health

I wish I would have learned about these important financial, legal and medical things in high school! [Christian]

On 04/19/2026, in change, future, health, K-12 related, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, parents/guardians, relationships, student-related, youth, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
I wish I had learned about the important financial, legal, and medical things (that are covered in the gifted article below) in high school!

How to Help Your Aging Loved Ones Plan for the Future— a gifted article from nytimes.com by Elie Levine
Learn as much as you can about setting up the financial, legal and medical components of late-in-life care — and do it earlier than you might think.

Making end-of-life plans for your loved ones can feel like a burden. It is, almost by definition, complicated, and it might require having difficult conversations and sorting through a seemingly endless stream of forms and terminology. But it’s essential to your family’s well-being — and it’s worth doing earlier than you might think.

The first thing to know: There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to planning. But think of this as a starter kit that covers how to handle your parents’ current or future health challenges, and how they’ll pay for medical care. (Knowing about their medications, current finances and living situation can also help you prepare for an emergency medical situation.) Below are some of the questions to consider and discuss with your loved ones.

It’s great to see this type of good news for a change! [Christian]

On 04/15/2026, in collaboration, communities of practice, Emotion, entrepreneurship, health, hearts -- matters of the heart, ideas, Michigan, society, workplace, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
It’s great to see this type of good news for a change!

Tiny Traverse City restaurant sells more than 3,000 burgers in one day – all to help a competitor — this is a gifted article (which lasts for 7 days) out at mlive.com, by Tanda Gmiter

TRAVERSE CITY, MI – The long line out the door and down the street of the little Oakwood Proper Burgers shop was a head-turner Saturday as the restaurant invited people to its 1,000 Burger Challenge event.

But the swift sales being rung up inside weren’t benefitting their own business. Instead, they were a heartfelt helping hand to a competitor across town.

The team behind Oakwood Proper – as well as several other restaurant friends from the area – joined together to raise money for “Chef Tim” Bergstrom, the man behind his namesake Bergstrom’s Burgers. He’s been undergoing cancer treatment for some time now, and medical bills are mounting.
.

2026 Survey of College and University Presidents — from insidehighered.com, Liaison, & Jenzabar
Download and explore exclusive insights from the 2026 Survey of College and University Presidents to see how these campus leaders are responding to financial volatility, political interference, rapid advances in AI, and where they believe the biggest risks and opportunities lie as they look toward 2030.

In this year’s survey, presidents share perspectives on:

How presidents assess the second Trump administration’s impact on higher education
Which emerging or evolving educational models they plan to add or expand in the coming years
How effective they believe higher education has been in shaping national conversations arout AI
The issues presidents expect will have the greatest impact on higher education by 2030

Something Big is Happening [Shumer] + reflections on it by the BIG Questions Institute

On 02/18/2026, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, bots, career development, change, changing business models, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, corporate / business world, creativity, curriculum, dangers of the status quo, design, disruption, education, emerging technologies, experimentation, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, generational differences, graphics, health, K-12 related, law schools, leadership, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, lifelong learning, pace of change, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, reinvent, skills, society, sociology, staying relevant, strategy, student-related, surviving, teachers, trends, United States, writing, youth, by Daniel Christian

Something Big Is Happening — from shumer.dev by Matt Shumer; see below from the BIG Questions Institute, where I got this article from

I’ve spent six years building an AI startup and investing in the space. I live in this world. And I’m writing this for the people in my life who don’t… my family, my friends, the people I care about who keep asking me “so what’s the deal with AI?” and getting an answer that doesn’t do justice to what’s actually happening. I keep giving them the polite version. The cocktail-party version. Because the honest version sounds like I’ve lost my mind. And for a while, I told myself that was a good enough reason to keep what’s truly happening to myself. But the gap between what I’ve been saying and what is actually happening has gotten far too big. The people I care about deserve to hear what is coming, even if it sounds crazy.

…
They’ve now done it. And they’re moving on to everything else.

The experience that tech workers have had over the past year, of watching AI go from “helpful tool” to “does my job better than I do”, is the experience everyone else is about to have. Law, finance, medicine, accounting, consulting, writing, design, analysis, customer service. Not in ten years. The people building these systems say one to five years. Some say less. And given what I’ve seen in just the last couple of months, I think “less” is more likely.
…

The models available today are unrecognizable from what existed even six months ago. The debate about whether AI is “really getting better” or “hitting a wall” — which has been going on for over a year — is over. It’s done. Anyone still making that argument either hasn’t used the current models, has an incentive to downplay what’s happening, or is evaluating based on an experience from 2024 that is no longer relevant. I don’t say that to be dismissive. I say it because the gap between public perception and current reality is now enormous, and that gap is dangerous… because it’s preventing people from preparing.

