Cranking it up again

After a time of inactivity, it is time to be a bit more active on this blog. Rather than saving articles and posts to sites like delicious, it is better practice to blog and share (force me to :-)) thinking on topics of education, sports, and society.

Bloom's digital taxonomy

Thanks to Larry Ferlazzo and others on twitter for passing on this cool 2009 discussion of Bloom's taxonomy in the digital age by Joshua Coupal.

Larry's tweet:

Larry Ferlazzo (@Larryferlazzo)

10/14/10 6:22 AM

RT @TheConsultantsE: Bloom's Taxonomy on Prezi http://bit.ly/dk9bYj via @mike08 @1TEACHER4edu

Joshua's presentation:

Bloom's on Prezi

Southern White Teams Just Didn’t Play Black Ones, but One Game Ended All That - NYTimes.com

Sports are often derided for being over emphasized in America....and in some cases, of course they are. However, this New York Times story demonstrates the power that sport and coaches have to change the world. As we watch college football move into an exciting November, we should be thankful for the courage of these folks and prayerful that our society will never be as racist and dumb again.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/26/us/26florida.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

NYT: For Naismith, Basketball Was Only a Start

A New York Times article on the inventor of basketball , Dr. James Naismith. His opinion that officiating would heavily influence the sport was spot on.

Apollo stuff still on the moon

Pictures from the lunar reconnaissance explorer of equipment and lunar modules left behind from decades past.

Superstars not superstars by accident

This weeks Sports Illustrated article on the Laker's championship and Kobe Bryant's determination reveal that terms like "great athlete" and "natural talent" are tremendously misleading. The article talks about Bryant's 5:30am workout after the Lakers took a 3-1 series lead.

From a coaching and athletic development perspective, Bryant's training regimen is fascinating and I think is adaptable to young athletes too (in fact, elements are being used in various sports, but not widely). Perhaps as remarkable the team winning the championship is Kobe's elite performance over such a long time - two years of almost continuous basketball (2 full NBA seasons + playoffs [Lakers were in the finals both years] + the Olympic Games tournament).

I think this excerpt from the article focuses on an training area, all athletes need to focus on to reduce injuries and increase enjoyment of the sport:

....Grover's modifications were small but important. Bryant had never been an advocate of cold tubs; Grover had him taking ice baths frequently for muscle recovery. He focused on strengthening Bryant's ankles, wrists, hips—"areas that don't make you look better in your jersey but can become nagging injuries," Grover says. The result is that, despite having played for nearly three years straight due to his Olympic commitments, Bryant came into these Finals free of ankle braces, shoulder wraps and sleeves—although his right ring finger, dislocated earlier in the season, remained taped. He even wore low-top shoes...

When I see middle-school and high school athletes wearing knee braces, my first thought is they need to train for the sport. The injury reveals a need to correct their technique and fitness.

Wikinomics post on Zappos and Social Media

Keven Morris of the Wikinomics blog with an post on how net shoe company Zappos uses social networking to recruit and promote their customer-centric spirit.