Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good evening and Welcome. My name is Lang Lin. I am the vice chair of the gifted child committee in MCCPTA. Nonetheless, I am a father of two MCPS students.
On Memorial Day 2015, I took my 6 year old to the Arlington Cemetery to pay our tribute to many including one extraordinary elementary school teacher buried there. Her name is Imogene Teddy Hill. Not many people know this name. She is a teacher of Steve Jobs. Steve called Imogene “my Saint”. Why?
Steve Jobs used to be a goofball playing pranks in his school such as setting off explosives in the teacher’s desk. According to Steve, Imogene changed his life by challenging him into finishing an advanced workbook for 5 bucks, that is 50 dollars today, from Imogene’s own pocket.
The story of Steve Jobs and Imogene Hill is a vivid example of how important teachers and schools are to GT students. In addition, Steve Jobs is an iconic figure showing how important GT students are to our society and to our future.
Tonight, this is a great opportunity for you to listen to our own “Imogene Hill”s in MCPS for your young “Steve Jobs”s.
Thank you.
Thursday, October 27, 2016
Sunday, October 9, 2016
20161010 BOE Meeting Testimony.
Honorable Members of the Board, Dr. Smith,
Good Morning!
My name is XX, father of two MCPS students, sitting chair of MCCPTA gifted child committee.
On behalf of our committee, parents that we represent, students that we advocate for, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your unanimous vote on adopting the Choice Study response plan roadmap on September 26.
Public education is the single most important gift that a democratic society can pass to its future generations. Throughout human history, we have seen the rises and the falls of empires, dynasties, and noble families. The simple truth is that power and wealth don’t last forever. On the contrary, pointed out by many, it is truly essential to educate all future citizens to love their communities as well as to tackle problems with facts and open-mindedness .
Montgomery County is a community that embraces philosophy of inclusiveness. Our school system educates approximately 40% of ESOL students in Maryland, and we work together to meet their needs.
We cannot teach “love of community” by ignoring students’ needs. In our school system, there are students who are not challenged by even a rigorous on grade level curriculum. They are capable of handling and, more importantly, need above grade curriculum content, on a daily basis, to be challenged and reach their potential. Among them, only a tiny fraction, around 3%, can be admitted into the few academically selective programs (ASPs), while the rest remain at their home schools. Often, their needs are not met, and are by-and-large ignored. This practice is quite the opposite of the goal of our public education system, which is to provide all students with opportunities to meet their full potential as students and as citizens.
We strongly support the Choice Study response plan and the theme of “strengthening local schools”. We firmly believe that this is a great opportunity for our community to extend its tradition of care and inclusiveness to GT students of all backgrounds.
The Choice Study response plan prescribes a 3 year process. There are many challenges ahead. Our community must resolve these challenging issues with due diligence and creativity.
Academically selective programs such as the Magnet programs and the Center Programs for the Highly Giftedare necessities for meeting the needs of young talented students like Lee Lemar - who testified right here - on September 26. These programs and their quality must be preserved.
For any MCPS student, being admitted into these programs is remarkable. Some even consider such an offer as a trophy. However, this view is incomplete.
It is not at all well-known that accepting a place in an academically selective program is a serious commitment from all parties including students and their families. For students, the work load can be substantial and the expectations can be high. For students and their families, as testified by Rachel Li, several hours of commute to and from these programs each and every day can be unendurable.
Moreover, it is important to understand that the rigorous selection processes for academically selective programs are not a mechanism for simply labeling students. Instead, these processes are used to guarantee as much as possible that admitted students will thrive in these demanding programs.
Our community is not satisfied with the current status of the demographics in many of these programs. To solve that problem, we must recognize and share with our community that the disparity in preparation to thrive happens at a much earlier stage in local schools and “strengthening local schools” is the correct objective strategy to guide positive changes.
We strongly support the talent development provisions in the Choice Study response plan and the corresponding federal I3 fund application. We are genuinely confident that positive progress will be made by nurturing talented students from the earliest grades.
On the implementation side, a top level challenge to ensure the success of the Choice Study response plan is how to guarantee the quality of transfer, which is the consequence of content, process, and product. All these involve human participation and it is complicated.
Under constrained budgets and stringent schedules, high quality outcomes require effective and efficient planning, organizing, and execution. A well-known principle for improving effectiveness and efficiency is division of labor, which splits complex tasks into tangible pieces, assigns them to people/firms, and lets them be focused. The principle is not only for manufacturing simple devices but also for conducting research and development and even coordinating projects at the global scale.
The practice of differentiated instruction in a classroom consisting of kids at different grade levels is not well aligned with the principle of division of labor. We as parents often see that teachers are being asked to do too much when they must simultaneously meet the needs of students ranging from those who need extra help with proficiency to students who need completely different content in order that all students may grow. Such classrooms are simply too demanding for teachers to teach, to organize, and to manage effectively and efficiently.
