Paralegal Pie

Beloit College Mindset List for 2019

If you've read this blog before than you know that this is one of my favorite lists of all time.  I anxiously wait for it every year.  Every year I am more and more amazed. 

Enjoy!  

This year there is an added feature, a translation section.  Too Yoko Ono?  I love it!

2109 Beloit College Mindset List

 

 

Readability

I was reading the USA Today newspaper last weekend and came across the word “nadir” in an article on homicides.  I have never heard the word “nadir” ever in my life.  I read like a fiend and write quite frequently.  OK so I chalk it up to a word I missed along the way and continued reading.  THEN I see the word “doyenne” on the page.  Seriously? I’ve only been reading the paper for about ten minutes and there are two words I don’t recognize.  I’m befuddled.

 

The curiosity was killing me … what grade level is this newspaper written for was the only thought going through my head.  I was thinking grade 18, at least graduate school.  Ummm… no it’s written at the 10^th grade level!  Please if you know a 10^th grade student, ask them if they are familiar with these words!

 

Later in the week I was reading a judicial opinion and came across the word “insuperable” and again thought myself here is another word, three words in three days I don’t recognize. I am not so shocked at a word in a judicial opinion that I am not familiar with, it happens.

 

I started thinking -- I wonder how many jurors listen to words that befuddle them?   I would imagine many.  I would also imagine that a word that a juror doesn’t understand could have devastating consequences. We need to be careful that the words we use to convey ideas, particularly complex ideas can be understood.

 

Here is a website that you can paste your text in to and it will give you the grade level of understanding.  A jury consists of many grade levels so you need to be aware not to use words that are too high above or too low below the average grade level.  Last week if you asked me I would have said that a tenth grade level should be good.  This week I would say maybe start at the ninth grade level and work up slowly from there.

 

www.readability-score.com

 

I planned on sharing the definitions of those words.  But that’s much too easy.  Click on the links.

 

NADIR -- http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nadir

DOYENNE - http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/doyenne

INSUPERABLE - http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/insuperable

 

Design Tools for Non Designers

I am many things, a designer is not one of them.  Here is a great article with some cool and easy design tools to make your presentations jump!  And who doesn't want their presentation to jump? 

Design Tools

 

 

Read Really Freaking Fast

I like to brag that I read a book a week.  What I don't brag about is that I am a slow reader.  Which means that if I am reading a book a week I am not dusting, washing windows or walking my pooch enough.  

Today I found a seriously cool reading tool.  Check it out at www.spritzinc.com. 

Spritz displays one word at a time.  Oh I know its sounds like a kooky way to read but you do read much faster and they claim with better comprehension.  Spritz has a sample of how fast you can read on their website, you can choose how fast you want to read. Let's start some chatter about Spritz so we can all be "Spritzing" through our reading soon!

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.”  Dr. Seuss

THANK YOU CHRISTINA AND CHRISTY... I HAD THE WRONG WEB ADDRESS!  IT'S BEEN A VERY BUSY DAY... WHO AM I KIDDING?  I AM A TERRIBLE PROOFREADER BUT I DO HAVE AWESOME READERS.  THANKS AGAIN!  KIM 

Passphrase

My co-workers have been brilliant lately!

In light of the recent Yahoo! Usermame/password data breach my co-worker sent a firm wide email with the best password advice I have ever seen.

I feel compelled to share.  Because I am a good sharer :)

OK here it is… use a pass phrase instead of a password. So, instead of using the password kim635 which can easily be cracked you would use something like this “obadrtwb” which would be the first letter of each word in the phrase “one bad apple doesn’t ruin the whole bunch.” 

How much fun it that?  It’s practically impossible to crack and so very easy to remember.

 

Success

This article was sent to me from one of the groups that I belong to on LinkedIn.  Its amazing and I had to share it.  PLEASE if you do nothing else today, open this link and read it. Print the postcard and keep it close.  It will serve us all well. 

Success