Another day spent digging into Khan Academy. I finished Get Ready For
Geometry. It's already late evening, and I'm feeling tired. I found out
that Brilliant.org is a great complement to geometry classes because it
provides visualizations, and the interactive approach really helps with
understanding shapes. Especially when it comes to understanding where
formulas like the area of a circle or the volume of a cone come from.
Sal says the proof for the volume of a sphere requires Calculus, I am
definitely looking forward to mastering it in the future.

Some volume formulas:

V(triangular prism)=(1/2)bhl
V(cube)=s^3
V(shpere)=(4/3)πr^3
V(cone)=(1/3)hπr^2

I also learned another tip: on macOS, we can type the character π with
the shortcut option+p.

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Teach Yourself Programming in Ten Years —— Peter Norvig
https://norvig.com/21-days.html

I really enjoy reading the article, and I deeply believe in deliberate
practice. Why are people—including myself—in such a hurry? I guess it's
because time feels limited. we can't afford to spend that long
accomplishing a goal. The journey seems interminable, which discourages
us, so we constantly need to feel productive. Because of that,
fearlessness—as mentioned at the end of the article—may be a much more
important characteristic than people realize.

The other day, I came across a blogger named BoJone
(https://spaces.ac.cn) while surfing the Internet. Some of his posts
date back 17 years, to when he was still in junior high school. Reading
those old posts and seeing what he eventually became is deeply inspiring
to me, and perhaps the best example of deliberate practice. He has been
interested in science, mathematics, and cosmology since childhood.
Through his blog, I can clearly see the power of long-term growth.

Another thing that came to mind is Teach Yourself Computer Sience
(teachyourselfcs.com) which I have been procrastinating on for a few
years. I should remind myself to stay patient and focus on the present
moment. Instead of thinking about how long everything will take, I
should simply enjoy the learning process.

Back to the article, there are also many valuable ideas in it. If you
want to master something, you need to be genuinely interested in it. The
best kind of learning is learning by doing. I can't master programming
or mathematics just by reading books. Read great code and learn from
other programmers. Write maintainable code. Lead projects if you can and
inspire others if you can.

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中國控煙困局：1.4萬億人民幣如何綁架政府？
https://theinitium.com/20241206-initium-audio-china-tobacco-monopoly/

This is an old episode republished by Initium Media. I guess it was
republished because a woman confronted a man smoking at a bus stop in
Shenzhen this spring. The report organizes the timeline and tells the
story of how smoking bans in China eventually failed. It's a shame to
see how much official influence from the government and the tobacco
industry shaped the outcome.

From my personal experience, it's almost impossible to avoid second-hand
smoke in Guangzhou or Foshan. You encounter it everywhere: walking on
the street, waiting at traffic lights, in restrooms, in sports stadiums,
in parks, and even while dining at fancy restaurants. What concerns me
most when taking trains between cities is not the distance to the
railway station or whether the trail will be delayed, but the groups of
people smoking on the platform. It's disgusting, it drives me crazy, and
there is almost nothing I can do about it.

In daily life, whenever possible, I try my best to avoid the rush hour.
After all, people are often the most unpredictable factor.