Regardless of how good a curriculum can be, under a constrained budget and an influx of new students, the practice is potentially a risk to stress out our teachers, to lower their productivity, and eventually, to drive down the quality of our school system.
We recognize that substantially improving effectiveness and efficiency is a profound interest in several Choice Study response plan provisions including local school GT programs, compacted math programs, and future reading/literacy programs. We sincerely hope that school leadership can recognize the evidence, make appropriate recommendations, and ensure good practices in classrooms.
In conclusion, we are grateful to see the progress on addressing needs of students of all backgrounds and abilities in MCPS. We would like to take this opportunity to further advocate for attacking challenging issues from their roots and taking courageous steps to let teachers and students of all backgrounds perform at their best.
XX, Ph.D.
Chair, MCCPTA Gifted Child Committee
VP, Bells Mill ES PTA
GT Liaison, Cold Spring ES PTA
Good Morning!
My name is XX, father of two MCPS students, sitting chair of MCCPTA gifted child committee.
On behalf of our committee, parents that we represent, students that we advocate for, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your unanimous vote on adopting the Choice Study response plan roadmap on September 26.
Public education is the single most important gift that a democratic society can pass to its future generations. Throughout human history, we have seen the rises and the falls of empires, dynasties, and noble families. The simple truth is that power and wealth don’t last forever. On the contrary, pointed out by many, it is truly essential to educate all future citizens to love their communities as well as to tackle problems with facts and open-mindedness .
Montgomery County is a community that embraces philosophy of inclusiveness. Our school system educates approximately 40% of ESOL students in Maryland, and we work together to meet their needs.
We cannot teach “love of community” by ignoring students’ needs. In our school system, there are students who are not challenged by even a rigorous on grade level curriculum. They are capable of handling and, more importantly, need above grade curriculum content, on a daily basis, to be challenged and reach their potential. Among them, only a tiny fraction, around 3%, can be admitted into the few academically selective programs (ASPs), while the rest remain at their home schools. Often, their needs are not met, and are by-and-large ignored. This practice is quite the opposite of the goal of our public education system, which is to provide all students with opportunities to meet their full potential as students and as citizens.
We strongly support the Choice Study response plan and the theme of “strengthening local schools”. We firmly believe that this is a great opportunity for our community to extend its tradition of care and inclusiveness to GT students of all backgrounds.
The Choice Study response plan prescribes a 3 year process. There are many challenges ahead. Our community must resolve these challenging issues with due diligence and creativity.
Academically selective programs such as the Magnet programs and the Center Programs for the Highly Giftedare necessities for meeting the needs of young talented students like Lee Lemar - who testified right here - on September 26. These programs and their quality must be preserved.
For any MCPS student, being admitted into these programs is remarkable. Some even consider such an offer as a trophy. However, this view is incomplete.
It is not at all well-known that accepting a place in an academically selective program is a serious commitment from all parties including students and their families. For students, the work load can be substantial and the expectations can be high. For students and their families, as testified by Rachel Li, several hours of commute to and from these programs each and every day can be unendurable.
Moreover, it is important to understand that the rigorous selection processes for academically selective programs are not a mechanism for simply labeling students. Instead, these processes are used to guarantee as much as possible that admitted students will thrive in these demanding programs.
Our community is not satisfied with the current status of the demographics in many of these programs. To solve that problem, we must recognize and share with our community that the disparity in preparation to thrive happens at a much earlier stage in local schools and “strengthening local schools” is the correct objective strategy to guide positive changes.
We strongly support the talent development provisions in the Choice Study response plan and the corresponding federal I3 fund application. We are genuinely confident that positive progress will be made by nurturing talented students from the earliest grades.
On the implementation side, a top level challenge to ensure the success of the Choice Study response plan is how to guarantee the quality of transfer, which is the consequence of content, process, and product. All these involve human participation and it is complicated.
Under constrained budgets and stringent schedules, high quality outcomes require effective and efficient planning, organizing, and execution. A well-known principle for improving effectiveness and efficiency is division of labor, which splits complex tasks into tangible pieces, assigns them to people/firms, and lets them be focused. The principle is not only for manufacturing simple devices but also for conducting research and development and even coordinating projects at the global scale.
The practice of differentiated instruction in a classroom consisting of kids at different grade levels is not well aligned with the principle of division of labor. We as parents often see that teachers are being asked to do too much when they must simultaneously meet the needs of students ranging from those who need extra help with proficiency to students who need completely different content in order that all students may grow. Such classrooms are simply too demanding for teachers to teach, to organize, and to manage effectively and efficiently.
Regardless of how good a curriculum can be, under a constrained budget and an influx of new students, the practice is potentially a risk to stress out our teachers, to lower their productivity, and eventually, to drive down the quality of our school system.