What “Something Big Is Happening” Means for Schools — from/by the BIG Questions Institute
Matt Shumer’s newsletter post Something Big is Happening has been read over 80 million times within the week when it was published, on February 9.
…
Still, it’s worth reading Shumer’s post. Given the claims and warnings in Something Big Is Happening (and countless other articles), how would you truly, honestly respond to these questions:

What will the purpose of school be in 5 years?
What are we doing now that we must leave behind right away?
What can we leave behind gradually?
What does rigor look like in this AI-powered world?
Does our strategy look like making adjustments at the margins or are we preparing our students for a fundamental shift?
What is our definition of success? How do the the implications of AI and jobs (and other important forces, from geopolitical shifts and climate change, to mental health needs and shifting generational values) impact the outcomes we prioritize? What is the story of success we want to pass on to our students and wider community?

Major Changes Reshape Law Schools Nationwide in 2026 [Fatima]

On 01/12/2026, in accreditation, assessment, career development, change, corporate / business world, curriculum, faculty/staff, health, higher education, law schools, leadership, policy, real-world assignments, skills, strategy, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Major Changes Reshape Law Schools Nationwide in 2026 — from jdjournal.com by Ma Fatima

Law schools across the United States are entering one of the most transformative periods in recent memory. In 2026, legal education is being reshaped by leadership turnover, shifting accreditation standards, changes to student loan policies, and the introduction of a redesigned bar exam. Together, these developments are forcing law schools to rethink how they educate students and prepare future lawyers for a rapidly evolving legal profession.

Also from jdjournal.com, see:

Healthcare Industry Legal Careers: High-Growth Roles and Paths — from jdjournal.com by Ma Fatima
The healthcare industry is rapidly emerging as one of the most promising and resilient sectors for legal professionals, driven by expanding regulations, technological innovation, and an increasingly complex healthcare delivery system. As hospitals, life sciences companies, insurers, and digital health platforms navigate constant regulatory change, demand for experienced legal talent continues to rise.

Nvidia, Eli Lilly announce $1 billion investment in AI drug discovery lab [Bratton]

On 01/12/2026, in Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, biology, business, collaboration, corporate / business world, health, NVIDIA, platforms, research, science, United States, vendors, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

Nvidia, Eli Lilly announce $1 billion investment in AI drug discovery lab — from finance.yahoo.com by Laura Bratton

AI chipmaker Nvidia (NVDA) and pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly (LLY) on Monday announced that the two companies would jointly invest $1 billion to create a lab in San Francisco focused on using AI to accelerate drug discovery.
…
The $1 billion investment will be spent over five years on infrastructure, compute, and talent for the lab. Nvidia’s engineers will work alongside Lilly’s experts in biology, science, and medicine to generate large-scale data and build AI models to advance medicine development. The lab’s work will begin early this year, the companies said.

25 Big Ideas that will define 2026 [LinkedIn News]

On 12/22/2025, in 21st century, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, Blockchain, bots, business, changing business models, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, health, ideas, legislatures / government / legal, social media, workplace, by Daniel Christian

25 Big Ideas that will define 2026 — from linkedin.com by LinkedIn News
This year’s predictions capture a world in flux, where technology and humanity will press closer than ever, fueling new opportunities and tensions.

Blockchain: Blockchain technology will create new ways for creators to keep more of their revenue by enabling them to host their own content, bypassing traditional social media platforms that take a cut of their earnings.

3.AI: Artificial intelligence will enhance creators’ ability to scale their personal brands exponentially — producing more content, creating virtual influencers and expanding reach in ways we’ve never seen.
…
Laws around artificial intelligence in mental health care are set to change dramatically in 2026, in the wake of lawsuits alleging harm or “psychosis” linked to AI tools. After years of rapid adoption — and little oversight — regulators will move to treat therapy chatbots more like medical devices than lifestyle apps.
…
Small businesses — which make up 90% of companies globally — will be the top destination for young jobseekers in 2026.
…
Generative engine optimization (GEO) is set to replace search engine optimization (SEO) as the way brands get discovered in the year ahead. As consumers turn to AI chatbots, agentic workflows and answer engines, appearing prominently in generative outputs will matter more than ranking in search engines.

