Learning Blogs

Browse the best learning blogs from independent writers on BlogRolly.

• Sex is a learned skill — Think of sex like learning an instrument. In this post I show how to tune your body, learn sexual anatomy, map what arou
• What does a sex coach do? — Curious what a sex coach does? As a somatic sex coach I guide women and couples through four pillars: sexual mastery, mi
• Summer sex-ed: Reads, shows & podcasts to devour — Want sex-ed that sparks real conversations this summer? I rounded up the best sex-ed books, films and podcasts to devour
• “Who was Mr. W.H.”? – and Other Questions — Who really was Mr W.H.? On National Poetry Day I follow a new TLS miniature lead to unpack Shakespeare's Sonnets, from S
• Libraries as sanctuaries — A wooden-drawered index card cabinet still takes me back to Cleveland Elementary, that age-yellowed typewritten tinge an
• Some large language model pathologies — Ever had an LLM invent a photo you forgot to attach? Here I catalogue LLM pathologies I’ve seen in Gemini and ChatGPT, f
• How Should Literature Mean? A Conversation About Art and Ambiguity — Curious whether a poem or novel can refuse to be known? In this edited interview I talk with John Gibson, Magdalena Osta
• How to Use the Feynman Technique for Studying — Want to master ideas faster with the Feynman Technique for studying? In this post I show how to use the Feynman Techniqu
• Synesthesia and Memory Training — Could learning to see letters as colors raise your IQ? Here I lay out synesthesia and memory training research, from gra
• How to Get Started with Speed Reading — Curious how fast you can read and still remember it? This post shows how to get started with speed reading, whether spee
• How to Memorize a Book or Textbook — Want to memorize a textbook fast? In this post I walk you through step-by-step how to memorize a book using the memory p
• How to Memorize Poetry — Want to memorize a poem fast? In this post I walk through practical techniques for how to memorize poetry, from dividing
• What Is a Mnemonic? — Curious about memory tricks? In this 4-minute read I answer what is a mnemonic and give clear mnemonic examples like the
• How to Use the Method of Loci — Want a simple memory trick that actually works? In this post I explain how to use the method of loci, also known as the
• 36 Best Memory Techniques for Studying — Want to learn faster? I compiled 36 memory techniques for studying, from memory palaces and the method of loci to mnemon
• "Very Easy" Mnemonics for the Planets — Want to memorize the planets fast? In this short post I walk you through very easy mnemonics for the planets, from the c
• Eidetic Memory vs. Photographic Memory: Do They Exist? — Think you have a photographic memory? I separate myth from science, explain what eidetic imagery actually is, why it is
• How to Build a Memory Palace — Want to memorize anything fast using a memory palace? Follow this step by step how to build a memory palace tutorial whe
• OMFG! Sweary abbreviations FTFW — Ever noticed how WTF and OMFG rule online chat? I take you through the history and meaning of sweary abbreviations, from
• Strong bad mature filthy language — Ever noticed how many euphemisms hide the word swearing? In this post I trace the meanings of phrases like mature langua
• Asterisks for the f*n of it — Curious about the asterisk trend in online swearing? I trace Blackbird Spyplane’s playful bleeping, cite New York Times
• What kind of “fuckery” is this? — Ever wondered what 'fuckery' actually means and where it came from? I trace its journey from a late 19th century brothel
• What’s your favorite swear word? — Ever been asked your favorite swear word? People ask me that all the time, and I usually shrug. I talk about why profani
• Serving Kant — Curious how a four letter word shook Eurovision 2025? I track Malta’s entry Serving, originally titled Kant, and why the
• “Get your shit together” — Ever wondered where get your shit together came from and when we started saying it? Here I trace the phrase history and
• The further adventures of “AF” — From Thinx subway ads and a Bay Bridge billboard to Everlane backpacks and a line in The Incredible Jessica James, AF ha
• “Smut” — What makes Tom Lehrer's "Smut" still land after 60 years? I trace the song's origin on That Was the Week That Was, unpac
• Jackson Lamb and the Slow Horses Learn How to Spell Profanity — Want to learn how Jackson Lamb turns profanity into craft? In this close reading of Mick Herron's Slough House novels, I
• Not them having a whole zoo—the rise of ironic "not" — Ever noticed the strangely playful "Not X" on Instagram and Reddit? In this post I trace the rise of ironic not, show ho
• The Ampersand, Part 2 — I follow the ampersand through medieval manuscripts, early printing and schoolroom alphabets, watching it turn from scri
• The Ampersand, Part 1 — I start the ampersand story in Rome, with Cicero, Tiro’s shorthand and a scrappy graffiti ligature in Pompeii, and follo
• The Octothorpe, Part 2 — I carry the octothorpe into the age of touch-tone phones, programming and social media, showing how this once-obscure pr
• The Octothorpe, Part 1 — I dig into the tangled history of the octothorpe: mediaeval scribal marks, pounds and numbers, and the long, messy journ
• The Interrobang, Part 2 — I follow the interrobang into its afterlife: obscure typefaces, Unicode, misprints and revivals, and the strange ways th
• The Interrobang, Part 1 — I go hunting for the curious history of the interrobang, from a 1960s New York ad man’s brainstorm to its awkward life o
• The Pilcrow, Part 3 — I watch the pilcrow lose its place to the indented paragraph, then sidle back in via proofreading, Eric Gill’s An Essay
• The Pilcrow, Part 2 — I pick up the pilcrow’s trail in medieval scriptoria, watching it morph from a humble K for kaput into the familiar reve
• The Pilcrow — I trace the pilcrow back to ancient Greece and Rome, from boustrophedon inscriptions and scriptio continua to the first
• Book spine poem: Walking Word by Word — I stack dictionaries and language classics into a quiet little book spine poem, walking word by word through the history
• The Speech Community — I think aloud about what a speech community really is, how linguists use the term, and how messy real‑world language bor
• “Quotation marks” or ‘inverted commas’? — I pick apart “quotation marks” and ‘inverted commas’, house styles, scare quotes and all, with examples from British and
• Dutch term – Paus — Tracing Dutch records and stumbled on “paus”? I unpack how this word shows up in church registers and historical documen
• Dutch term – Middenstand — The word middenstand pops up in Dutch records more than you’d think. I dig into what it meant for shopkeepers, tradespeo
• 8 Ways To Find Your Ancestor’s Emigration Date — Trying to pin down when an ancestor left the Netherlands? I walk through practical ways to find an emigration date using
• Dutch term – Vrijdag — Seeing vrijdag in old Dutch documents is simple until it isn’t. I explore how days of the week show up in church books,
• Dutch term – Godsdienst — The term godsdienst appears everywhere in Dutch records. I look at what it reveals about religion, identity, and communi
• Dutch term – non-binair, hen, die, diegene — Dutch language is shifting, and I’m following along. Here I explore non-binary pronouns like hen, die, and diegene, how
• Dutch Term – Procuratie — When I see procuratie in Dutch documents, it usually points to power of attorney or legal authority. I break down how th
• Dutch term – Slaaf — The word slaaf carries weight. I look at how it appears in Dutch colonial and archival records, what it meant in histori
• Dutch term – Publieke Vrouw — Publieke vrouw shows up in old Dutch records with layered meaning. I explore how the term was used historically, what it