Lifelong Learning Records
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Book Review: Experiential Intelligence – Harness the Power of Experience for Personal and Business Breakthroughs
The main thesis of this book, written by Soren Kaplan, is that “Experiential Intelligence reveals how our past experiences impact our present success and future opportunities in ways we often don’t recognize.” The author claims that, while we cannot change what has happened to us or how we have responded to it, within our unique…
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Juan Beckman Gallardo Cultural Center – Tequila, Jalisco. México 🇲🇽
We visited this Cultural Center during a one-day trip to Tequila, Jalisco. We arrived there through the charming “Tequila Cuervo Train” that departs from Guadalajara and which takes around two hours. The Juan Beckman Gallardo Cultural Center holds different exhibitions, including a series of 17th to 19th-century carriages. Inside the building, there is a collection…
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Book Review: How the West Brought War to Ukraine – Understanding How U.S. and NATO Policies Led to Crisis, War, and the Risk of Nuclear Catastrophe
This book is written by Benjamin Abelow, who has worked in Washington, DC, writing, lecturing, and lobbying Congress about nuclear arms policy. Abelow holds a B.A. in modern European history from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.D. from the Yale University School of Medicine. I went through this book to get a different perspective…
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Book Review: El Conejo en la Cara de la Luna – Ensayos sobre la mitología de la tradición mesoamericana
Decidí comprar este libro durante una visita rápida a la librería del Fondo de Cultura Económica (FCE) en Toluca, mi ciudad natal. El título y descripción general del libro atrajeron mi atención, al ilustrar aspectos interesantes de tradiciones mesoamericanas. El libro está escrito por Alfredo López Austin, quien es considerado uno de los más destacados…
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The National Library of Belarus – Minsk, Belarus 🇧🇾
After arriving to Belarus to spend a couple of weeks with my in-laws and work remotely from their place, we decided to spend a weekend in Minsk. In addition to visiting friends in this city, one of the reasons to spend the weekend there was to visit the National Library of Belarus. The National Library…
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Belarusian State Museum of the History of the Great Patriotic War – Minsk, Belarus 🇧🇾
After arriving to Belarus to spend a couple of weeks with my in-laws and work remotely from there, we decided to spend a weekend in Minsk. One of the reasons to come to the country’s capital was to visit the Belarusian State Museum of the History of the Great Patriotic War which, as presented in…
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Book Review: The New Learning Economy
The book is written by Martin Betts and Michael Rosemann. Martin is Emeritus Professor at Griffith University, having served as Deputy Vice Chancellor of Engagement until 2020. He leads the higher education sector with experience from seven universities in three continents. He is co-founder of HEDx, impacting higher education through a podcast, advisory services, and…
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Uplistsikhe Cave Town – Georgia 🇬🇪
Uplistsikhe Cave Town-Fortress is situated on a rocky massif about 15 km from Gori, Georgia. We stopped to visit this place prior to spending one night in Gori, while being on our way to the Caucasus Mountains. This Cave Town is also located aside the river Mtkvari and, in addition to the caves, it has…
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The Joseph Stalin Museum – Gori, Georgia 🇬🇪
After spending a couple of days in the Caucasus Mountains in Georgia, we continued our road trip throughout this country and drove towards the country’s capital, Tbilisi. We decided to stop for one night in the small city of Gori, the birthplace of Joseph Stalin, since it has a memorial museum devoted to him. This…
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Prometheus Cave Natural Monument – Tskaltubo, Georgia 🇬🇪
After spending a couple of days in Batumi, we initiated a roadtrip throughout Georgia. One of the first places we visited while driving towards Tskaltubo, was Prometheus Caves. We really wanted to visit it since, as presented in several online sources, the deepest caves ever discovered all over the globe are located in Georgia. Prometheus…
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Batumi Botanical Garden – Batumi, Georgia 🇬🇪
After spending a couple of days in Batumi, Georgia, we initiated a road trip throughout this country and stopped in Batumi’s Botanical Garden on our way out of the city. The Garden is located 9 kilometers from the center of Batumi and is considered to be one of the oldest, biggest and more important plant…
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Batumi Archeological Museum – Batumi, Georgia 🇬🇪
We visited this Museum during our stay in Batumi, which was the first city we visited in Georgia during a Summer roadtrip we did throughout this country in July 2023. The Museum was founded in 1994 and is considered one of the most important scientific, educational and cultural centers in Georgia. It presents a variety…
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Book Review: Learning Planetizen Manifesto – Together Tackling the Challenges of the 21st Century
The book is written by Franciois Taddei, who is based in France and who I met during a visit he made to Arizona State University (ASU) to explore collaboration opportunities. He gave me the book as a present by the end of our conversation. The image below presents a brief message he included to summarize…
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The Musical Instruments Museum – United States and Canada section. Scottsdale – AZ
We decided to visit the Musical Instruments Museum (MIM) again in late April 2023, before our yearly membership would be over. As shared in my previous blog posts about this museum and presented in its website, the MIM began with a vision to create a musical instrument museum that would be truly global, which I…
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Book Review: The Fifth Wave – The Evolution of American Higher Education
The book is written by Michael Crow, President of Arizona State University. Malcolm Gladwell describes President Crow and this book as follows: “In a perfect world, we would clone Michael Crow, so every university would have the same advantage as Arizona State University. Until that happens, The Fifth Wave is our next best option.” Robert…
