Weekly Filet #166: Coding, the New Literacy. And more.
Imagine, before you continue, for a brief moment that you could read, but not write. What would that mean to you? After all, it's not that far-fetched. When it comes to computers, most of us know how to use them, but only few know how to tell them to do exactly what we want them to do. We read, but we don't write. And while not everyone needs to become a programmer, having a basic understanding of «computational thinking» will be key in our technology-driven future. The good news: If you know how to cook, you've made your first steps in «computational thinking». For more, read this excellent text on coding as the new literacy.
→ Is Coding the New Literacy (Mother Jones)
Four years after that devastating earthquake, Haiti is still rebuilding. This multimedia reportage puts you in charge to make key decisions and lets you experience how difficult it is. Great photography, too.
→ ReBuilding Haiti (Rue 89)
For some reason I've never featured «Humans of New York» in 165 Weekly Filets. What a shame. It's one of my favourite projects on the web.
→ Humans of New York
Foreign Policy has published its tenth report on fragile states worldwide. Syria doesn't even make the top ten.
→ Fragile States 2014
Comfort in, dump out. Some thoughts on how to speak to people how are having a tough time.
→ How not to say the wrong thing (LA Times)