If you were like me at 15 (and be grateful that you were not), you would have spent your days doing homework, laying in bed either reading or doing brain teasers, going to swim practice, and watching TV (Three Stooges, Hawaii Five-O, Mary Tyler Moore, Bob Newhart, Carol Burnett (remember those Saturday nights)). Going on … Continue reading What Were You Doing When You Were 15? →

Today we had the opportunity to take a day trip to Oxford, and it was absolutely wonderful. To get to Oxford we decided to take a bus from London, which was an enjoyable way to make the trip. After a quick lunch, it was time for a free guided walking tour of Oxford. The tour … Continue reading The World’s Toughest Exam and Other Tidbits about Oxford →

One of my favorite movies is Happy Gilmore, and in one scene, Happy is advised to go to his own "happy place". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFJtAJfBam8 Well the Wall Street Journal had a story last week that looked at the extremes people will go to to find their own "happy place". “I love going to the dentist,” says … Continue reading Finding Your Happy Place →

I'm clearly not qualified to write this post, but that's never stopped me before. I've been teaching my course in London for about five weeks, and I thought I'd share a couple of differences I've observed between colleges in the U.K. vs in the U.S.A. Since I've had very little interaction with any teachers or … Continue reading Textbooks and Sports: College in the U.K. vs U.S.A. →

I think the title (and the accompanying graphic) accurately reflect the thoughts that were going through the mind of myself and a member of our dinner party tonight as the two of us were having a discussion. The dinner was a gathering of the faculty who are teaching in this study abroad program in London; … Continue reading No, You’re Wrong; No, You’re Wrong; Wait – We’re Both Right →

The relationship between money and happiness is one that fascinates me, and I have written about it several times. The most recent post was over six months ago, so I think it's OK to share the latest research I read on money and happiness. The thrust of this research was looking at the question, "If … Continue reading One More Time: Money & Happiness →

The Wall Street Journal had a front page story this past Friday about the latest arms race - cup holders in cars - and it's embarrassing in a couple of ways. First (and this is assuming cars need cup holders to start with, which could be debated; see below), how many cup holders does a … Continue reading This Is What Some of Our Best and Brightest Are Working On? →

Silicon Beat is reporting that there are some unintended consequences associated with Apple's new $5 billion corporate headquarters in Cupertino, CA. It seems like all that glass is the culprit. Apple employees working at the company’s new spaceship campus are running smack dab into the new digs’ glass walls and doors. Some employees have gone … Continue reading Sounds Like I’d Fit Right in at Apple’s New Headquarters →

Today we took the train from London to Edinburgh and it was absolutely delightful. It was by far the longest train trip I've ever taken (over five and a half hours, partly because of an hour long delay), and I just loved it. It was nice just watching the world pass by our window. One … Continue reading Traveling by Train – I’ll Be in Scotland Before Ye →