Caring for Patients for 26 Years—and Still Not a Nurse — from workshift.org/ by Colleen Connolly

Arnett’s experience spending decades in a job she intended as a first step is common among CNAs, medical assistants, and other entry-level healthcare workers, many of them women of color from low-income backgrounds. Amid a nationwide nursing shortage, elevating those workers seems like an obvious solution, but the path from CNA to nurse isn’t so much a ladder as it is a huge leap.

And obstacle after obstacle is strewn in the way. The high cost of nursing school, lengthy prerequisite requirements, rigid schedules, and unpaid clinical hours make it difficult for many CNAs to advance in their careers, despite their willingness and ability and the dire need of healthcare facilities.

While there are no national statistics about the number of entry-level healthcare workers who move on to higher-paid positions, a study of federal grants for CNA training showed that only 3% of those who completed the training went on to pursue further education to become an LPN or RN. Only 1% obtained an associate degree or above. A similar study in California showed that 22% of people who completed CNA certificate programs at community colleges went on to get a higher-level educational credential in health, but only 13% became registered nurses within six years.

That reality perpetuates chronic shortages in nursing, and it also keeps hundreds of thousands of healthcare workers locked below a living wage, often for decades.

Some scripture/wisdom for us on this day that the LORD hath made. :)

On 10/27/2025, in communications, culture, Emotion, ethics, faith, health, ideas, leadership, morals/values, relationships, religion, society, story, storytelling, by Daniel Christian

Proverbs 10:12

Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs.

Proverbs 9:10

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

Hebrews 4:12

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

Proverbs 11:1

The LORD detests dishonest scales, but accurate weights find favor with him.

From DSC:
As a relevant aside, the following article made me think about some of the reasons why the LORD used parables/stories to speak to the people:

The 2-Minute Story That Saved My Career: How Storytelling Can Be The Most Effective Form of Feedback — from techlearning.com by Michael Gaskell
By harnessing the power of story, school leaders can create a culture in which feedback is embraced as an essential ingredient for growth

The Storytelling Approach
Sharing stories is effective because it seems to get around our defensiveness. When information is presented in a story form, people reason about it differently than if it were presented as a list of facts or a direct critique.

Here’s more of why and then how to implement it with success in your school leadership work.

1. Transportation and Distancing: Listening to a story pulls us out of a defensive mode (the “do I agree or do I disagree?” mindset) and into a thoughtful, observant framework. Being transported allows the individual to identify with others in a way that is different from experiencing the situation for themselves. It’s a third-person, objective mindset, a safe zone for people to evaluate a situation from.

2. Shifting Perspective: When individuals consider challenges from the perspective of someone who is not them, it dramatically alters their thinking. They gain the latitude and freedom to consider the available options without feeling personally attacked. That wise sage did this when he shared his story of struggling. Making it safe and helping me to see him as having an objective, difficult experience is why when I was able to take the perspective of a distanced other. It became easier to think about the situation in a wiser way and come up with a better solution.

3. Engaging Different Brain Systems: Fundamentally different pathways are triggered when processing stories compared to facts. Storytelling engages social relevance brain systems–those that help us understand what other people think and feel, such as empathy, another higher order processing mechanism.

I love this graphic of the Dunning-Kruger Effect! [Christian]

On 10/22/2025, in Bias | Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), Daniel S. Christian, Emotion, health, learning, learning theories, metacognition / metacognitive skills, psychology, society, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
I love the graphic below of the Dunning-Kruger Effect:

— graphic via a teacher at one of our daughters’ schools
.

The Dunning-Kruger effect is a cognitive bias where people with low ability in a task tend to overestimate their own competence, while high-ability individuals often underestimate theirs. This happens because those with low competence lack the metacognitive skills to recognize their own shortcomings, leading them to believe they are performing better than they are. Examples include a new driver who thinks they are better than average, or a novice who is confident in their ability to diagnose a medical issue based on a quick online search.

Examples in different fields

Driving: Many drivers believe they are above average, a statistical impossibility.
Healthcare: Patients may overestimate their ability to self-diagnose serious conditions after a quick search and disregard expert medical advice.
Workplace: Employees may overestimate their performance compared to their colleagues.
Social Media: The Dunning-Kruger effect can be seen online, where individuals with a superficial understanding of a topic may argue confidently with experts.

How a Gemma model helped discover a new potential cancer therapy pathway [Google]

On 10/21/2025, in Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, emerging technologies, experimentation, Google, health, platforms, research, science, tools, by Daniel Christian

How a Gemma model helped discover a new potential cancer therapy pathway — from blog.google by Shekoofeh Azizi and Bryan Perozzi
We’re launching a new 27 billion parameter foundation model for single-cell analysis built on the Gemma family of open models.

