To Begin With

Attention

I want to begin the course by addressing the chaos and uncertainty around tragic events unfolding in the world. As more and more colossal screwups take on leadership positions, this adage never seems to get old. Even though things in the Netherlands appear to be alright, many of us may have witnessed some devastating circumstances during the ongoing pandemic, war, terrorism, genocide, the energy crises, or other things. If you are dealing with difficult things, you might not be alone. If you decide to share your troubles with me, I am not going to judge you or pass on your private information to anybody else. But I can promise you that I will be there to listen and help you find the support you may need. I hope you can excuse any shortcomings with the course and help me improve it. If you have read this, send me a meme about spatial data science and social justice. The best submission will win a prize at the end of the course.

How to be okay?

Your health and well-being is the most important thing. My goal is to support you with your learning so you can complete this course despite the challenges you may be facing in your personal life. I would like to point out a few basic things you can expect from me:

• You do not owe me “productivity” or “efficiency”. I just want your attention, so we can all learn something new.

• You do not owe me any information concerning your personal situation or mental or physical health condition.

• If you want to, you are welcome to talk to me about anything you are going through. Just drop me an email, and we will figure it out.

• If you need extra help, you have to miss class, or your need more time for something, just ask me. I will work with you. So will the TAs.