I was sitting on the fence to decide whether to join the reopening preparation efforts for a studio that I have been a member of; on one hand I like to volunteer in a community service, but on the other hand it isn’t the best use of my time (opportunity cost).
Then, today, a session was canceled at the last minute without on-time notification that put me waiting for nothing, and thus resolved my moral dilemma.
June 24, 2021
A moral dilemma, resolved
June 10, 2021
Equity motivation for co-chairing a conference
Once upon a time, a conversation happened between two paper co-chairs for an upcoming conference:
It is great to hear that you would be one of the papers co-chairs.
I am rather stretched with commitments over the next year including a startup and hence I would be much happier to take on this role knowing my co-chair is willing to share the load equally which I hope you are.
Forcing me to invest in your startup can be a good way to incentivize me to put in enough effort for EGSR. (Otherwise, you will have to spend more time on EGSR, which means less time on your start-up, and eventually less return of my investment.)
😈
That is a brilliant idea 😀
I might take you up on that for the next round of funding 😉
April 25, 2021
Awards
So the Oscars were invented to glamorize the movie industry when it was looked down upon during its infancy, which begets a question: is it wise to care about awards, especially in our own professions?
April 16, 2021
Associative memory
Looking at this dithering technique today brought back memories of my previous work on blue noise sampling and the associative life, almost like traveling back in time.
April 1, 2021
Remote working
Since I do not really have the notion of “work” days, I am already well set-up for remote work when the lockdown started.
🙂
March 9, 2021
Constructive versus positive feedback
Positive opinions are emotionally pleasant.
Constructive opinions may not feel positive, but can propel future improvement.
Which you prefer?
March 8, 2021
Happiness, productivity, and creativity
Work-life balance is not really about how many hours we spend each day for work or leisure. Rather, it is doing what we really want to do, instead of being controlled by external sources, being other people or our own habits.
We tend to be more creative when we are physically and mentally healthy: sleep well, exercise enough, eat healthy food, maintain focus and presence, have a positive mood, and explore activities that might not seem to directly contribute to the current bottom line.
February 28, 2021
Straight strokes
For some mental or physical reasons, I lack control for hand strokes.
As a little kid, I was told by the school teachers that my handwriting was so bad that it will dim my future.
But that shortly became a moot point right before I started programming on computers.
A few decades later, when I started to pick up drawing, one of the first instruction books advocates practicing straight strokes before anything else, which paused my progress for years as I never have the patience for rote practice.
I later switched to another book that emphasizes natural contours, which jump-started my drawing progress.
I still cannot control hand-strokes at this moment of writing, but that doesn’t seem to matter, and I haven’t even turned on automatic stroke smoothing common in drawing applications.
Advices can help, but only combined with our own unique situations.
One of my first drawing books advocates practicing straight strokes before anything else, which paused my progress for years. I never manage to draw/write straight, but can still have fun and create some good outcomes.
Advices can help, but sometimes we shall follow our own ways. pic.twitter.com/Rd9WldbCCr— Li-Yi Wei (@liyiwei) February 28, 2021
February 13, 2021
TB12
Like others, Tom Brady’s diet and fitness routines got my attention .
I see some positive aspects of his routines, but these might not work as well for others and probably not even the real reasons for his performance.
Exercise
I have cardio and weight/core training for about 1.5 hours in the morning, a walk between 0.5 to 2 hours (depending on the route and weather) in the afternoon, and 0.5 to 2 hours of coordination/control exercise in the evening.
Sleep
I usually go to bed around 10:30-to-11 pm and wake up between 6-to-6:30 am, and take a 20 to 30 min nap in the early afternoon.
I guess 10:30 pm among computer scientists is probably like his 8:30 pm among the general public, and I actually need to avoid waking up too early (like 4 am when my brain got too excited).
Diet
I usually have fruit smoothie, grain/bean/seed milk, and some dairy (cheese and egg) for breakfast; vegetables, seafood, and carbohydrate (yam, sweet potatoes, bread/toast) for lunch; and vegetables, fruits, and vegetarian protein (tofu or yogurt) for dinner.
I have dark chocolate (often 100 percent cocoa) for morning snacks, hot cocoa (pure without sugar) and green tea matcha as drinks in the morning and afternoon.
I was puzzled by his denial of dairies, and found out it is not based on science.
Mind
I meditate everyday, and I probably don’t need additional brain exercises beyond my work and reading.