#109 - Notes on Sentences, Paintings and Sleep
Education Coffee is a 2x Weekly Newsletter on People, Ideas and Culture.
In each edition of this newsletter, I share five inspiring web resources that I have curated after hours of research to ensure that you have the best education coffee in your inbox. In upcoming editions, I will focus on sharing insights, notes and realizations that I gather from people, ideas, books, films and podcasts.
1. Learning from People
Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderón (1907 – 1954) was a Mexican painter known for her many portraits, self-portraits, and works inspired by the nature and artifacts of Mexico. Frida created 200 paintings, drawings and sketches over her lifetime. She was born in 1907. She enrolled in the National Preparatory High School, which was Mexico’s Premier School. She struggled with illness throughout her life. She contracted polio at the age of 6 and then got into a serious traffic accident at the age of 18. She initially wanted to be a doctor but then shifted to painting to occupy herself during the three month immobolization period after the traffic accident.
In 1929 she married the artist, Diego Riviera. By 1930 she was already painting for five years. In 1934 she decided to move back to Mexico and make it her base. From 1934 to 1954, she painted and worked on several paintings and artifacts in her Blue House in Mexico. She was not educated at an art school, but found a way to develop her technical skills and painting approach by working closely with a mentor and experimenting with various styles and themes. Frida create 200 paintings, drawings and sketches in her career. A lot of her artworks were inspired by her life experiences as an artist in Mexico.
2. Learning from Ideas and Questions
Sometimes we have to accept that our knowledge is limited and our understanding of the world will change over time with new data and new events as stated by Malcolm Gladwell in this inspiring TED Talk.
3. Learning from Books, Websites and Blog
I love the idea of collecting beautiful sentences as demonstrated by
in this reflective end of year collection on Substack.
4. Learning from Films, Videos and Shows
5. Learning from Podcasts and Music
I learned a lot about why we sleep in this Huberman Lab podcast episode between Andrew Huberman and Matthew Walker. Some actionable tips include
Maintain a consistent sleep schedule.
Understand your sleep chronotype (morning or evening type of person)
Avoid coffee and naps after 3 pm.
Keep your room cool at night.
Stay in bed for only 25 mins if you do not get sleep.
Develop positive associations with sleep and rest.
Sleep helps you in learning and appetite regulation.
Thank you for reading this edition of #EducationCoffee. I look forward to writing weekly editions of this newsletter this year. I hope to continue to share resources that will add value to your life. You can also review the archive of Education Coffee for free at this link (100+ newsletters here). You can email your thoughts, feedback or recommendations to abhishekashokshetty@gmail.com. I love connecting with other writers and learners on the Internet.
Abhishek