There's something about MathAcademy that just works for learning math (for both kids and adults - ask Reddit!), and we're chatting with Justin Skycak - Chief Quant & Director of Analytics at MathAcademy - to try to figure it out.Shownotes:justinmath.com -- Justin's personal websitemathacademy.com3blue1brownCell biology by the numbersExecuteProgramStar Trek 2009The Math Academy Way -- Math Academy's working draft book, authored by Justin, which answers the following questions: What techniques exist to maximize student learning and talent development, particularly in the context of math? Why are these techniques so impactful, and if they are indeed so impactful, then why are they so often absent from traditional classrooms? How does Math Academy leverage these techniques?Math Academy Origin Story, 2014-20 -- from Sandy & Jason's perspective, with a focus on how the original in-school program and early software came to beMath Academy Origin Story, 2019-23 -- from Justin's perspective, with a focus on teaching in that school program and getting the algorithms in place to turn it into a fully automated systemNews Articles about Math Academy's original in-school programOz on XCharlie on XOz's websiteCharlie's website

Ammar Mian is a software engineer and the co-founder of startup health tech company Malla - and another former student of Oz's and Bradfield School of Computer Science! Many software engineers daydream about starting their own company one day, so we've got Ammar on the show this week to give us the goods. Is it still fun? Can you still get into flow? Are you still coding? Does Oz want to die on Mars? All this and more!Shownotes:MallaThe WigglesThe Six Levels of Interaction with a SystemZone of proximal developmentRed-bellied black snakeReentry [book] - more recent history of SpaceXRed Mars [book] - Kim Stanley Robinson

Madison Kanna is a lifelong learner and self-taught programmer who learns in public, and Madison joins Oz and Charlie to share tactics for getting things done (with their learning goals) - and the importance of having fun along the way when learning computer science.ShownotesMadison Kanna's siteThe Cost of Forsaking CFlow - Mihaly CsikszentmihalyiRyan Holiday - Don't Talk about Writing a Novel

Jason Benn is an ML engineer and truly the epitome of a lifelong learner (Cal Newport even wrote about Jason in one of his books on learning!). Oz and Charlie catch up with Jason on his current self-directed ML sabbatical - which he's corralled into a co-working cohort called mleclub.com (similar to Recurse Center but with an ML / AI focus). We discuss the tactical, strategic, and emotional side to effective self-directed learning, and close out with a new segment tentatively called "Would you read the top article on Hacker News right now?".ShownotesMinerva University [book] So Good They Can't Ignore You - Cal Newport[book] Why Greatness Cannot Be Planned - Kenneth O. O. Stanley, Joel LehmanJason Benn's website MLE Club

Does your summer roadtrip across America include Saturn V Rockets, self-driving cars, dinosaur bones, and maybe Kittyhawk? Well, then you might be Oz and family! Charlie and Oz catch up on Oz's grand tour of America's inspiring hubs of ambition and technology, with plenty of detouring into the wonderful book genre of video game memoirs.Shownotes[book] Failure Is Not An Option - Gene Kranz[book] Skunkworks - Ben Rich[book] The Wright Brothers - David McCullough[book] Masters of Doom - David Kushner[documentary] Indie Game the Movie[book] Sid Meier's Memoir!: A Life in Computer Games[book] The Making of Prince of Persia - Jordan Mechner[book] Tomorrow, Tomorrow, Tomorrow - Gabrielle Zevin[song] "This song wrote itself" - Charlie's song about self-driving cars, performed in a self-driving car Hack Club's "Blot" pen plotter Hack Club

Thorsten Ball, self-published author, discusses learning new topics, textbooks, and why bugs are great. They explore individualized learning, programming styles, and terminal emulation. Embracing bugs for growth and integrating passion into software engineering are highlighted.

Zach Latta, founder of Hack Club, discusses the importance of coding in school, the value of friendship in learning, and creating awesome projects with awesome people. They explore the evolution of high school CS education, the spectrum of coding skills in teenagers, and the impact of pizza sponsorship on Hack Club's growth.

Oz and Charlie brainstorm their "Stripe Press for kids" publishing idea! Shownotes:Klutz PressCharlie's blog post about Klutz PressHacker News discussion about Charlie's Klutz Press blogLittle Schemer: https://mitpress.mit.edu/978026256099...Abstract Algebra: A Student Friendly Approach: https://www.amazon.com/Abstract-Algeb...Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective: https://www.amazon.com/Computer-Syste...Intel CeleronThe Diamond AgeQuantum CountyExecute Program Mitsumasa AnnoOz's Requests for Collaboration 

Brandon Hendrickson (creator of scienceisweird.com) says no one's ever asked him about the sabertooth tiger skull in his Zoom background - until now! Brandon's a teacher steeped in the ideas of Kieran Egan - a prolific educational theorist who believes the world is FASCINATING and that IMAGINATION is key to how we humans learn. We explore how Egan's approach could work for autodidact software engineers, offer untold book suggestions, and, of course, propose some ways that ChatGPT might be able to help us along the way.Shownotes:Science is WEIRDBrandon's 2023 Astral Codex Ten book review contest winning review of Kieran Egan's THE EDUCATED MINDKieran Egan (wikipedia)A New History of Greek Mathematics - Reviel NetzDie Hard water jug challenge XKCD someone is wrong on the internet

Brit Cruise creates educational videos, learning experiments, and other amazing things that "connect young people with their futures as young as possible." He's worked with Khan Academy, Codecademy,  Pixar, Disney, Unity, and more to conjure up magical educational experiences for kids.Shownotes:Brit Cruise's websiteStoryxperientialX in a BoxArt of the ProblemPixar in a BoxKhan Academy James Burke "Connections"