Iterate Weekly - Issue 11
Welcome to issue 11 of the Iterate weekly newsletter!
This week, I’m still looking for feedback from readers like you. How can I improve this experience for you? What do you like? What do you hate? What do you want more of?
Everyone who completes the short 5-question survey will be entered into a random drawing for an Amazon Gift Card!
You’ll see that the content here is broken down into 4 categories.
Tech - This will be the main focus of the newsletter. I’m dedicated to helping people improve their relationships with technology.
Learning - I consider myself an autodidact and like to examine the concept of learning how to be a more productive learner.
Health - None of these other topics are important if you’re not healthy enough to enjoy them.
Grab Bag - This could be something personal, something silly, something fun that doesn’t quite fit the other categories.
Finally, we’ll wrap things up with a quote of the week and a piece of content that I recommend you check out.
Tech
Can SpaceX give us fast wi-fi on planes?
Is there anything SpaceX can’t (attempt) to do?
Their latest endeavor involves their Starlink internet service. They are bringing it to commercial airline flights with claims that its internet speeds will hit up to 100Mbps download and 20Mbps upload speeds.
As someone who has long dreaded using the internet on planes, this will be a welcome change. Any competition in this space is welcomed. There is no word on which airline will have this technology first, but it will certainly be a huge selling point for business travelers.
Learning
How will post-pandemic homework be different?
The MIT faculty newsletter is looking at how the future of learning will change in a post-pandemic world.
One interesting finding, educators are learning how to better educate the “whole student”. Pandemic challenges have provided teachers with an opportunity to know more about students’ home lives and feelings outside of school. The hope is that this personal connection will continue even when classes are no longer conducted on video from home.
A majority of the faculty polled for the story wanted to maintain at least some semblance of virtual learning. While it can be more work to prepare virtual lessons, the benefits of eliminating commutes for teachers can’t be ignored. And now students will be prepared to keep up with their studies virtually even when staying homesick.
Health
Are your potatoes coming from Bill Gates?
Were you aware that Bill Gates is technically the largest potato farmer in the United States? No? Neither was I until I read this story.
Apparently, Gates’ potato farms in Washington state are so large, you can see them from space. Gates’ largest customer? Yep, it’s the Golden Arches.
If you’ve consumed some McDonald’s french fries lately (and I hope you haven’t, this is the health section after all) there is a good chance that they came from land owned by Bill Gates.
Grab Bag
Nike misspells its own name
Who doesn’t love a good brand blunder?
You’d think that the folks at Nike were pretty well-versed in spelling their company’s name in all languages at this point. But no, Greek is apparently still tricky for them.
The kicks in question are a special Greek-themed variant of their famous Air Force 1s. The spelling is just slightly off here. The lettering on the back of the shoe appears to say “Nike” in English characters, but those letters actually spell “piks” in Greek.
No, you don’t want your name to be interpreted as “piks”. At the very least, this has spun up some nice hype for an otherwise ordinary looking pair of shoes.
Quote of the Week
“Be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars, you have a right to be here.” - Max Ehrmann
Content Recommendation
In the Heights
This week my wife and I enjoyed Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “In The Heights” on our backyard projector.
It really is a perfect warm-weather movie. All the energy and rhythm of “Hamilton” but with less history and more summer vibes. Visually, it was striking to see the use of color and movement.
I highly recommend that you check it out!
My husband and I are very much looking forward to Starlink becoming an option for RV travel and full time RV living!!