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Areopagit |
Plan of Course |
Free course - Creativity in Science |
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Plan of Course Methods of
Creativity in Scienсe 1. Pass preliminary test by means of Kettel's 16-factor questionnaire
(form C), test your IQ (Intelligence Quotient) using Aizenc's test. Undergo
testing for operative and long-term memory, attention distribution, noise
immunity and will. Plan the development of these qualities in your character.
Need time
for studying: 2. Training of fast reading and methods of work with the text. - About 1 week. 3. Critical and creative thinking. -
3
- 4 days. 4. Universal plan of scientific management.
3
- 4 days. 5. Inventive Problems
Solution Theory (TRIZ). 2 - 3
weeks. 6. Concepts, substance and
laws of dialectics.
About 1 week. 7. Analysis of the decision-making methods - maximax, maximin, minimax, compromise. 3 - 4 days. 8. Data
mining.
About 1 week. 9. Basics of general theory of systems (GTS) and systemic analysis.
About 1 month. Examenation - essay. See in addition: Alvin Toffler "Shock of the Future", "Metamorphoses of Power", "The Third Wave". Francis Fukuyama "Our Posthuman Future". Samuel Huntington "The End of History and the Last Human". Paul Dickson "Think tanks". Issues recommended for
independent study: the Game theory, the theory of fields, the theory of crisis,
the chaos theory, the theory of relativity, the management, strategy and
tactics theories, basics of logic and statistics - concepts, substance/essence,
stereotypes, paradoxes.
1. Download free "FastReader" software. 2. Methods of work with the text: 1.
Look through the text before reading it in detail to determine what it is about.
2.
Focus your attention on the most significant places (semantic nodes) in the text.
3.
Keep short record (summary/synopsis) of the most significant facts. 4.
Keep close watch of understanding of what you read. If something appears not
quite understood, re-read the paragraph once again. 5.
Check up and generalize (analyze) what you have read in respect to the purpose
of your reading. 6.
Check up the correctness of understanding of separate words and thoughts in
reference literature.
7. Quickly resume the work (reading) if you have been
interrupted.
3. Critical
and creative thinking Critical
thinking: 1.
Analytical thinking (information analysis, selection of necessary facts,
comparison, collation of facts, phenomena). Useful questions in this connection
are "who?", "what?", "where?", "when?", "why?", "where?", "what for?", "how?", "how
many/much?", "what?"("which?") to be asked in the most unusual combinations,
while trying to find (to suppose) all options of answers. 2.
Associative thinking (determination of associations with the previously studied
familiar facts, phenomena, determination of associations with new qualities of
a subject, phenomenon, etc.). 3.
Independence of thinking (the absence of dependence on authorities and/or
stereotypes, prejudices, etc.). 4.
Logic thinking (the ability to build the logic of provability of the decision
made, the internal logic of a problem being solved, the logic of sequence of
actions undertaken for the solution of the problem, etc.). 5.
Systemic thinking (the ability to consider the object, the problem in question within
the integrity of their ties/relations and characteristics). Creative
thinking: 1.
Ability of mental experimentation, spatial imagination. 2.
Ability of independent transfer of knowledge for the decision of new problem, task,
search of new decisions. 3.
Combinatory abilities (the ability to combine the earlier known methods, ways
of task/problem solution in a new combined, complex way - the morphological
analysis). 4.
Prognostic abilities (the ability to anticipate possible consequences of the
decisions made, ability to establish cause-and-effect relations). 5.
Heuristic way of thinking, intuitive inspiration, insight. The above stated
abilities can be supplemented by specific abilities to work with information,
for which purpose it is important to be able to select required (for specific
goals) information from various sources to analyze it, systematize and
generalize the data obtained in accordance with the cognitive task set forth,
the ability to reveal problems in various fields of knowledge, in the
surrounding reality, to make grounded hypotheses for their solution. It is also
necessary to be able to put experiments (not only mental, but also natural), make
well-reasoned conclusions, build the system of proofs, to be able to process
statistically the data obtained from test and experimental checks, to be able
to generate new ideas, possible ways of search of decisions, registration of
results, to be able to work in the collective, while solving cognitive,
creative tasks in cooperation with others, at that playing different social
roles, as well as to be master of art and culture of communication. Research
and search methods of information processing: 1.
