A nun who fled the convent and married a widower with several children was kind of a friend to me in college and she mentioned turning to history rather than fiction down the days and that's pretty much where I have turned, also. Her name was no longer allowed to be spoken after her flight!
On Sep 3, 5:53 pm, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: > Icame across some recent research that says much I used to teach. > I'll paraphrase rather than linking to it. It fits with what Bill > says on politics, though the focus is 'creativity' > ScienceDaily (Sep. 3, 2011) — Most people view creativity as an asset > -- until they come across a creative idea. That's because creativity > not only reveals new perspectives; it promotes a sense of > uncertainty. The next time your great idea at work elicits silence or > eye rolls, you might just pity those co-workers. Fresh research > indicates they don't even know what a creative idea looks like and > that creativity, hailed as a positive change agent, actually makes > people squirm. > "How is it that people say they want creativity but in reality often > reject it?" said Jack Goncalo, ILR School assistant professor of > organizational behavior and co-author of research to be published in > an upcoming issue of the journal Psychological Science. The paper > reports on two 2010 experiments at the University of Pennsylvania > involving more than 200 people. > The studies' findings include: > Creative ideas are by definition novel, and novelty can trigger > feelings of uncertainty that make most people uncomfortable. > People dismiss creative ideas in favor of ideas that are purely > practical -- tried and true. > Objective evidence shoring up the validity of a creative proposal does > not motivate people to accept it. > Anti-creativity bias is so subtle that people are unaware of it, which > can interfere with their ability to recognize a creative idea. > For example, subjects had a negative reaction to a running shoe > equipped with nanotechnology that adjusted fabric thickness to cool > the foot and reduce blisters. > To uncover bias against creativity, the researchers used a subtle > technique to measure unconscious bias -- the kind to which people may > not want to admit, such as racism. Results revealed that while people > explicitly claimed to desire creative ideas, they actually associated > creative ideas with negative words such as "vomit," "poison" and > "agony." > Goncalo said this bias caused subjects to reject ideas for new > products that were novel and high quality. > "Our findings imply a deep irony," wrote the authors, who also include > Jennifer Mueller of the University of Pennsylvania and Shimul Melwani > of the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. "Revealing the > existence and nature of a bias against creativity can help explain why > people might reject creative ideas and stifle scientific advancements, > even in the face of strong intentions to the contrary." > Uncertainty drives the search for and generation of creative ideas, > but "uncertainty also makes us less able to recognize creativity, > perhaps when we need it most," the researchers wrote. "Revealing the > existence and nature of a bias against creativity can help explain why > people might reject creative ideas and stifle scientific advancements, > even in the face of strong intentions to the contrary. ... The field > of creativity may need to shift its current focus from identifying how > to generate more creative ideas to identify how to help innovative > institutions recognize and accept creativity." > > Actually, I ended up cutting and pasting - this summary stands for > itself. Academics, as a rule, wouldn't experience creativity if it > was a fish that walked across the room and slapped them in the face > and most can't accept that many ordinary people can do it and they > can't. I don't want to produce anything for the market either rigsy > (I really used to see that 'b' in your name - something reinforced by > finding your wit a bit like the character in the sit-com). And I'm > aware of the trance Orn and think a lot of the glitz rigsy mentioned > is needed by those in it as a kind of opium. > > I never did the kind of research above, but this stuff matches the > broad tenets of my creativity classes and what I tried to do in > company change. The kids I've know (including me as one) hate > situations in which they discover something they didn't know. We are > kept in a perpetual 'child hood' though I have no objection to any > solace found in literature. > > On Sep 3, 1:21 pm, ornamentalmind <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > Besides sharing different stories of political analysis with friends, > > I continue to drive home the truth that as long as people in the USA > > stay in the trance of believing that voting for someone not in the two > > main parties is ‘throwing away a vote’ (a notion most likely > >I came across promulgated by these two parties) there will be little to no > > responsiveness to what ‘we the people’ want…something that is > > obviously ignored these days. When a politician actually might have to > > be responsive and yes, even be congruent in word and deed, only then > > can our form of