We recognize that substantially improving effectiveness and efficiency is a profound interest in several Choice Study response plan provisions including local school GT programs, compacted math programs, and future reading/literacy programs. We sincerely hope that school leadership can recognize the evidence, make appropriate recommendations, and ensure good practices in classrooms.
In conclusion, we are grateful to see the progress on addressing needs of students of all backgrounds and abilities in MCPS. We would like to take this opportunity to further advocate for attacking challenging issues from their roots and taking courageous steps to let teachers and students of all backgrounds perform at their best.
XX, Ph.D.
Chair, MCCPTA Gifted Child Committee
VP, Bells Mill ES PTA
GT Liaison, Cold Spring ES PTA
Thursday, June 9, 2016
聊聊蒙郡公校Academically Selective Program以及Choice Study跟加州SCA5的不同
题目非常大。我尽力试试把事情的原委交代清楚。
蒙郡公校是一个庞大的系统。系统里有两百多所中小学，2万多名员工，和近16万学生。比起邻近的费郡公校，蒙郡公校的种族更多样化，程度差异也更大。
蒙郡公校在小学二年级会根据学生的学习水平确定一个学生是否能被identified as gifted and talented （GT）。所有蒙郡二年级的学生都会被测试。结果会在二年级第二学期末通知家长。在蒙郡有近35%的学生被identified as GT
students。
按照蒙郡的标准，GT students是有接受above
on grade level教学内容的学力。这个above on grade level范围非常广，超过3-4年级的和超过一年的都被包含在内。
蒙郡的GT students中有～10%（总数的～3%）能通过竞争进入Academically Selective Programs （ASP）。ASP包含Magnet
ES/MS/HS，Highly Gifted Center，IB等等。剩下的GT students会在home school跟非GT学生一起上课。
这里特别要提到的是ASP申请者中有很多在waiting list上。这些学生是在学习能力上完全可以胜任ASP的要求。从另外一个角度而言ASP本应该是满足这些学生在教育上需求的program。但是由于ASP的人数限制，他们只能跟其他GT Students一起留在home school的general
program里。
蒙郡公校要求老师在教学中对学生采取differentiation措施。Differentiation具体体现在教学内容（content），教学流程（process），和教学目标（product ）三个方面。对有能力的学生在教学中要有enrichment。
这个Differentiation对华人一点儿也不陌生。它就是因材施教。但是，Differentiation说起来容易做起来难。试想一个老师面对一班有三四个不同grade level的学生群体完全不同的需求。他/她怎么能真正实施differentiation和enrichment？
因此一个在蒙郡公校中特别突出的问题就是大多数没有进ASP 的GT
students不能得到他们需要的教育。这个不是种族的问题，而是整个蒙郡公校整体教育水平提高的一个重要障碍。广大家长对这是怨声载道。
这次很多华裔家长对Choice Study里的policy
recommendation 3a非常反感。这一点我做为一个有GT孩子的家长非常能理解。我对3a的看法发在这里。但是在学区层面，核心问题不太一样。这里我先列两个：
- 为什么蒙郡公校ASP有今天的zero-sum问题？甚至是种族斗争撕裂社区的zero-sum问题？
- 如何从根本上解决问题让所有GT Students包含ASP waiting list上的学生都能得到合适的教育？
蒙郡ASP问题的本质跟加州SCA5略有不同。加州大学入学的zero-sum根源是大学人数的限制。加州公立大学特别是UC本身无法任意扩展。
蒙郡的ASP只是program。目前的人数限制在很大程度上都是历史和人为的因素造成的。如果能把ASP的一些内容，流程，以及目标通过合理的规划扩展到home
school，不但zero-sum的问题能得到缓解而且能让更多的学生得到合适的教育。这对于提升蒙郡公校的整体教育水平乃至平衡预算都是有积极影响的。
这里我想简单提一下ASP program带来的commute
问题。蒙郡公校需要budget校车每天在学生home school和ASP所在学校之间接送学生。这个开销是ASP跟普通home school program不同的一个专项开销。问题的另一面是，很多在ASP上学的学生，尤其是中学生，每天要在路上花2个小时甚至更多时间。这个对他们以及他们的家庭都是一个沉重的负担。这个负担使得不少需要ASP教育的学生家庭要在教育和负担之间做困难的抉择。特别对于有6年级初中生的家庭而言，这样的抉择相当残酷。如果能在home
school有合适的program，这样的抉择会容易得多。从宏观上，相关的budget也会减少一些。
知易行难。看上去一切都很美好，但是实践中会有很多问题。我非常希望看到蒙郡公校能够在提倡21世纪教学的同时，以身作则用21世纪的大局观和魄力来处理这种问题。另外，蒙郡公校的好坏对大家的孩子和家庭息息相关。我也希望大家能在一起帮助蒙郡公校认识解决问题。
最后附上我在MCCPTA Choice Study Meeting上的comments。题目是讨论的问题。
“How to Define Success in Responding to the Choice Study?”
