Mastodawn

When I was first learning electronics I bought a bunch of kits from Boldport. Including the "cordwood puzzle" and when it came I was so despondent. It's pair of PCBs and parts and YOU need to puzzle out how to put them together.

I remember thinking that I'd never be able to work it out. Just putting a kit together correctly and having it work was my limit.

I put the puzzle away, forgot about it.

I found it today ... guess what?

It's SO EASY.

Nice to be old and learn new tricks isn't it?

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myrmepropagandist Jun 30

I used to think that this thing was so advanced and complicated and that only super experts would understand it at all.

I even thought it was sort of mean that Boldport made it so hard!

Now I'm like "this is baby stuff"

This has happened with mathematics for me many times. But only a few times with electronics. I'm totally self-taught in electronics. My knowledge is hard won, my students get to learn these things much faster with my help.

But, that's what I love about teaching.

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myrmepropagandist Jun 30

What is something that once seemed advanced and impossible to you that later became easy?

Isn't that feeling the best high in the world?

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OldCoder Jun 30

When I was perhaps six years old, I wandered up to some outdoors benches at school. A boy of impressive age was sitting there. The boy was probably 8 or 9. He was writing something on a piece of paper. I looked over his shoulder to see what it was.

He was doing three-column addition. Three columns! How could I ever match that?

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myrmepropagandist Jun 30

@oldcoder

This is exactly how I felt when I missed a lecture in complex and came in and saw this:

"aw hell no. they've got a circle on it now?!?"

It turned out to be fine. But yeah. Math is just always like this from the playground to the very end.

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Tattie

@futurebird the circle must be there to blend the contour. Advanced stuff indeed.
@oldcoder