representative democracy have any impact on how those > > selected to lead will not only act but actually be chosen rather than > > remaining in the terror that one might vote for someone who stands the > > chance of not winning! > > > To me, throwing away a vote is voting for the status quo. > > > Sadly, the trance state remains in full force today. > > > On Sep 3, 4:27 am, rigsy03 <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > I am trying to think about how we could improve the minds/choices of > > > voters but get stumped. Part of the problem is that classical > > > educations do not always translate into common sense in real life- one > > > still must scrub the floors in those ivory towers. But I think most > > > attend college/grad studies with a work goal in mind these days. I > > > remember shop classes and vocational schools in public highschools but > > > perhaps that would invite a lawsuit by the ACLU these days- who knows? > > > And manufacturing/labor needs have changed drastically in our day due > > > to automation, robots and technology as well as every aspect of modern > > > life from home to office. So there is this vacuume. On the other hand, > > > I find great solace in my books and interests but since I refuse to > > > produce anything for the market, I guess I am worthless. :-) Oh- and I > > > decided to quit going to funerals altogether save my own. > > > > The military is another consideration as a form of "education" and > > > employment. > > > > I came across your screen name in my old class notes- just a line or > > > two re Plato and his visit. > > > > Another problem with setting up a culture/form of government is that > > > you still are left with human nature! > > > > On Sep 2, 10:14 am, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > I'm no expert on the Greeks to be sure. I remember that women got to > > > > leave home when they were about 60 to go to funerals! I understand > > > > the 'men of their time' arguments - and we tend to forget Greece is > > > > really middle eastern - but I have real problems with the 'high' > > > > philosophy and no grasp of the wrongs on the treatment of slavery, > > > > indenture and women. It hardly suggests much of a route to a > > > > materially enlightened society. The Italian aristocracy was almost > > > > exclusively homosexual in the 17th century and much of the Middle East > > > > remains 'homosocial'. In scientific argument and practice we often > > > > work hard at excluding wads of common sense and religious muck under > > > > pretense of objectivity, yet we are really trying to include all > > > > options that aren't ludicrous (and we entertain these too to some > > > > extent). I find human thinking that ends up with notions that a sex > > > > or race is 'unequal' or unmeriting not wrong but intolerable, but this > > > > doesn't lead me to believe we can't have abortion or not give deaf > > > > people hearing if we can (and so on) - the intolerable remains a > > > > heuristic open to situational particularism. Equality doesn;t mean I > > > > won't lift the heavy box, think sport should be unisex, regard men as > > > > potential sexual partners and so on - but it does mean I don't approve > > > > of daft notions of banning girls from playing soccer because they > > > > can't share the changing rooms. And it does mean I tend to despise > > > > argument that excludes what should matter in the pretense of > > > > objectivity. Our people who can't do much academic are not sub-human, > > > > but I suspect much intellectualism is - including daft economists > > > > suggesting inter-generational mortgages, or that we have to have a > > > > super-rich for the benefit of all. I am not led to conclusion much > > > > and think this is a result of perverse schooling and a fixation with > > > > 'strong leadership'. My guess is we need moral assertion on the basis > > > > of likely outcomes on social issues and that we are ignoring an > > > > interesting history of this at our peril, including the distraction > > > > from actual change that wordy words becomes when we lack courage. The > > > > key in this is probably deep in a form of mentality that can't work > > > > out the metaphor of fiddling while Rome burns or banksterism as a > > > > criminally organised road to serfdom. Socrates called the unexamined > > > > life pointless and its easy to agree faced with yet another class of > > > > students who don't read, populations who vote 'on the economy stupid' > > > > knowing nothing of economics - yet he was wrong. What we have failed > > > > to do is provide the technology of it that people can use. > > > > > On Sep 2, 1:05 am, rigsy03 <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > > I dug up the file this afternoon- Spring "73- no mention of the > > > > > professor's name but a reference to Tuft's- another university. He was > > > > > older and soft spoken- his shirt sleeves had been shortened for some > > > > > reason. I got an "A" for the final grade so I must have hooked into > > > > > the material and my notes look complete and tidy. The course covered > > > > > more than Plato- it was called Greek Thought/Classics Dept.- and I was > > ... > > read more »- Hide quoted text - > > - Show quoted text -