Montgomery County is a society embracing the philosophy of "being inclusive". Our school system took 35% of ESOL students in Maryland. We together carry the weight. It takes tremendous courage and creativity to embrace "inclusion" in public education. It is not an option to pursue zero-sum solutions which are exclusive and alienate people. Tonight, I am very glad to hear the voice for program expansion resonating among the audience.
Diversity may not necessarily mean the same as indicated in the choice study report. To me, diversity in education also means letting students pursue their passion. At this internet age, 8th and 9th graders knows much more than what I knew at the same age. Besides imposing schools' and parents' visions on students, we may really need to let students voice up for what they want to be and support them.
We heard strong support on improving tracking mechanism within the school system. Any improvement can be a good "success" in either the short term or the long term.
Thursday, May 19, 2016
How to Define Success in Responding to the Choice Study?
Montgomery County is a society embracing the philosophy of "being inclusive". Our school system took 35% of ESOL students in Maryland. We together carry the weight. It takes tremendous courage and creativity to embrace "inclusion" in public education. It is not an option to pursue zero-sum solutions which are exclusive and alienate people. Tonight, I am very glad to hear the voice for program expansion resonating among the audience.
Diversity may not necessarily mean the same as indicated in the choice study report. To me, diversity in education also means letting students pursue their passion. At this internet age, 8th and 9th graders knows much more than what I knew at the same age. Besides imposing schools' and parents' visions on students, we may really need to let students voice up for what they want to be and support them.
We heard strong support on improving tracking mechanism within the school system. Any improvement can be a good "success" in either the short term or the long term.
Diversity may not necessarily mean the same as indicated in the choice study report. To me, diversity in education also means letting students pursue their passion. At this internet age, 8th and 9th graders knows much more than what I knew at the same age. Besides imposing schools' and parents' visions on students, we may really need to let students voice up for what they want to be and support them.
We heard strong support on improving tracking mechanism within the school system. Any improvement can be a good "success" in either the short term or the long term.
Wednesday, May 4, 2016
微人不轻言
行
文之前，向大家推荐一下两位我喜欢的作家。一位是燕子姐，李春燕教授；另一位是高分子怪物，叶帆博士。他们的本职工作都不是写作，但是他们的文章有趣有
意，让我思考。同时他们积极参与华人社区活动支持鼓励大家为共同的利益努力。因此，他们的为人也让我非常钦佩是我的榜样。
古人言人微言轻。字面上是说人没什么地位，那也就没有什么话语权。口语里，大家提起这个词儿，经常还带着些无奈。就我们这点儿力量，成不了什么事儿。
我认为不尽然。本篇题目算是我的领悟。这里跟大家聊一个小故事。
差不多是两年前吧。一次，郡公学和郡PTA组织了个Science Curriculum Night活动。当时，我一个懵懵懂懂的Kindergartener家长抱着了解了解情况的态度就参加了。
活动中，主管学区science教学的Amy女士用了一个教学实例来讲述新教学大纲的优点。这个实例是一个给六年级的小型研究项目。项目的核心是让学生了解global warming的知识和人类的对策。在课上老师的讲解和课后搜索材料后，学生们要写出报告，并且在后面的课程中讨论。现场，Amy还给参加活动的家长们播放了学生讨论的录像。
当Amy让家长们提问的时候，我举手走到麦克风前提了两个comments。
Comment 1：科学是个讲究系统性的东西。要考虑全局。如果只有一知半解，那结论和解决方案很可能有重大问题。学生们自己去找资料基本上做不到全面。如果没有老师和教材的帮助，学生们只会是在一两个点上夸夸奇谈的讨论。这样的教学很可能达不到培养科学认知和素养的目的。
Comment 2：我们的老师都是好老师。但是每个老师都全面的了解global warming是非常困难的。因此，在制订教学大纲和提供教学材料的时候，我们也许应该考虑到这样的问题。如果教学大纲/材料一定要有好老师才能达到教学要求，那这个教学大纲/材料是有问题的。
时光飞逝，眼看着两年就要过去了。上个月，我参加郡公学的Curriculum Advisory Assembly。很巧，这次是Amy讲NGSS相关的science课程设置问题。会后，我过去跟Amy寒暄。她笑着说我记得你，你上次讲了好老师和教学大纲的事儿。
故事到这里就告一段落。一点儿背景资料，我们学区有～200间学校，2万名教职工，15万名学生。Amy是负责整个学区science教学的主管。让她在两年时间记住每个只出现过一次说过5分钟话的普通家长是件不可能的事。她后来提到记住我的原因是我的建议“did
cause much reflection on our implementation plan for our staff”。
大约在一年前我在微博上聊过几段不成文的话，朋友加了题目叫“华人有用吗？”。当时，我的直觉是如果我们真的比别人有教育孩子的优势，不妨走到学校和家长会里去。从follower试试drive一些小事儿。在这一年中，很多事情发生了。将来有机会我再跟大家探讨。总的感觉是我们人单势孤没钱没权都没关系。只要有心，我们还是有能力去影响更多的人去推动社会朝着进步的方向前进的。
Saturday, April 9, 2016
My concerns on Metis' report / recommendations
As a parent respecting the noble cause of closing achievement gap, I have been torn by the Metis' report [1] after reading into it deeply.
