Thursday Thoughts: Cheating at Chess, Steve Jobs Returns, and a House-Sized Doodle
Creativity takes many forms.
In case you haven’t heard, there’s a huge scandal in the world of chess. I’m fascinated by the game even though I’m a terrible player. Maybe I’ll dedicate some time to learn like an athlete and become a more respectable chess player.
I bring up the story of Hans Moke Niemann to talk a bit about the pressure our students put on themselves. Of course, sometimes they’re pressured to achieve by parents or other family members, but many times it’s the student’s inner demons pushing them to do and be more.
I wonder what other instances of cheating we’ll find in the next few years if we can’t find a way to move away from pursuing high-stakes achievement. We’ve already seen a college admissions scandal and now an alleged instance of cheating in the exclusive world of chess.
There has to be a better way.
Steve Jobs Returns from the Dead
Sort of. While wasting time and avoiding writing a paper for my doctoral studies, I saw John Mayer (yes, I’m a fan, aren’t you?) share a story on Instagram with a link to something called the Steve Jobs Archive.
The site, recently launched, will archive emails, letters, audio & video clips, and more to celebrate the life and impact of the Apple co-founder.
Jobs would have been 65 this year but passed away 11 years ago from pancreatic cancer.
The site is sparse right now, but I’m sure will grow over time. On the front page, an email Jobs sent himself offers a poetic look at his respect for humanity. Written near the end of his life, I wonder how the contents of that email would differ were it from an earlier time. Jobs was a visionary but certainly was not a shining example of a good human (if you haven’t read Walter Isaacson’s biography, you should).
I wonder what we’ll learn from this new archive and if we’ll gain a better perspective on Jobs.
Mr. Doodle Doodles a House-sized Doodle
Yes, you read that properly. The YouTube sensation Mr. Doodle (aka Sam Cox) bought a house in 2019. He then spent from 2020-2022 doing what he does best: doodling.
He made a stop-motion video of the process. Yes, this is all real.
While the doodle is an amazing achievement, this also speaks to dedication and consistency, two things we should spend more time on with our students. Doodling an entire house is a big (ok, ridiculous) goal, but great progress is made by doing a little bit at a time.
We could do with a few more people in the world dedicated to doodling a house. We could stand a few more people with the discipline to see more projects through to the end.