Independent search and selection of information on specific problem. 2.
Information analysis for the purpose of selection of facts, data necessary for
the description of the object of study, its characteristics, qualities; for
selection of facts conducive to the provability and/or refutation of the vision of the task/problem
solution; building of facts, data analyzed in the logical sequence of proofs,
etc. 3.
Definition, vision of problems that need examination and solution. 4.
Making hypotheses with definition of ways to check (solve) them. 5.
Determination of methods, ways of solution of the investigated problem, stages of
its solution by an individual or joint, group effort. 6.
Registration of results of research or search activity. 7.
Argumentation of the results achieved. 8.
Projecting the occurrence of new problems in the given area of knowledge,
practical activities.
4. Universal
plan of scientific management (SM) 1.
Statement of an overall goal (task) - minimum, optimum and maximum. 2.
Setting of intermediate goals (tasks), their prioritization, time-frames of
implementation. 3.
Mechanisms (methods, schemes) of their achievement. 4.
Required logistical, informational and financial support. 5.
Personnel (including statement of problem before each employee following
detailed instructional advice and determination of implementation time-frames).
6.
Ways and means of control, possible failures and disturbances, methods, time-frames,
personnel, materials, equipment, information and finance to rectify the latter.
7.
Task adjustment in case of changes of situation, adaptation of the work performed
(at all stages) to a new problem.
5. TRIZ
- Inventive Problems Solution Theory (IPST) Algorithm
of activity: 1.
A. Set a task. B. Imagine ideal result (is
there a problem at all?). C. What prevents from the achievement of a goal (find
contradiction), why does it prevent from its achievement (reveal cause-and-effect
relations). D. On what conditions prevention will not occur? 2.
A. Required (possible) internal changes (the sizes: larger, smaller, longer, shorter,
thicker, thinner, deeper, shallower, vertically, horizontally, sloping, in
parallel, in ledges, in layers/slices, transpose/rearrange, crosswise, convergence, to surround, to mix/stir, borders; the
quantity: more, less, proportions, to divide, attach, add, remove; form: usual,
unusual, rounded, straight, jags, unevenness, rough, equal, even/smooth, damage
proof, delays, accidents, "foolproofing" and protection from larceny, to add;
movement: to accelerate, slow down, stir up/revive/brighten up, stop,
direction, deviation, pulling, pushing away, to block, lift, lower/pull down,
rotate, fluctuate, arouse; condition: hot, cooler, firmer, softer, opened,
closed, pre-assembled, disposable, combined, divided, hardening, liquid,
gaseous, powder-like, wearability, to grease, moist, dry, isolated, gelatinous,
plasmic, elastic, resists, superposes/matches). B. Division of an object
(and/or subject) into independent parts: a. Segregation of weak (including
potentially weak) part (parts). b. Segregation of required and sufficient part
(parts). c. Segregation of identical (including duplicating, similar) parts
(including in other systems). d. Division into parts with different functions. C.
