I like walking the beach as it is good for the body, mind, and soul – and refreshing on my feet.
The vast waters keeps serving as a metaphor for knowledge. If the water represents the sea of knowledge – all that is known – am I standing on the shore of ignorance? Oh yes – the importance of lifelong learner.
My mind keeps thinking about knowledge and learning. Einstein stated, “Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school.”
Passing a toy sand bucket reminds me that everyone enters a learning situation caring knowledge in 3 buckets – 3 buckets that involve filling and emptying – 3 buckets of knowledge – what they know, what they think the know (but don’t), and what they don’t know.
A good learning situation reinforces what the learner knows while adding to the didn’t know bucket. But, a just-as-important situation lies in the middle bucket – the information one thinks they know but don’t. This information serves as the foundation of misconceptions and illogical conclusions. This is the information that only the learner can declare as “incorrect”, then replace it with new correct information.
For instance, how accurate is one’s conclusion if the person starts with an incorrect assumption as the first or early domino in their logic? How willing is that person going to listen to a correct explanation? How willing is that person to admit they are wrong?
I think about the ways one can justify blood in our veins is blue. We see the blue beneath our skin. We see the red and blue diagrams of blood circulation in diagrams. If a person believes blood is blue, they will do whatever they can to justify their incorrect position by assuming the instantaneous color change when venous blood from a cut contacts the air.
The refreshing water rekindles a situation I experienced at a conference many years ago. The presenter made a point that I processed as, “Oh, that’s what it means – so I’ve been doing a good job of doing it wrong for 12 years.” Yes, that moment was a professional game changer for me. A moment that set the need for learning something new and changing past behaviors.
The bottom line is that only the learner can replace the incorrect information in their belief system. Only the learner can learn and unlearn. Not the teacher, not the trainer, not the expert – only the learner can do that.
I look across the water and down the beach at the horizons, which causes me to think of other metaphors. Is the horizon a learning boundary? Is the horizon a new level of knowledge? Does the horizon represent the distinction between the known and unknown? I’ll save the horizon for another day – another walk – because I like walking the beach as it is good for the body, mind, and soul – and refreshing on my feet.
I like walking the beach as it is good for the body, mind, and soul – and refreshing on my feet.
The water is vast as far as the eyes can see. From the shallowest depths where the waters begin their retreat from the shore to the deepest of the deep – the depths of those vast waters are not uniform.
These waters contain much information about things we know – the living creatures and their interactions with each other and with the materials comprising the floor and the waters above. The shipwrecks tell stories about human life of days gone by.
The vast water is also the home to tales and fables. Those encounters with serpents and mermaids – a home of the gods and more – all spun from human imagination or ancient beliefs, some which live on today.
That vast water is an analogy for another seemingly endless landscape – the sea of information and connection of our daily lives known the Web – the internet. Just as the waters brings information to the shores for us to see, the internet brings knowledge to our fingertips for quick retrieval.
Just like the vast water of the seas, the internet hold tales and fables in the form of inaccuracies and half-truths that should be shifted and when found. We should not be like an unassuming fish grabbing any fisherman’s hook in their quest for food. That would be foolish – but many people do.
As I walk my mind suddenly shifts back to the vastness of the sea with its waves rolling ashore and across my feet. Unlike the internet, these waters remain a source for the unknown – the yet to be discovered life forms – the yet to be found treasures – the unknown that will be tomorrow’s known so it can have a place on the sea of information.
As I walk on the sand, the waters to my side are vast with information. At least for me, this is an interesting analogy as I walk the beach while refreshing my feet.
April 2, 1977 – that was the day of our wedding in a Cleveland (Ohio) suburb. It was cross-state from my home, but a good group of my family and friends attended.
I graduated the previous June, then came to Cincinnati for my first job. She graduated a few weeks before the wedding, then joined me in Cincinnati after our honeymoon in Hilton Head, SC.
Since then, she knows I love trivia – or in her terms – useless information – this is the perfect post for our celebration – more useless information the number 39 in one place than one ever imagined. Yep – I’m quite the romantic.
In Language
Тридесет девет (Bulgarian), Trenta nove (Italian), Tridsať deväť (Slovak), Trettio nio (Swedish), Ba mươi chín (Vietnamese), XXXIX (Roman numerals) … Know any others?
In Mathematics
39 – a natural number, an odd integer that is divisible by 1, 3, 13, and 39
39 – a distinct semiprime number, a Perfect totient number, a Perrin number, Størmer number
39 – the number of edges on a F26A graph
39 – the sum of consecutive primes (3 + 5 + 7 + 11 + 13) and the product of the second and sixth prime (3 x 13)
Image from cooltext.com
In Chemistry
39 – the atomic number of yttrium, whose neutrally charged atom has 39 protons and 39 electrons
In Biology
Brodmann area 39 (BA39) – part of the human brain’s parietal cortex
39 – Number of chromosome pairs in the cells of African wild dogs, Chickens, Coyotes, Dholes, Dingos, Dogs, Doves, and Golden Jackal
In Astronomy
39 – the Saros series number for 73 lunar eclipses over 1298.1 years
39 – the star number that is in many constellations including Andromeda, Aquarius, Auriga, Boötes,Cancer, Draco, Eridanus, and more
In Religion
39 – according to Halakha, the number of activity categories prohibited on Shabbat
39 – the number of mentions of work or labor in the Torah
39 – the actual number of lashes given by the Sanhedrin to a person meted the punishment of 40 lashes
39 – according to Protestant canon, the number of books in the Old Testament
39 – the number of statements in Anglican Church doctrine known as the Thirty-Nine Articles
Papyrus 39 – an early papyrus manuscript of the New Testament in Greek of the Gospel of John, but only John 8:14-22
39 – other than numerical designations for pages, chapters, etc, 39 does not directly appear in the Bible
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In Arts and Entertainment
39 – Comedian Jack Benny’s perpetual age after 40
39th Tony Awards – winner include Biloxi Blues, Big River, and A Day in the Death of Joe Egg
In Literature
The Thirty-Nine Steps – a novel by John Buchan (1915), which has been transformed into multiple films (info later), a play, a television feature, and a video game
The 39 Clues – a book series revolving around 39 clues hidden around the world.