Please allow me first start from a positive point.
There are more than 30% MCPS students labeled as GT students, which indicates that they are potentially in need of acceleration and enrichment. Among them, due to limited seat numbers, only a small fraction will be admitted into various special programs. It is really encouraging to see that the strong demand is recognized and the capacity expansion is recommended in the report.
However, the overall research/study of the Metis' report has not built a concrete case to support its recommendations in order to promote equity.
One of the biggest problems embedded in the Metis’ report is that the report emphasizes solely on the number of seats, which is determined only at a specific point in a student’s life, without addressing much about items happening either before or after the event. Consequently, there are significant uncertainties for MCPS to implement curriculum and policy according to those policy recommendations.
For any MCPS student, being admitted into any academically selective program is truly remarkable. However, taking the offer is nothing short of a serious commitment from whoever is involved including students, their families, and schools. The work load will be substantial and the expectations will be sky-high. Based on my knowledge, none of rigorous selection processes is a mechanism for simply labeling students. Instead, processes are used to guarantee to a degree that admitted students will be successful under substantial load and sky-high expectations.
Personally, I would be genuinely worried for those who acquire seats in academically selective programs without necessary academic capabilities as promoted in Metis’ recommendations. What would happen if they are not ready for the paramount challenges? After adopting the new admission policies, would it be required for adopting race / social factor based grading mechanism for homework and tests? In addition, would it be nice to arrange the work load based on race / social factors? There is no provision on grading / work load in Metis’ recommendation at all. Thus, there will be big holes for MCPS to fill.
At a strategic level, if race / social factor based grading and work load is a viable path in academically selective programs, there shall be absolutely no foreseeable barrier to have race / social factor based grading / work load in the less challenging general curriculum 2.0 framework. In another word, Metis’ recommendations implicitly prescribe the success of a full scale race / social factor based curriculum within MCPS even though there is no explicit statement in the report.
If Metis’ recommendations on race / social factor based admission are sounding, I would be more than happy to suggest our schools to reform curriculum 2.0 around race / social factor based concepts. This is in that most of students regardless of their race / social background will be affected by the general curriculum 2.0 instead of academic selective programs. If race / social factor based curriculum 2.0 is helpful, most of MCPS students will benefit immediately.
Overall, it would be nice to see thorough studies on the feasibility of Metis’ policy recommendations and their implications before committing either a yes or a no.
[1] Metis Associates, “Montgomery County Public Schools: Study of Choice and Special Academic Programs”, 8 March 2016
Please allow me first start from a positive point.
There are more than 30% MCPS students labeled as GT students, which indicates that they are potentially in need of acceleration and enrichment. Among them, due to limited seat numbers, only a small fraction will be admitted into various special programs. It is really encouraging to see that the strong demand is recognized and the capacity expansion is recommended in the report.
However, the overall research/study of the Metis' report has not built a concrete case to support its recommendations in order to promote equity.
One of the biggest problems embedded in the Metis’ report is that the report emphasizes solely on the number of seats, which is determined only at a specific point in a student’s life, without addressing much about items happening either before or after the event. Consequently, there are significant uncertainties for MCPS to implement curriculum and policy according to those policy recommendations.
For any MCPS student, being admitted into any academically selective program is truly remarkable. However, taking the offer is nothing short of a serious commitment from whoever is involved including students, their families, and schools. The work load will be substantial and the expectations will be sky-high. Based on my knowledge, none of rigorous selection processes is a mechanism for simply labeling students. Instead, processes are used to guarantee to a degree that admitted students will be successful under substantial load and sky-high expectations.
Personally, I would be genuinely worried for those who acquire seats in academically selective programs without necessary academic capabilities as promoted in Metis’ recommendations. What would happen if they are not ready for the paramount challenges? After adopting the new admission policies, would it be required for adopting race / social factor based grading mechanism for homework and tests? In addition, would it be nice to arrange the work load based on race / social factors? There is no provision on grading / work load in Metis’ recommendation at all. Thus, there will be big holes for MCPS to fill.
At a strategic level, if race / social factor based grading and work load is a viable path in academically selective programs, there shall be absolutely no foreseeable barrier to have race / social factor based grading / work load in the less challenging general curriculum 2.0 framework. In another word, Metis’ recommendations implicitly prescribe the success of a full scale race / social factor based curriculum within MCPS even though there is no explicit statement in the report.
