The water buffalo were walking down the side of the highway in the opposite direction of the traffic and one suddenly meandered into the traffic and straight towards our car. He wasn't hurt thanks to speedy reactions from the driver who slammed on the breaks, unfortunately the car behind us didn't react so quickly and bashed into us - as quite a lot of shouting and crossness ensued the water buffalo happily wandered back to his friends!

This is so beautifully written Gitika, it has a stunning cinematic quality to it. I can picture you there so clearly in the amazing sights, sounds and sensory overload that is Chennai. Your experience reminds me irresistibly of the last time I was in India - I had five accidents in four days, including with a water buffalo, and loved every moment. I look forward to reading what comes next. 

Congratulations Michał Leszek Pietrzak, Elizabeth Reid, @Holly Toombs and @Yi Lin Zhao this is a fascinating paper. On page 18 you mention that some local authorities have put together a database of ECAs, however the footnote 8 references Singapore and the link there does not match your following reference to Singapore with footnote 10. I am not sure if the appendices numbering is out or whether there are footnotes missing from the entire paper. I would love to know which LAs have done this and explore the source material. Could you also provide me with the link to the source material regarding a four day week for teachers please? Did your research cover what categories would be the most useful to include in a database and what the accountabilities of both provider and recipient ought to be? Finally, was there anyone within the DfE who was particularly supportive of your recommendations? Sorry for all the questions and many thanks in advance for your consideration, Susanna

I have always learnt the most from the hard stuff: the roles that I applied for that I didn't get; the roles that I did get where I then found myself in an environment that felt completely alien; recessions; buy-outs; new geographies with very different office expectations; new sectors with their own norms that I didn't understand; dealing with personal loss in the midst of massive corporate activity. It is the difference between driving to the view point on a mountain top vs hiking there. The more arduous the journey, ultimately the more rewarding it is. 

Congratulations Cyril, it sounds like a HUGE success. Absolutely delighted that Grace and Alex were able to join you and add to such a fantastic event. 

Feeling stressed and concerned about our university partners - the attacks on their academic freedoms in the US and the financial pressures on them in the UK - I re-listened to this to hear Dr. Spence's argument for having the humility to recognise that intelligent, rational and ethical people can arrive at different answers to the same question. His assertion that violent agreement never sees its blind spots seems especially pertinent. The story he tells about a mind bending day in the States where it became apparent that people were living in parallel universes regarding basic facts and his points on China, gender equity and meaningful diversity in an academic environment, six months on from when we met, seem particularly prescient.

I am going to sign up to Duolingo!

Amanda - you are so much more than enough. I couldn't be prouder that you are one of the Laidlaw Trailblazers. Every time I see you - and now reading this again - I am reminded of the power of your kindness and light. You really are capable of anything and I can't wait to see what you do once you graduate.