Wonder
blunder
salve
solve
I want to expand the reach of human knowledge and ability.
I’m a technologist, designer, and researcher focused on inventing tools and media which help us think. I’m presently independent, following five years at Khan Academy, where I led R&D. We combined practices from product design, academic research, and classroom teachers to explore new possibilities in education.
Previously, I helped make iOS at Apple with the UIKit team, made various open-source creative and engineering tools, prototyped creative tools at Panic, and studied computer science at Caltech.
These are highlights from the major education projects I’ve pursued at Khan Academy with colleagues May-Li Khoe, Nick Barr, Scott Farrar, Brian Johnsrud, and Jason Brennan:
I write essays about thinking, learning, making, and more. A few:
Thinking
“Blinded by how,” a personal cautionary tale on the subtle but serious dangers of neglecting “why” for “how”.
Learning
“Exalting data, missing meaning,” on the tangled dance of expert insight and data in unsystematized fields.
Making
“Satisfaction and progress in open-ended work,” on finding steady ground in creative ambiguity.
More
“Musical tone and perceived disonnance,” on why we associate musical dissonance with tension.
Read on at Square Signals.
Feel free to get in touch.