His interests in education and preparing learners with social and emotional skills are timely ones. In Palo Alto today he asked, “What can we we do to combat inattention, instead of just yelling at kids? How might they come to the technology they’re using?” Being able to teach effectively today, he says (and I believe), involves considering our collective expectations of immediacy. One answer is mindfulness-based practice, a technique Ryan said he’s observed kids bringing to their stressed parents. Now here’s an experimental idea to bring to electorates.

Fort Mason is hosting workshops and large-scale installations (not to mention a performance by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs; free tickets were all spoken for earlier this week). Especially of interest is The Artist as Researcher panel which will bring United Visual Artists, Casey Reas, Quayola, and Sosolimite together with to discuss how “artists are playing a critical role in making technology more human” and whether they might employ the same data-driven practices that drive research at engineering-oriented organizations.

Packed-to-the-gills panels about badging programs have me thinking about why this is an idea that many people seem to love to hate (more about this topic, and why I think it has promise, is shared in my paper about Mozilla’s Open Badges infrastructure in the journal Access to Knowledge). As grade inflation and under-employment abound, we still seem reticent to experiment with new models for credentialing and skill sharing. Of course we should be concerned about the value that learners gain when trying to achieve new skills. But as we think about motivations for lifelong learning, I hope educators and families can at least bring a sense of optimism about what might become of this way of contextualizing knowledge and expertise.

The SparkLab team of product designers has started a Kickstarter campaign to raise $25K to outfit a truck with tools and take it from school to school and stimulate students along the way. Take a peak at their fun story to see how the project intends to get local kids learning in highly hands-on ways.

This thought from SF superintendent Carlos Garcia also seems to have ramifications not just for education but for workplaces and personal development as well: “If we continue to do what we’ve always done, we’ll get what we’ve always got…Is that good enough? I don’t think it’s good enough for the 21st century.” Watch, won’t you?

When Culture Kitchen co-founder Abby Sturges explained that “cooking is a form of love and sharing,” I realized what I’ll be (belatedly) gifting friends for the day ‘o love. Between shipping packages of ingredients and recipes, she explained how the SF-based startup is looking to spread culture and cooking skills through food. Sturges and fellow designer Jennifer Lopez initially set out to offer in-person cooking classes between master cooks looking to support their families and customers eager to make their own tasty ethnic meals. To more widely translate the class experience of making, say, Green Gourd Stir Fry (Bí Xào Với Trứng), the pair now sells “culinary explorer packages” to a customer base beyond the seven by seven. If you’ve ever been frustrated by the run around required to get the necessary ingredients for a new dish (or shied away completely, as I have), the monthly subscription box could be just what the appetite ordered.

As apprentices, local young adults work as chefs, waiters and entertainers in a surprisingly warm atmosphere for what was once the Potrero Hill Police Station. That is, before founder Teresa Goines, a corrections officer who had worked with teen men, decided to do something about the correspondence she’d noticed between high crime and unemployment in the city. The resulting restaurant is a supportive environment not just for the people who work in it–but see for yourself when it hosts a New Orleans night on February 25.