If Metis’ recommendations on race / social factor based admission are sounding, I would be more than happy to suggest our schools to reform curriculum 2.0 around race / social factor based concepts. This is in that most of students regardless of their race / social background will be affected by the general curriculum 2.0 instead of academic selective programs. If race / social factor based curriculum 2.0 is helpful, most of MCPS students will benefit immediately.
Overall, it would be nice to see thorough studies on the feasibility of Metis’ policy recommendations and their implications before committing either a yes or a no.
[1] Metis Associates, “Montgomery County Public Schools: Study of Choice and Special Academic Programs”, 8 March 2016
Friday, March 11, 2016
神是伟大的工程师（一）：全知和全能的神
引子
It was the best of time. It was the worst of time.
- Charles Dickens
我是个幸运儿。没有碰上大规模的天灾人祸。无论是中国还是美国都是前所未有的空前盛世。然而太平盛世之下，人们仍然面对无数棘手的问题，生存问题，社会问题，发展问题，健康问题等等不一而足。
做为一个工程师，我无法提供给任何问题一个完整的答案。但是，我非常希望把自己的思考纪录下来。
全知和全能的神
在希腊和罗马时代，人类被众多神衹守护着。他们各有所长，各司其职。有意思的是他们虽然是神，却有着人类的情感和弱点。婚姻，出轨，争锋吃醋，喝酒，打赌，参与人类的战争。
经过两千年的变迁，多神教消亡殆尽。当今世界的主要宗教，天主教，基督教，犹太教，伊斯兰教里的神都是唯一的，全知全能的。
有时候，我很诧异这样的变化。为什么有这样的一致性？难道冥冥之中有什么力量在民主横行世界的时代让专制的大神把维纳斯和阿芙洛狄特扫地出门？这样的专制大神会把我们的世界带向何方？
今天当虔诚的教徒们向全知全能的大神祷告的时候，其他的俗人根本不相信神的存在。当人类走向两个极端的时候，我想知道有没有一个中间状态的存在呢？如果存在，这个中间状态是否能带领我们走出信仰的鸿沟？
对教徒们而言，神是能够感应并影响这个世界的。那么，神一定有三个重要能力，认知，判断，破坏（改变世界）。
先来澄清一下为什么把改变世界称为破坏。世界上的万物从根本是互相排斥的。比如，地上的一棵树，它的存在就否定了那个位置上其他树木灌木的存在。一个资源，被一个人群消耗了就无法被另一个人群所享用。
这样，即便神能创造促进生长，这样的生长也是在摧毁消灭的前提下发生的。另一个佐证是人类信仰神的一个重要原因是神能保佑自己消灭敌人。
回到神的三大能力，认知，判断，破坏。如果神不是全知全能，会发生什么？
不妨量化一下神的能力吧。如果全知是100%的认知力，人的认知力与神比接近于0。那么，我们是否能够接受一个非全知的神呢？
如果神的认知力是99.9999%，也就是有0.0001%的情况下，神不能正确地了解情况。不能正确地了解情况，就很难正确判断应对。这样，由于神有强大的毁灭能力，无辜的人物就可能被摧毁。
如果神的判断力有缺失，上面的结果仍然会发生。
如果神的破坏力是99.9999%，也就是有0.0001%的情况下，神不能摧毁敌人。它的权威甚至会受到挑战。这个代价太大了。神会尽力弥补，甚至矫枉过正。否则，它的灭亡就在当下。
实际上，不用长篇累牍的论述，人们能够看到任何一个能力的不完美都会造就一个恐怖的神。这也是多神教里美妙诸神面具下的样子。任何一个可爱的神明都是一柄悬在人类头上的达摩克利斯之剑。
这样理智推理告诉我们只有全知全能的神才会是善良的。这里善良是说，在概率上不会无缘无故的毁灭什么。
一个小支线，能不能有多于一个神？如果都是全知全能的，那么它们在我上面的框架下是能够相容的。如果一旦它们不是全知全能，那么它们就会陷入困境。至少要操心很多杂事儿了。
It was the best of time. It was the worst of time.