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Boyce Thompson Arboretum – Superior, AZ
The Boyce Thompson Arboretum is located in Superior, Arizona, about an hour’s drive from Phoenix. It features 343-acres of beautiful landscapes with over 3,900 different species of plants, hidden gardens along miles of trails, and historic buildings. A haven for wildlife, the Arboretum has been called “the most enchanting” important birding Area in Arizona. As…
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Desert Botanical Garden – Phoenix, AZ
The Desert Botanical Garden, which we visited in early April 2023 after several friends recommended to visit it during the Spring season, is one of the landmarks of the Phoenix Valley. It is home to thousands of species of cacti, trees and flowers from all around the world. Its brightly colored plants sharply contrast the…
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Book Review: Prescriptive Analytics – The Final Frontier for Evidence-based Management and Optimal Decision-Making
The book is written by Dursun Delen, who serves as Professor of Management Science and Information Systems in the Spears School of Business at Oklahoma State University (OSU). I decided to go through this book to see if it would present additional and useful ways to address the Prescriptive Analytics broader vision under a business…
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Casa Grande Ruins National Monument – Casa Grande, AZ
These ruins are located around a one hour drive from Phoenix. We visited this place in March 2023 and spent about two hours there. Highlights on information about these ruins which captured my attention, as well as some photos I took while visiting it, are presented below:
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Pueblo Grande Museum and Archeological Park – Phoenix, AZ
My wife and I took advantage of a weekend at home to visit Pueblo Grande Museum and Archeological Park, where we spent around three hours. Located in Phoenix, Arizona, Pueblo Grande is an archaeological site once inhabited by the Hohokam culture. It is also a National Historic Landmark and part of the City of Phoenix…
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Book Review: The Next Education Workforce – How Team-based Staffing Models Can Support Equity and Improve Learning Outcomes
I received this book as a gift from Carole Basile, who serves as dean of the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College (MLFTC) at Arizona State University, by the end of an early February meeting that we had with her. The book outlines a key part of MLFTC’s vision for the future of the education workforce…
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The Musical Instruments Museum (MIM) – European Section. Scottsdale – AZ
After getting the annual membership in June 2022, we decided to visit the Musical Instruments Museum (MIM) again in early January. As shared in my previous blog post about this museum and presented in its website, the MIM began with a vision to create a musical instrument museum that would be truly global, which I…
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Book Review: Rethinking Education in the Age of Technology – The Digital Revolution and Schooling in America
The book is written by Allan Collins and Richard Halverson. I went through this book after my wife had to read it as one of the main references within one course of Arizona State University’s Masters in Learning Sciences, which she is currently studying. The overall vision of education in this book is structured around…
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Haleakala National Park – Maui; Hawai’i
Haleakalā National Park is located in the island of Maui and, as presented in its official website, is a superb example of the Hawai’ian Islands’ native ecosystems. The Park preserves the outstanding volcanic landscape of the upper slopes of Haleakalā and protects the unique and fragile ecosystems of Kipahulu Valley, the scenic pools along Oheo…
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Garden of Eden – Arboretum and Botanical Garden. Maui; Hawai’i
We visited the Garden of Eden during our stay in Maui Island. We decided to devote a full day to drive through the entire loop of the Hana Road and make selected stops, being the Garden of Eden one of them. We arrived early in the morning, around 8:30am, right after we opened, and were…
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Lyman Museum – Hilo; Hawai’i
The Lyman Museum captured my attention since planning our trip to Hawai’i. As presented in its website, it began as the Lyman Mission House, originally built for New England missionaries David and Sarah Lyman in 1839. Nearly one hundred years later, in 1931, the Museum was established by their descendants. Nowadays, the restored Mission House…
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Book Review: Failure to Disrupt – Why Technology Alone Can’t Transform Education
The book is written by Justin Reich, who serves as Professor of Comparative Media Studies and Director of the Teaching Lab Systems at MIT. Overall, the book aims to present an argument against the overestimation of the power of technology to profoundly alter the ways educational institutions operate and how students learn. The author aims…
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Mauna Kea Observatories – Hawai’i
During our visit to the Big Island in Hawai’i, we went to the Mauna Kea Observatories. This is one of the most impressive hikes we have ever made. The Maunakea Observatories are a collaboration of nonprofit independent institutions with telescopes located on Maunakea on the island of Hawai‘i and managed by organizations and countries such…
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Hawai’i Tropical Bioreserve & Garden – Big Island, Hawai’i
The Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden is a 40-acre natural garden of tropical plants and, as presented in several blogs and reviews, a nature lover’s paradise located in the Onomea Valley about 5 miles North of Hilo, Hawai’i. The Garden is home to over 2,000 plant species, representing more than 125 families and 750 genera…
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Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park – Hawai’i
This park is located on the West side of the Big Island nearby Kona and, as described in its website, is home to some of the most significant traditional Hawaiian sites in the Hawaiian archipelago. One of the most prominent features of the park is the puʻuhonua or place of refuge which is a massive…
Marco Serrato 