In Television
39 – the number of days contestants compete on Survivor (the CBS reality show)
39 – the number of episodes done the 1955-1956 season of The Honeymooners (commonly referred to as the “Classic 39”).
The 39 Steps is a 2008 BBC adventure feature-length adaptation of the John Buchan novel The Thirty-Nine Steps
39th Emmys – winners included Golden Girls (Best Comedy) and L.A. Law (Best Drama)
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In Film
Based on The Thirty-Nine Steps – the novel by John Buchan (1915) – are four versions:
The 39 Steps (1935 film), directed by Alfred Hitchcock
The 39 Steps (1959 film), directed by Ralph Thomas
The Thirty Nine Steps (1978 film), directed by Don Sharp
The 39 Steps (2008 film), directed by James Hawes
Glorious 39 – a 2009 drama film set at the beginning of World War II
39th Academy Awards – Oscars go to A Man for All Seasons (Best Picture), Fred Zinnemann (Best Actor), and Elizabeth Taylor (Best Actress)
39 Steps (band), a rock band appearing in Woody Allen’s film Hannah and Her Sisters
In Music 39 – a song by The Cure and Tenacious D
FabricLive.39 – a 2008 mix album by DJ Yoda
Fabric 39 – a 2008 album by Robert Hood.
39 Steps – an album by guitarist John Abercrombie (2013)
Now 39 (aka Now That’s What I Call Music! 39) – the 39th release of music featuring top singles i the UK.
Symphony No. 39 in G minor – written by Joseph Haydn 1767/1768)
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In World History
39 – Forty save one: the traditional number of times citizens of Ancient Rome hit their slaves
39 – the duration (in nanoseconds) of the nuclear reaction in the largest nuclear explosion ever (the Russian Tsar Bomba detonated on 30 October 1961)
39 – the number of Scud missiles Iraq fired at Israel during the Gulf War (1991)
Year 39 CE
A common year starting on Thursday
Tigellinus, minister and favorite of the Roman emperor Nero, is banished for adultery with Caligula’s sisters.
Philo leads a Jewish delegation to Rome to protest the anti-Jewish conditions in Alexandria.
The Trung Sisters resist the Chinese influences in Vietnam.
Born – Lucan (Roman poet) and Titus Flavius (future Roman emperor)
Deaths – Seneca the Elder (Roman rhetorician)
Year 39 BC
A common year starting on Friday, Saturday or Sunday or a leap year starting on Saturday
Sextus Pompey (self-proclaimed “son of Neptune”) controlled Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica
Born – Antonia Major (daughter of Mark Antony, grandmother of Nero and Messalin),
Julia the Elder (daughter of Caesar Augustus)
In US History
39 – the number of signers to the United States Constitution
39th President of the United States – Jimmy Carter
Number 39 – the Federalist Paper essay by James Madison describing the nature of the United States government as a new idea. (The Conformity of the Plan to Republican Principles,
published January 18, 1788)
Title 39 – the United States Code outlining the role of United States Postal Service
39th Congress – served from 4 March 1865 – 4 March 1867 during the presidencies of Abraham Lincoln (1 month) and Andrew Johnson
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In Sports
39 – the number of wooden boards normally consisting a bowling lane
Retired #39 Uniforms
MLB – Roy Campanella (Dodgers)
NFL – Larry Csonka (Dolphins)
NBA – none
NHL – Dominik Hašek (Sabres)
Super Bowl XXXIX – New England Patriots defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 24-21 on February 6, 2005 at Alltel Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida
NASCAR #39 – in 422 races, #39 won 4 races (all by Ryan Newman)
In Geography
39th Parallel north – crosses land in Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Iran, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, China, North Korea, Japan, and United States
39th Parallel south – crosses land in Australia, New Zealand, Chile, and Argentina
39th Meridian west – crosses land in Greenland and Brazil
39 Meridian east – crosses in Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia,Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Mozambique
National Highway 39 – found in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Germany
India, Iran, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, United Kingdom, and United States
Pier 39 – a shopping center and popular tourist attraction built on a pier in San Francisco, California
I-39 – a US interstate highway from Normal, Illinois to Wausau, Wisconsin
In Miscellaneous The 39 Steps is video game adaptation of Buchan’s book
39 – the international code for direct-dialed phone calls to Italy
ICL Series 39 – a range of mainframe and minicomputer computer systems released by the UK manufacturer ICL in 1985
Curse of 39 – the belief in some parts of Afghanistan that the number 39 is cursed or a badge of shame associated with prostitution
39 – Japanese Internet chat slang for “Thank You” when written with numbers (3=San 9=Kyuu)
Lace – the traditional gift for a 39th wedding anniversary
A Frank Angle 