytimon.index.php























2. One of my colleagues insisted that Dabdate.com is the best Korean web TV.  He told me that even while staying in Korea, he enjoyed watching Korean TV programs provided by this website.  Some programs are free but most programs should be purchased.  But, its montly fee named donation looks quite small (USD 1).  The most terrible thing in this website is that the website is serviced in Korean only, not in English.

www.dabdate.com

3. 바다 TV
www.bada.tv/common/app/movie.html

This website seems to include selected Korean TV shows and movies for free.  However, the content of the website is provided in Korean.

 
















4. These websites also provide Korean TV shows for free but the provided shows tend to disappear shortly.
 
baykoreans.net/index.php   

www.redspot.tv

Statistical Literacy

I believe that some people who did not major in statistics are also interested in statistics.  That is because even social science students need statistical knowledge to read journal articles and to conduct simple analyses on available datasets.  But, most people who do not have statistical background do not know what books they should read.  So did I.  The website provides useful information about statistical literacy, even though it looks quite ugly.

http://www.statlit.org/

Selective Campsites: Travel of The Guardian

The Guardian shows more selective campsites with illustrative explanations.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/camping

Free College Level Courses: The Saylor Foundation

Compared to Khan Academy focusing audio lectures, this website provides better reading materials.

http://www.saylor.org/

Search Campsites: Eurocamp

Campsites searched in the site are not comprehensive.  But the website looks better organized and more frequently updated.  A little bit unreliable reviews.

http://www.eurocamp.co.uk/

Search Campsites: ADAC

This website in provided in German only.  Of course, based on German perspective.  Only awarded campsites are listed.

http://campingfuehrer.adac.de/campingfuehrer/suche.php

Search Campsites: ACSI Eurocampings

Don't need to buy its camping guide, DVD, and membership card. Its website per se is excellent.
Visitors' reviews are useful in selecting campsites.  Since we cannot get any discount with the membership card during the peak season, the membership card is almost useless.

And, recently, I had a bad experience with ACSI. A couple of years ago, I bought a ACSI Camp Card and barely consulted the book.  I admit that the website is great.  So, since then I have not bought the book again.  However, this year ACSI sent a new version of the book to me, even though I did place an order for the book.  I thought that that is a gift and gave it to my friend.  Several months later, ACSI sent an invoice for the book that I have not ordered.  I wired 15 euro to ACSI because I did not want to pay postage to send back the book to ACSI.  I do no know whether that trick is their business tactic.  But, I am sure that no one appreciate. 

www.eurocampings.co.uk/en/europe/

Camping info

While preparing for camping in Norway, I have noticed this site.  This site provides more pictures of camp sites than any other sites and ranking of the camp sites.

en.camping.info/