Personal Development

**Glimpse into what AI actually is, and how AI transforms teaching and learning. Learn to use AI tools to design lessons, automate routine tasks, and foster creativity, communication, critical thinking, and collaboration in your classroom.** **Who Is It For?** Teachers of any subject who want to integrate AI meaningfully and responsibly into their practice. **Date:** 25 April 2026 **Time:** 10:00-14:00 **Place:** Vice Versa Academy Dělnická 8, Holešovice, Prague **Price:** 990czk **About the trainer:** Łukasz combines academic research with corporate experience in HR and sustainability. He teaches across formal and non-formal education, focusing on culture, communication, and digital tools. In his free time, he is a photographer, writer, and traveler. **Tickets available here: [https://connect.boomevents.org/en/vice-versa-academy-gvaxe/befriending-ai-the-basics-more-fcibt](https://connect.boomevents.org/en/vice-versa-academy-gvaxe/befriending-ai-the-basics-more-fcibt)**

📚 Improve your Spanish through guided reading, vocabulary in context, and discussion-based speaking practice. In these lessons, we use books and stories to improve your Spanish in a natural, structured way. We read a level-appropriate text and focus on vocabulary, comprehension, pronunciation, and speaking. The goal is not to finish a lot of pages. The goal is to understand the text, notice useful grammar in context, and use it in speaking to build confidence. Level: A2–B1 📚 What to expect: – Small group learning – Friendly and interactive atmosphere – Guided language practice – Specialty coffee served during the event Fee: 300 CZK If you’re interested in joining or would like more information, send me a message. I look forward to reading and learning together! \- 60\-minute lesson 10 min: warm-up and review 5 min: vocabulary preview 20 min: guided reading 15 min: comprehension questions 10 min: discussion and recap

\*\*\*\*\* We're meeting both in-person and virtually via Skype depending on the week. Contact Sonya Lano for more information if you want to join \*\*\*\*\* This is for anyone wanting feedback! We mostly focus on novels and longer works, but short stories are welcome, as well. You can submit anything you want feedback on in any genre. Current word limit for submissions is 4,000 words. Send your submissions by 13:30 the Thursday before the meeting (or we have a grace period during which you can submit a lower limit of 2,500 words if you submit by midnight Thursday evening). Also, if you don't have time to read through everyone's submissions, still join the meeting! We know that busy schedules don't always make finding reading time easy. To submit, use the Dropbox folder. If you don't have access to it, send sonyalakadosch@yahoo.com your e-mail address so I can add you. Looking forward to seeing everyone there! My number in case of any confusion the day of the meeting is 737 118 530 - or on Facebook: Sonya Lano (https://www.facebook.com/sonya.lano) DROPBOX INFO: * add new submissions for the next meeting in the " submissions" folder for the meeting date. Put your name at the beginning of the file name (for example: "Sonya Somewhere in the Dark") * When providing written feedback (not required, but deeply welcome), save the file as a separate document on your device, then mark your changes/ feedback in the saved file. After you're finished, put the file in the "Feedback" folder under the folder for the meeting date and then under the person the feedback is for (e.g. "For Sonya"). * The submissions folder will be replaced within a week after the meeting has taken place. Feedback will be deleted within 2 months after the meeting, so if you need it longer than that, make sure to copy it to your own disk.

This group is for anyone who writes - for any reason. Have a thesis or article you need to write? Trying to finish a novel or an academic paper? This group is for you. We are currently meeting in-person at Locus Workspace. If you have any questions, contact Sonya Lano here or on Facebook or Messenger (https://www.facebook.com/sonya.lano). We start at 9:00, introduce ourselves, and share a few words about what we're working on and what we hope to accomplish during the session. At the end of the session, you can give us a brief recap of how it went. We'll break at noon. The afternoon session starts at 2:00 pm. You're welcome to join both sessions or just one. Please come as close to 9:00 as you can if you come for the morning session. If you come to the afternoon session, we are usually back by about a quarter to 2:00.

