Member DoctorBob

'Library' sounds a bit too organised for my collection of books... I'm not a quick reader and rarely read non-fiction books cover to cover. Chemistry and biochemistry books are largely from university days; computers, networking and finance industry from my first career and teaching from my second career. Layered on top are fiction (where I enjoy mainly science fiction and detective stories). Other interests are evident from my tag cloud. The main growth area in the collection at the moment is still the sub-collection to support Theory Of Knowledge, a course I began teaching in 2009. As I write this, I'm up to about 700 books. I'm estimating that the collection will plateau at about 1000.

I'm a doctor, but I'm not a medic. I'm a teacher (amongst other things). I have a PhD in chemistry but worked in the IT/communications industry for about 15 years before leaving on the crest of a wave to spend more time with my family. I was then drawn into teaching through voluntary work. I trained as a science teacher here in London. I teach part time. My main focus this year is the Theory of Knowledge for International Baccalaureate which I adore. I also teach science, mathematics and soft skills such as stress management and anger management. A few years ago my previously analytical mind bubbled through some kind of midlife adventure towards alternative ways of viewing the world; I browsed the realms of philosophy and spirituality and qualified as a yoga teacher. It's left me curious about how we can relate to the world through different frameworks of thought, from logic to intuition with side orders of emotion and creativity. I’m interested in how people journey from ‘belief’ to ‘knowledge’ in a world which is increasingly mediated through the Internet, awash with opinion. Empiricism has brought me a long way, but I'm currently convinced it’s the whole story.