Personal Updates Q1 2021
Hello! This is my quarterly personal update. It is a way of staying in touch with the people that I've valued in my life. If you are not interested (all good!), you can unsubscribe at the bottom.
Here are some of my highlights from Q1 2021:
Back to School 🏫
After reading an article on the most pressing world problems, it hit me pretty quickly that an Artificial Intelligence system that reaches and then exceeds human capabilities could have very large impacts, both positive and negative.
I’ve been doing a lot of research on it, but I knew that I needed a structure or a framework to help me understand the topic better. Therefore, when I received a highly relevant ad of a higher education program on AI, I could not help myself but to sign up. You could call this luck or perhaps karma of my work in digital advertising! 😜
In January this year, I started my master degree program at University of York. So far, I have completed the first module on Algorithm and Data Structure where I learned Java and sorting algorithm. I also got elected as the program’s course rep!
So far, it has not been easy to juggle between work, study, personal projects, and social life - especially during the lockdown. I have been spending my days mostly in front of my computers, from remote work and distance learning to online party??? 😭
It just makes me realized how easy it could be for me to stay isolated for so long and it is definitely not healthy for the long run. So, I decided to explore a couple of things…
Wildlife 🍃 and Inline Skating 🛼
My friend, Josi, convinced me to join Wilderness School in Berlin last year (which she ended up not going 😅). Most of the modules got postponed due to the pandemic restriction and they resumed it again last month.
From sunrise until sunsets, we sat down in the wild to analyse bird vocalization for this month’s module. It was so exciting! What I used to regard as a melodious happy song from a bird could turn out to be an alarm call for danger 😮.
Most importantly, it was so nice to be back in the nature and hang out with a group of people again, of course with safety measure!
On top of that, I also started to pick up inline skating with my friends / neighbours, Chiara and Leslie. It was not as easy as I thought it would be! 😨 The hard part of learning how to skate is definitely not about mastering the technique, but more on overcoming fears.
Stop Asian Hate 😡
With the rise of aggression and violence towards Asian during the pandemic, it makes me sad and powerless. I suddenly burst out in tears when talking about it during our team meeting at work. Nonetheless, I was so touched by the amount of supports that I received from my colleagues. 🙏
It also made me realized how we never talk about this issue at work. Thus, I reached out to a few colleagues from different backgrounds and races to initiate a discussion. We are teaming up to organize anti-racism dialogues session in the office which will happen by the end of this month.
Additionally, I am currently putting together a guidebook on what to do when racist incidents happen, including legal advice. A lot of these incidents are not reported due to language barriers and distrust of the government and law enforcement. On that account, I asked for a help from my lawyer friend, Peter of Spirit Legal, on what we can do legally during the situation.
Once the guide is ready, I will share it to immigrant communities & organizations here in Germany 🇩🇪 Let me know if you are interested to receive it (and share it to your friends!).
What Happened to Just Juno?
Bree, my co-founder, and I decided to take a break at the moment. She is currently planning for a move and a wedding, which I hope to be able to attend in September this year 👰.
There is still a small progress, however slow. My amazing colleagues, Rob and Miri, have introduced me to their inspiring friends, whom I got a chance to interview for the stories and plots of the game.
I also got a chance to promote Just Juno. Last month I got invited to do a podcast & youtube interview. They are not out yet, but stay tuned!
And that’s all from me. Thanks for reading! While I still have you here, let me know how you are doing these days. Don’t hesitate to hit reply. I’d love to hear from you. 😊
Cheers,
Mia
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Thank you to Chiara for motivating & inspiring me to write this personal update! 💪
Wow lots happening Mia! Thanks for sharing your updates, glad you have so many things going on and hope you’re enjoying them all! I’m just trying to survive work and soon Ramadan and hopefully will get vaccinated soon finally! 😄 - Kaz.