https://notes.volumen.ca/ Updates and notes from Volūmen Sat, 09 May 2026 05:05:41 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#compress-work-not-life compress-work-not-life Parkinson’s law asserts that work expands to fill the time available for its completion. It also applies to how much space is allowed in one’s life for work; it is a gas that expands to occupy all the space it is given. Thus compress work and do not allow it to compress you by setting your... Fri, 08 May 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#recursive-ideas recursive-ideas I can’t help but notice a pattern: I seem to end up writing circular or recursive ideas. I think it’s a thinking habit, for better or worse. Recursive thinking is good at finding the hidden assumptions inside an idea, because it naturally follows a thought back to its own foundations. The risk... Fri, 08 May 2026 12:00:01 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#buoyancy buoyancy Buoyancy is the property of a system to keep it afloat while supporting its contents. If the system becomes heavier than what it supports, the system and its contents will either collapse or become dysfunctional. Archimedes’ principle prevails in social contexts. Mon, 04 May 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#the-absence-of-headaches the-absence-of-headaches The absence of something that reveals the value of the opposite, that is, the presence of the opposite that brings a profound finding and that is not easily understood if it were not for this discovery. What follows explains this recursive thought. Sun, 03 May 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#what-absence-reveals what-absence-reveals Hidden properties of absence reveal meaning. Silence in music and negative space in drawing operate similarly. In music, a rest is not the absence of music; it is part of the composition. Rests give rhythm and timing their shape. Miles Davis is widely credited with saying, “It’s not the notes... Sun, 03 May 2026 12:00:01 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#anxiety anxiety What smoking is to the lungs, anxiety is to the soul; thus, chronic anxiety is a form of cancer, a slow death. Control anxiety induced by external factors, and you have tackled one of the challenges of modern life. Anxiety that your mind evokes is the most challenging, though. Only the... Sat, 02 May 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#nagori nagori Nagori means the feeling that stays after something ends. The word comes from a term ( naminokori ) about the marks waves leave on the beach after they recede. Now, people use it to describe that soft, slightly sad feeling when something is over, but you still remember it and want to hold on to... Tue, 28 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#new-policies new-policies New policies create more opportunities for noise, so we need restraint to maintain what made current policies effective. Most sensible people understand this, as they’ve also realized that bureaucratic exercises often overshadow the actual work we need to accomplish. However, when we focus on... Mon, 27 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#zazen-posture zazen-posture Sit upright with your spine long, head floating up, chin tucked, ears over shoulders. Relax the shoulders, breathe low into the belly. Don’t lean any direction, find the still centre. Fri, 24 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#hidden-by-design hidden-by-design Taking it for granted is something we try not to do; however, there is a hidden quality in it that we can pursue. When that hidden-by-design quality is possessed by the products we make, they disappear into use. Let us consider friction as an example. Where it is not desired, the object should... Thu, 23 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#neither-raw-nor-refined neither-raw-nor-refined Comparing a rough draft to a polished final text, we often miss the raw voice and thought process. This raw voice can help readers connect with the meaning on a deeper level. On the other hand, a refined final text distils thoughts into essential elements, which might make it harder for readers... Sat, 18 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#pareto-principle pareto-principle The Pareto Principle, also known as the “80:20 rule,” asserts that 80% of outcomes stem from 20% of causes. Named after the Italian polymath Vilfredo Pareto, the principle is supported by empirical observation showing that this 80:20 distribution applies to a wide variety of situations,... Sat, 11 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#problems-vs-situations problems-vs-situations Every problem has a solution. If there’s no solution, then it’s not a problem, it’s a situation. It’s quite likely that the situation exists in your mind, that is, a thought forms the situation. Change it. Don’t trust your thoughts; they’re often manipulated by people through external events,... Sat, 11 Apr 2026 12:00:01 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#on-true-practice on-true-practice To the beginner: practice without effort is not true practice; the practice needs great effort. Tue, 07 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#iatrogenics iatrogenics Cause no harm. Iatrogenic: I first came across the term in Nassim Taleb’s Antifragile (Taleb, 2012). Iatrogenics has become a significant decision-making criterion for me. Even when the benefits of intervention may seem to outweigh the potential risks, always keep the harm you might cause in mind. Tue, 07 Apr 2026 12:00:01 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#mediocrity mediocrity I’ve become overly cautious of mediocrity, paralyzed by its potential consequences. Having to explain simple ideas with concrete examples, while simultaneously being told that I’m too academic or perfectionistic, makes mediocrity seem almost impenetrable. It feels like there’s no hope of... Sun, 05 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#beautiful-strangers beautiful-strangers I’ve been obsessed with Kevin Morby’s “Beautiful Strangers.” It’s been on repeat, and I can’t get it out of my head. Sun, 05 Apr 2026 12:00:01 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#diacritics diacritics Diacritics are small marks added to letters that modify pronunciation, stress, or even the function of a word. For example, the acute accent (é) alters the pronunciation of “café.” Similarly, the cedilla (ç) softens the “c” sound in “façade.” In some languages, diacritics can completely change... Sat, 04 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#certainty-as-conceit certainty-as-conceit Intellectual honesty about uncertainty is a virtue, not a flaw. A sure and certain tone and posture in discourse is a conceit. Authoritative speech might be hiding the truth, or at the very least, insecurity. Conviction is the mask. Beneath it, cowardice. Thu, 02 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000 https://notes.volumen.ca/index.html#23-ratio 23-ratio The ratio of food preparation time to consumption time is often overlooked in table etiquette. Ideally, if it takes 30 minutes to prepare dinner, one should spend at least 45 minutes enjoying it, reflecting a 2:3 ratio where eating time should be about 150% of preparation time. Embracing mindful... Mon, 30 Mar 2026 12:00:00 +0000