- Charles Dickens
我是个幸运儿。没有碰上大规模的天灾人祸。无论是中国还是美国都是前所未有的空前盛世。然而太平盛世之下，人们仍然面对无数棘手的问题，生存问题，社会问题，发展问题，健康问题等等不一而足。
做为一个工程师，我无法提供给任何问题一个完整的答案。但是，我非常希望把自己的思考纪录下来。
全知和全能的神
在希腊和罗马时代，人类被众多神衹守护着。他们各有所长，各司其职。有意思的是他们虽然是神，却有着人类的情感和弱点。婚姻，出轨，争锋吃醋，喝酒，打赌，参与人类的战争。
经过两千年的变迁，多神教消亡殆尽。当今世界的主要宗教，天主教，基督教，犹太教，伊斯兰教里的神都是唯一的，全知全能的。
有时候，我很诧异这样的变化。为什么有这样的一致性？难道冥冥之中有什么力量在民主横行世界的时代让专制的大神把维纳斯和阿芙洛狄特扫地出门？这样的专制大神会把我们的世界带向何方？
今天当虔诚的教徒们向全知全能的大神祷告的时候，其他的俗人根本不相信神的存在。当人类走向两个极端的时候，我想知道有没有一个中间状态的存在呢？如果存在，这个中间状态是否能带领我们走出信仰的鸿沟？
对教徒们而言，神是能够感应并影响这个世界的。那么，神一定有三个重要能力，认知，判断，破坏（改变世界）。
先来澄清一下为什么把改变世界称为破坏。世界上的万物从根本是互相排斥的。比如，地上的一棵树，它的存在就否定了那个位置上其他树木灌木的存在。一个资源，被一个人群消耗了就无法被另一个人群所享用。
这样，即便神能创造促进生长，这样的生长也是在摧毁消灭的前提下发生的。另一个佐证是人类信仰神的一个重要原因是神能保佑自己消灭敌人。
回到神的三大能力，认知，判断，破坏。如果神不是全知全能，会发生什么？
不妨量化一下神的能力吧。如果全知是100%的认知力，人的认知力与神比接近于0。那么，我们是否能够接受一个非全知的神呢？
如果神的认知力是99.9999%，也就是有0.0001%的情况下，神不能正确地了解情况。不能正确地了解情况，就很难正确判断应对。这样，由于神有强大的毁灭能力，无辜的人物就可能被摧毁。
如果神的判断力有缺失，上面的结果仍然会发生。
如果神的破坏力是99.9999%，也就是有0.0001%的情况下，神不能摧毁敌人。它的权威甚至会受到挑战。这个代价太大了。神会尽力弥补，甚至矫枉过正。否则，它的灭亡就在当下。
实际上，不用长篇累牍的论述，人们能够看到任何一个能力的不完美都会造就一个恐怖的神。这也是多神教里美妙诸神面具下的样子。任何一个可爱的神明都是一柄悬在人类头上的达摩克利斯之剑。
这样理智推理告诉我们只有全知全能的神才会是善良的。这里善良是说，在概率上不会无缘无故的毁灭什么。
一个小支线，能不能有多于一个神？如果都是全知全能的，那么它们在我上面的框架下是能够相容的。如果一旦它们不是全知全能，那么它们就会陷入困境。至少要操心很多杂事儿了。
Tuesday, February 9, 2016
写在丙申猴年的第一天
写在丙申猴年的第一天。
中国用天干地支纪年远从商朝就开始了。这种干支纪年法对现代人来讲很复杂没什么规律重点也不突出。留给大家的基本就是地支的12生肖比较好玩儿。每年一个动物春节拿出来亮个相吧。
其实呢，人的生理轮回跟12很有缘。古时候12岁上下的孩子已经是小大人了。女性有的甚至会为人妻怀孕生子。从如今各国的教育设置来看，12岁上下基本是小学的结束，就是美好童年的结束。相应的，24岁上下大家立业结婚成家。最晚婚晚育的，大多数在36岁之前也会成家。这样，无论在古代还是现代，使用地支的倍数至少可以基本估算人群代数的更替。
虽然有时候没有朝代更替，可是由于人代更替，世界也会发生巨变。也是巧合吧。
两个甲子之前的1896年，美国最高法院以7：1高票在Plessy
v Ferguson案中判定种族隔离（racial segregation）政策合法。
差不多一个甲子之前，1954年5月17日美国最高法院9：0判定Brown v
Board of Education中原告胜诉。这个历史性判决结束了“合法”了近60年的种族隔离制度。1961年3月6日，美国总统肯尼迪签署了著名的Affirmative
Action。
然而种族隔离制度的结束并没有促进大融合。今天的美国根本没有任何melting pot的气势。反而各色人等都被贴好标签然后几乎就是按照剧本厮杀起来不亦乐乎。最近两年，以前不积极参与社会和政治生活的很多华裔也开始投入战场。到底美国发生了什么？这个趋势是好是坏？如果是坏，能否有转机？
==============
Brown v Board of Education宣判一个甲子后的2014年，第一次华人自发组织起来在加州反对SCA5。一年后美国各地的华人组织联合在一起声援Student for Fair Admission v Harvard 并向联邦教育部和法务部正式提交了一份对Harvard 的complain。
这两个自发的运动是华人维护自己权益参与美国社会生活的里程碑。两次活动的主旨都是要求学校特别是大学在学生录取中要公平不要种族歧视。下面我援引一段Complain的原文。
This Complaint is filed on behalf of the constituents of the undersigned Asian-American Associations and Organizations including Asian Americans who, because of their race, have been unfairly rejected by Harvard College because of such unlawful use of race in the admissions process, and/or who seek the opportunity to apply for admission without being discriminated against because of their race.