It's easy to get the idea that philosophy is largely an abstract and conceptual endeavor–studying theories that try to explain the universe, morality, or language, and then arguing until we either prove those we disagree with wrong or at least reach a smug sense of clarity. But is that all that philosophy has to offer? Back by popular demand, this month we'll be diving deeper into the reflections of **Pierre Hadot** by beginning his essay **Spiritual Exercises**. In this essay, Hadot argues that **ancient philosophers didn't just theorize about what a good life might be, but practiced it through disciplines of attention, meditation, and self-examination aimed at transforming how one sees and lives in the world**. The essay invites us to ask **whether philosophy might still serve that purpose today**. Hadot specialized in **ancient Greek and Roman philosophy--especially Stoicism, Neoplatonism, and early Christian thought**–as was known for his scholarship on **Marcus Aurelius, Plotinus, and ancient spiritual exercises**. His work has influenced many contemporary philosophers, classicists, and the modern revival of philosophy as a lived practice. As noted in the title, this will be the first of two sessions. We're splitting the text into two parts in order to give everyone a chance to fit the text into their busy lives, as well as to give us space to move more slowly through the text together. \*\*\* Below is a PDF copy of Hadot's book Philosophy as a Way of Life. This session will cover up to p.93 (ending at 3. Learning to Die). If you have trouble accessing it, send the host a message–extra copies are available. Link: [https://ia800203.us.archive.org/7/items/PierreHadotArnoldDavidsonPhilosophyAsAWayOfLifeSpiritualExercisesFromSocratesToFoucault1995/Pierre%20Hadot%2C%20Arnold%20Davidson%20Philosophy%20as%20a%20Way%20of%20Life%20Spiritual%20Exercises%20from%20Socrates%20to%20Foucault%20%201995.pdf](https://ia800203.us.archive.org/7/items/PierreHadotArnoldDavidsonPhilosophyAsAWayOfLifeSpiritualExercisesFromSocratesToFoucault1995/Pierre%20Hadot%2C%20Arnold%20Davidson%20Philosophy%20as%20a%20Way%20of%20Life%20Spiritual%20Exercises%20from%20Socrates%20to%20Foucault%20%201995.pdf) \*\*\* We’ll have tea and light snacks, but please feel free to bring any drink or snack you’d like to share! This event will be hosted in an apartment with a well-trained dog who will be happy to meet you. If anyone has concerns about dogs, let me know so I can be mindful about keeping her from bothering you. The buzzer is Everett and Mainous—we’re on the 5th floor, apartment 16. Meeting structure: We will start with a brief summary of the key ideas Hadot presents then move to open discussion. Please read the text in advance, make highlights, and note any thoughts or questions you find interesting and compelling.

## **What IdeaVerse is about** **We meet usually once a month to discuss some of the current challenges as well and perhaps come up with new ideas on how to overcome them. For those who came regularly, this next meetup would be slightly different. We will do a workshop on solving real world problems.** The problem we will attempt to solve is the dissolution of communities and spaces where people connect in person, and with it, our increased isolation and loneliness. There are many reasons why this is happening: \- replacement of religion with science as a beacon of meaning\, which seems to be much less great at inspiring connection; \- economic forces boosting our ego\, and make it easier to pay for random strangers for help then making lasting connections with people\. \- political polarization \- \(anti\)social media \(as I call it\) and now AI offering simulations of relationships\. \- climate change increasing our distrust in a better future and the importance of investing in life and people\. \- closing down of third spaces like churches\, malls and retail stores \(due to online shopping\)\, youth centers and increase in remote work\. These are all causes we'll explore, together with examples of how other people expressed they feel about this issue from research, reasons why this issue exists as well as examples of small victories against this tide. We'll work in small groups putting all this knowledge together with out imagination and attempt to find local solutions to similar problems here in Prague. This is is more than a discussion. It's an exploration of our ability to work together to effect change in ourselves and in our social circles. **Some suggested reading/watching:** 1. "Contrary to the perception that isolation and loneliness primarily affect older people in high-income countries, they impact the health and well-being of all age groups across the world. One in four older people experience social isolation and the rates are broadly similar in all regions. Among adolescents, between 5­­–15% experience loneliness, according to research findings." (3 minute read - [WHO launches commission to foster social connection](https://www.who.int/news/item/15-11-2023-who-launches-commission-to-foster-social-connection)) 2. "Many popular sitcoms center around what's known as a third place-- for example, Central Park in Friends or the Bull and Finch Pub from Cheers. Like the theme song goes, it's somewhere where everybody knows your name, where you can socialize in a place other than your home or work and build some community. But with the whole world accessible on your smartphone, it's kind of hard to resist the call of the couch. And it's hurting us more than we think." (10 minute Podcast [Third places’ may be the answer to America’s loneliness epidemic](https://www.mprnews.org/episode/2024/05/23/third-places-may-be-the-answer-to-americas-loneliness-epidemic)) 3. “These verdicts mark an unsurprising breaking point. Negative sentiment toward social media has been building for years, and now it’s finally boiled over,” said Mike Proulx, a director at Forrester, a market research company. (4 minute read - [How the landmark verdict against Meta and YouTube could hit their businesses](https://www.aol.com/finance/landmark-verdict-against-meta-youtube-100000070.html)) **The meeting is free to attend, but please buy a drink or two at our patron's place, to make them happy.**

Are you interested in a lot of things but just a little at a time? Then come to the 5 Minute University! Each talk lasts only 5 minutes followed by 1-2 questions and you'll have the chance to talk to the speakers and other listeners before and after the event - it's a great place to make some friends and find good conversation! Here's the current line up: 1. Tricia Melnik - The Language That Refused to Die 1. Ramona Todor - It's not what it seems: Sex beyond conditioning 1. JT Ostdiek - Philosophy for Children 1. Tom Thumb - Science for Hippies 1. Sherif - How Culture impacts Communication 1. Michael Amico - Change the Lens, Change the Story 1. Paola Pizzo - Who Ate All the Mummies? 1. Leonidas Lundell ' What the Hell Are Proteins Anyway? 1. Tim Burgi - Improv and the mind 1. Trang - Growing up between two cultures - too Vietnamese for Czechs, too Czech for Vietnamese 1. Annouchka Bousquet - Marketing & Manipulation : the cigarette Industry (XXe century) 1. This event is solo-friendly, there will be plenty of things to talk about. So join alone or bring a friend, everyone is welcome. It's a free event and so be sure to support our hosts, Dorado Coffee, by buying drinks.