Today, as part of our research collaboration with Yale University, we’re releasing Cell2Sentence-Scale 27B (C2S-Scale), a new 27 billion parameter foundation model designed to understand the language of individual cells. Built on the Gemma family of open models, C2S-Scale represents a new frontier in single-cell analysis.

This announcement marks a milestone for AI in science. C2S-Scale generated a novel hypothesis about cancer cellular behavior and we have since confirmed its prediction with experimental validation in living cells. This discovery reveals a promising new pathway for developing therapies to fight cancer.

Nutrition education programs shutter amid funding cuts [Murphy]

On 10/06/2025, in education, funding / grants, health, legislatures / government / legal, society, sociology, United States, by Daniel Christian

Nutrition education programs shutter amid funding cuts — from open-campus-dispatch.beehiiv.com by Colleen Murphy
SNAP-Ed programs teach low-income families about healthy eating habits and food preparation.

University-run nutrition education programs are closing around the country following Trump administration funding cuts. That means low-income families are losing access to information about healthy eating and cooking.

“When you teach people how to eat healthier, the students do better in school, the parents do better at work, that feeds the economy,” Mark Lynch, director of advocacy, told the TV station. “Everybody lives longer and stays out of the doctor’s offices or the ERs.”

From DSC:
“Everybody lives longer and stays out of the doctor’s offices or the ERs.” DC: Yup. We can pay up front and be healthier as a society, or we can try to get people their necessary healthcare later on (probably costing us much more on the aggregate).

Making America Great Again…NOT!

Artificial Intelligence in Vocational Education [Furze]

On 08/28/2025, in Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, Australia, bots, career development, creativity, design, education, graphics, health, multimedia, passions, skills, social learning / networks, social media, student-related, teachers, vocational / trades, workplace, youth, by Daniel Christian

Artificial Intelligence in Vocational Education — from leonfurze.com by Leon Furze

The vocational education sector is incredibly diverse, covering everything from trades like building and construction, electrical, plumbing and automotive through to allied health, childcare, education, the creative arts and the technology industry. In Canberra, we heard from people representing every corner of the industry, including education, retail, tourism, finance and digital technologies. Every one of these industries is being impacted by the current AI boom.
…
A theme of the day was that whilst the vocational education sector is seen as a slow-moving beast with its own peculiar red tape, it is still possible to respond to emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, and there’s an imperative to do so.

Coming back to GenAI for small business owners, a qualified plumber running their own business, either as a solo operator or as manager of a team, probably doesn’t have many opportunities to keep up to date with the rapid developments of digital technologies. They’re far too busy doing their job.

So vocational education and training can be an initial space to develop some skills and understanding of the technology in a way which can be beneficial for managing that day-to-day job.

And speaking of the trade schools/vocational world…

Social media opens a window to traditional trades for young workers — from washingtonpost.com by Taylor Telford; this is a gifted article
Worker influencers are showing what life is like in fields such as construction, plumbing and manufacturing. Trade schools are trying to make the most of it.

Social media is increasingly becoming a destination for a new generation to learn about skilled trades — at a time when many have grown skeptical about the cost of college and the promise of white-collar jobs. These posts offer authentic insight as workers talk openly about everything from their favorite workwear to safety and payday routines.

The exposure is also changing the game for trade schools and employers in such industries as manufacturing and construction, which have long struggled to attract workers. Now, some are evolving their recruiting tactics by wading into content creation after decades of relying largely on word of mouth.

Some serious wisdom from Langston Hughes — via Getting Smart

On 06/25/2025, in collaboration, Emotion, face-to-face, faculty/staff, faith, health, hearts -- matters of the heart, relationships, society, teachers, by Daniel Christian

Live Your Creed, Langston Hughes — via a recent e-newsletter from Getting Smart

I’d rather see a sermon than to hear one any day.
I’d rather one walk with me than just to show the way.
The eye is a better pupil and more willing than the ear.
Advice may be misleading but examples are always clear.
And the very best of teachers are the ones who live their
creed,
For to see good put into action is what everybody needs.
I can soon learn to do it if you let me see it done.
I can watch your hand in motion but your tongue too fast
may run
And the lectures you deliver may be very fine and true
But I’d rather get my lesson by observing what you do.
For I may misunderstand you and the fine advice you give
But there’s no misunderstanding how you act and how
you live.

Learning Ecosystems