简而言之，作为一个重视教育的少数民族，华裔希望在学校录取乃至在工作录取中能去种族化。这里我还想援引一下Chief Justice Roberts的话，“The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race.”中文意思就是结束种族歧视的方法就是制止种族歧视的行为。
去种族化说起来容易，做起来远比在种族化上推波逐流难得多。
大华府地区猴年一共有大大小小20多个春晚。趁着热乎劲儿，有朋友开始提议让学区在春节放假彰显华裔文化/力量。这样，我们不要去牵强什么主流，因为我们就是主流。
在蒙郡，华裔人口约~4%。4%的人要求以关闭学校一天的方式让剩下96%的人对自己的种族文化表示尊重。如果能做成，的确会使4%人扬眉吐气。可是，用种族民意推动这样的事物是在去种族化呢，还是要抱团在种族问题上推波逐流呢？
首当其冲要回答的一个问题是凭什么犹太假日可以放假，春节不可以放？
其一，没有什么不可以的。我相信如果华裔去争取，春节肯定能放假。其他种族要搞也会成功。
其二，关于犹太假日。这里是我知道的一些情况。
- 蒙郡的犹太裔人口占～12%。https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Jews
- 蒙郡公学里犹太裔老师也有～10%。我听到过14%这个数字，但是不能验证。
- 犹太教义在一些重大宗教节日要求教众不能工作。http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday0.htm
如果老师不能来，学校需要代课老师。一年在几个特殊日子里找数百合格的代课老师的确非常困难。为什么困难？代课老师人得信得过吧，能教得了课吧。
从这些来看，蒙郡公学在犹太假日放假是学校的系统需求而不是简单给犹太裔顶礼膜拜。
又及：我个人很尊重学校老师（包含犹太裔和其他族裔的老师）。周围认识的犹太妈妈里有6个做过蒙郡公学老师。从这一点上来看，无论如何，犹太裔对公共教育有相当的付出。
第二个问题：为什么穆斯林节日可以放，春节不可以放？
学校成为政治竞技场是件不幸的事。Illinois州那个男生要上女更衣室的例子大家是否记忆犹新？实际上，学校本身抵御政治诉求的能力相当低。这是穆斯林/Hindu/华人能在节日“斗争”中取得胜利的根本原因。
我个人认为，蒙郡穆斯林团体要求蒙郡公学在穆斯林宗教节日放假开了一个非常值得商榷的先例。由于穆斯林团体的诉求得到接纳，犹太假日学校放假这个系统需求在外界看来也不过就是种族需求。这样，各种其他节日的诉求也就水到渠成顺理成章。
第三个问题（或者是断言）：民主制度就是优势群体做出牺牲，民主社会就是各取所需，民主社会会自动调节。
其一，民主制度恰恰是强调少数服从多数。SCA5是加州全体华人拼全力才拦下来的。如果Maryland出SCA5，华人靠选票能挡得住吗？真正做到racial-blind非常困难，但是这是很多人一起努力的方向，也是反SCA5和告哈佛的根基。
其二，美国社会自我调节能力已经相当成问题。我前面提过“各色人等都被贴好标签然后几乎就是按照剧本厮杀起来不亦乐乎”。如果不能在学校工作环境中去种族化，华人这样的少数民族面临的问题会越来越多。对了，这里去种族化不是忘记我们是华裔。我们为什么不能走进学校在日常接触中宣扬中华文化呢？
有一个蒙郡小学叫Travilah ES。这几年Travilah ES PTA里华裔家长们非常活跃。窃以为他们是华裔参与学校/社会生活的一个非常好的代表。请看这个URL的名单里有多少华人名字： http://travilahpta.org/about/current-officers/
作为一个华裔家长，我衷心希望看到大家能在工作之余参与学校的PTA和各种活动。在与其他族裔的日常接触中宣传自己的文化。另外，我还希望能看到更多的华裔能成为老师。将来能成为校长学区leader。把华裔热爱教育的传统发扬光大，让更多的人受益。
期望华裔团结一致成为一股新生政治力量的想法没有问题。但是华裔作为一个少数族裔在美国存活发展不容易。想着在大学录取中沾去种族化的光，同时在中小学里用种族意愿强行推动春节放假，两面通吃左右逢源是否在理念上和操作中融洽统一呢？后者是否有违华裔参与社会生活的初衷和目的呢？
倡议和支持蒙郡公学春节放假的朋友们，我非常非常希望你们能三思而行。让学校从政治角斗场恢复其本来职能应当是广大家长和学生的期望。
最后，非常感谢您能读到这里。重要的事儿需要重复一下：
-“The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race.”中文意思就是结束种族歧视的方法就是制止种族歧视的行为。讲这段话的是现任Chief Justice Roberts。
- 参与PTA和学校活动，跟老师校长其他家长们交流不丢人比泡微信省时间。也会为孩子们树立参与社会生活的好榜样。
- 加一条，有公民身份的华裔希望您能注册参加选举。
祝您猴年阖家安康，万事如意！
LLIN
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