Read books. No, seriously – that’s it. Get a book, read it, and think about it. Your brain has increased in cognitive power. Pish posh that’s too easy! Ok, then once you are done reading that book, read more books. Heck, even talk to someone about the book. While reading a book, if you find a word you don’t know, use context to deduce it’s meaning first, then look it up and see if you were accurate or not. Even if you were horribly miscalculated it’s not failing – it’s feed back.

When I was thinking about this article I started thinking back to a time when I read much more and with greater depth and realized that in school, after every book I read, I had to take a test on the book. Not on the message the author was conveying, or how I felt the book touched upon any subject or any kind of analytical thinking. It was all just regurgitation. The biggest flaw in our school system today is kids are taught to memorize data, and then choose from four options, which one is the most probable. This is flawed thinking.

What happens when kids come out of school and life goes heres INFINITE possibilities… Pick what you want. “Well what are my choices?” or “I don’t know what I want” are typical responses to life’s question. And anybody wonders why people can’t choose a major or don’t find a career they are happy with? We obsess about the “right answer” as opposed to the problem solving skill to actually create the solution that fits the individual. The school system today is a glorified baby sitting service, training new generations of kids to be good, obedient, database driven cogs. Innovation doesn’t come from choosing from the following options, a b c or d — It comes from analytical thinking, from accessing the creative mind, or as Apple states “Think Different”.

I’ll end this with a quote from a man who failed in school, but was eternally successful and highly brilliant: “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” -Albert Einstein

One of the few subjects in school I actually paid attention to was mythology. Most notably Greek mythology. Something about it seemed so epic. I think it was interesting studying what people of that time period were thinking about! Those gods were thought up to explain the greatest mysteries of their time. Why is there day and night? Why do the seasons change? Where do we go when we die? to name a few. Today we know most of the answers to the questions they asked and its only a matter of time before we know them all… which ultimately will lead us to more questions! But I digress. The architecture, art and culture of Greece has had an incredible impact on western civilization. Our current political system, the Olympics, and even had a massive influence modern architecture!

On June 20th, the New Acropolis Museum opened its doors to the public and houses several thousands artifacts dating from the fifth century B.C. However a number of sculptures and about half of the Parthenon Frieze are sitting in the British Museum. These pieces aren’t on loan by Greece, they were stolen by a Scottish man named Lord Elgin at the beginning of the 19th century, who later sold the pieces to the British Government. The Greek government has requested restitution of the Parthenon Marbles to its rightful owners, however the British have declined and the pieces remain in the British Museum.

A courageous woman named Marina, has made it her personal goal to see that these pieces be returned to their rightful home in Greece, where they can be placed with the rest of the collection how their creators meant it.

Please take a minute out of your day and sign her petition to the British government requesting these stolen pieces be returned to Greece and help Marina achieve her goal!