Let’s be honest: you didn't click on this post to learn about the socio-economic impact of the gold standard or how to meal-prep kale. You’re here because there is a 100% chance you are currently avoiding something important. A spreadsheet? A sink full of dishes? Your tax returns? Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me. In fact, I’ve decided to be an enabler. I’ve spent a suspicious amount of time crafting Neon Jump, a retro-inspired, high-octane survival game that I’ve embedded right here in this post. It’s simple: you’re a glowing neon square, and the universe is throwing purple blocks of doom at your face. Your only job is to slide, survive, and watch that high score climb until your boss walks past your desk. Why play? ✅ It’s faster than your morning coffee. ✅ It’s more responsive than your last ex. ✅ It provides the instant gratification your career path currently lacks. Go ahead, give it a whirl. If you break 50 points, you officially have my permission to procrastinate for...
Lately, I have been listening to audiobooks. In fact, they aren’t audiobooks per se; rather, I am using a Read Aloud or text-to-speech (TTS) feature in Adobe Acrobat Reader. I have found it quite effective and efficient. It has increased my reading speed manifold and made the process more effective as well. When we read silently, we are mainly using our visual sense. However, reading this way—i.e., listening to audio while reading—cements knowledge because we are using two skills: reading and listening. If you include highlighted text as a visual aid, then you could say we are using three skills simultaneously. When we listen to audiobooks, we rely on our imagination. We hear the words and form images in our minds. But listening while reading doesn’t let your mind wander. This practice gave me an idea for a feature or app. I thought: why not have TTS technology for offline, physical books? You could simply open a camera view, point it at a page, and have it narrate the content. I ponde...