As a parent with a student in one of the districts noted by this article, I am flummoxed by our elected officials' complete lack of recognition of the connection between the quality of local education and development.
Watched "Arrival" again. I like it. It's not lost on me that a linguist saves the world. (LOL implied)
It reminds me of my studies in language (poetry, linguistics, or discourse and leadership), when everything is framed as competition, one only sees the world as winners and losers.
"the colleges that dominate the headlines are not the colleges that most Americans attend
their core mission: to serve students from all backgrounds, at a price families can actually afford, prepare graduates for real careers and meaningful lives."
www.geneseo.edu/enrollment-m...
I'm not in the camp of families needing more children. That's a choice. Rather, I'm for making our state more attractive to "in-comers." Of changing the narrative that WV is only worth sweat-equity work. Of working within our communities to help them realize there's more to the world than coal.
3/3
We say the kids are leaving, a narrative supported (at surface) by an outflow of college graduates. But what if many of those graduates come into WV for school and simply go home, never intending to stay?
What if the local ones, mostly, stay?
Per this data, there are fewer locals to stay.
2/3
As a lifelong West Virginian, rurality is both a lived experience and an intellectual curiosity for me. I was surprised to see that all of the WV counties losing population, save Mingo, did so because of natural decrease.
1/3
dailyyonder.com/half-of-all-...
It's an interesting perspective (& an even better metaphor). I know a lot of people that keep on eating Twinkies even though they hate them.
And therein lies the issue, doesn't it?
fortune.com/2026/04/13/t...
Yeah, this article is written dreamily. But hey, who doesn't need a little sappy good feels when the world is as it is.
apnews.com/article/nasa...
Not gonna lie..."chasing more data without human insight creates an illusion of control" speaks to my core.
I tell business & leadership students this all the time. Every business decision you make will find a human in some way. Proceed accordingly.
www.route-fifty.com/digital-gove...
"'It's like a crab that's sort of molting: it's in that halfway period between what we have currently today...versus the future NG911, and that is a really sensitive time period for us.'"
(Quoted material from Z. Nakazawa within the article)
www.route-fifty.com/public-safet...
I'm a sucker for data stories...
General reflection (not aimed at MD) - I wonder about the interface. Data is great; more data is better. But, endless archives with no navigation system is halting.
www.route-fifty.com/digital-gove...
I live in northern WV, far from the impacted area, and I was born a little over six years after Buffalo Creek happened.
Still, this one hits hard because all WV communities know what it's like to surrender themselves to industry, all because we're made to think we're not worth anything more.
Time has a way of inculcating disasters into the identity of the communities they impact. For my hometown, it's the 1985 flood. But even that one stands second to Buffalo Creek.
1/
wvminewars.org/news/2026/2/...
Lesson #1 in how to make people care less about scholarly work.
I got a short, soft run in yesterday after a six-week layoff to rest an agitated plantar fascia. It felt good at the time, and this morning, it still feels good.
I'll take whatever small victories I can get.
I'm a Pens fan with love for Sullivan thanks to two Stanley Cups.
But I still had to chuckle when Team USA players say, "We just have to get to our game." They could be down by 12 and that would be the response from one of Sully's players.
Supporting STEM and supporting liberal arts are not mutually exclusive activities.
Listen, I have an UG degree in creative writing, & I don't work anywhere near that right now (nor have I at any point in my career).
But I use those skills EVERY DAY.
And I'm a better person (& employee) for it.
What I like about this article is not AI or data centers. It's a call to action to get on the front end of something. How many "next great things" come along and we chase our tails trying to catch up to its impact. Let's re-write THAT narrative, & this is a good place to start.
2/2
Funny enough, this is a hot topic in my region thanks to a new data center permit. I'm concerned about the environmental impacts, & I'll admit I see AI as a tool vs. a game or an "everything solution." So, my concern influences my usage (or lack thereof).
1/2
www.route-fifty.com/artificial-i...
Catching up on some reading from last week...
I like this concept; I'd love to see a follow-up report after one and five years.
www.route-fifty.com/digital-gove...
With a nod to Maya Angelou: when a system shows you what it is, believe it.
Systems show you what they are by how they behave not how they are described or explained.
And when something happens over and over across multiple domains over a long time, that's a feature not a bug.
My review of "Teaching with AI: A Practical Guide to a New Era of Human Learning" by Bowen and Watson.
hardcover.app/books/teachi...
My review of Moral Mazes: The World of Corporate Managers, by Robert Jackall.
Comments and additive thoughts welcome!
hardcover.app/books/moral-...
I hate being a fan that complains or thinks I have the answer. I certainly don't. Yet, it's scary to think of how dangerous Eintracht Frankfurt could be with consistent goalkeeping.
Or an organized back line. I'll take either one.