External changes. D. Changes in the adjacent objects. a. Establishment of links
between the previously independent objects performing one work (including a
network). b. Removal of objects because of transfer of their functions to other
objects. c. Increase in the number of objects at the expense of the reverse
side of the area. E. Measurement of time: faster, more slowly, longer, eternal,
single-step, cyclic, time-wise marked, update, variable. F. Ascertainment of ties
with other fields of knowledge (how is this contradiction solved there? what can
be borrowed from there at all?). Prototypes in nature. G. Read the dictionaries
for verbal associations (including non-standard). H. In case of failure revert
to the initial problem to expand its situation/formulation. See also: World
Intellectual Property Organization United
States Patent and Trademark Office Intellectual
Property Australia http://www.ipaustralia.gov.au/ Canadian
Intellectual Property Office Intellectual
Property Office of United Kingdom Intellectual
Property Department of Hong Kong Corean Intellectual
Property Office 6. Concepts,
substance and laws of dialectics
1) The world (the being, reality) exists
objectively, i.e. irrespective of the will and conscience of a human being. 2) The
world has not been created by anybody and cannot be destroyed by anybody. It
exists and develops in accordance with natural laws. There are no supernatural
forces in it. 3) The world is unique and there are no "extra-mundane" spheres
and phenomena in it (standing "above the world" or "beyond the world") that are
absolutely abjoint from each other. Diverse objects and the phenomena of the
reality represent various kinds of moving matter and energy. 4) The world is
coherent and is in eternal, continuous movement, development. Objects of the reality
interact with each other, influence upon each other. In the process of development
qualitative changes in objects, including natural transition from the lowest
forms to the higher, take place. 5) Natural development of a matter through a
number of natural steps (the inorganic/inanimate nature/abiocoen/ - life - society)
has led to the origin of human being, intellect, conscience. The crucial role
in the segregation of human being from animality and the formation of its
conscience was played by labor, its social nature, transition of the human
being's animal ancestors to regular production and application of instruments
of labor. 6) Society being the higher step of development of substance includes
all lowest forms and levels (mechanical, physical, chemical, biological) on the
basis of which it has arisen, but is not reduced to them only. It exists and
develops on the basis of social laws which qualitatively differ from the laws
of the lowest forms. The paramount law of social development is the determinant
role of production in the life of the society. Mode of production of material
life conditions social, political and spiritual processes of life in general.
7) The world is knowable. Human knowledge is unlimited by nature, but is limited
historically at each stage of its development and for each separate individual.
The criterion for the verity of thinking and cognition is public practice. In
recent years the need arose for the formation of higher form of dialectic-materialistic
outlook - "spiritual materialism". Spiritual materialism extends the line of
classical materialism in terms of recognition of objective character of existence,
its cognoscibility, natural evolution of substance from the lowest to the
higher forms, exclusion of notions of supernatural from scientific
beliefs/notions, etc. At the same time, spiritual materialism overcomes
absolutization of superiority of material over the spiritual, contraposition
and discontinuity of these fundamentals inherent in the former forms of
materialism, and directs towards the revelation of their unity, complex interrelation,
interpenetration, definite fixation of relations in which the material and
spiritual determine each other in the process of functioning and development of
objects. Three main laws of dialectics are: the law of transition from quantity
to quality, the law of unity and conflict of opposites and the law of negation
of negation. There is more to it than these three major laws in dialectics. Abscque
hoc, there are a number of other dialectic laws concretizing and supplementing
organic laws of dialectics expressed in categories "substance and phenomenon",
"content and form", "contingency and necessity", "cause and effect", "possibility
and reality", "individual, special and general", the dialectic triad: thesis, antithesis
and synthesis. Categories and laws of dialectics exist within a certain system
in which the substance/essence of dialectics proper is expressed.
7. Analysis
of the decision-making methods without use of numerical values of probability (exemplificative
of the investment projects). In
practice situations are often found when it is difficult enough to estimate the
value of probability of an event. In such cases methods are often times applied
which do not involve using numerical values of probabilities: maximax - maximization
of the maximum result of the project; maximin - maximization of the minimum result
of the project; minimax - minimization of maximum losses; compromise - Gurvitz's
criterion: weighing of minimum and maximum results of the project. For
decision-making on realization of investment projects a matrix is built. Matrix
columns correspond to the possible states of nature, i.e. situations which are
beyond of control of the head of an enterprise. Lines of the matrix correspond
to possible alternatives of realization of the investment project - strategies
which may be chosen by the director. The matrix cells specify the results of
each strategy for each state of nature. Example: The enterprise analyzes the
investment civil-engineering design of a line for the production of new kind of
product. There are two possibilities: the construction of a high power capacity
line or to construct low power line. Net present value of the project depends
on the demand for production, whereas the exact volume of demand is unknown,
however, it is known that there are three basic possibilities: absence of
demand, average demand and great demand. The matrix cells (see table 1) show net
present value of the project at a certain state of nature, provided that the
enterprise will choose the appropriate strategy. The last line shows what
strategy is optimum in each state of nature. The maximax decision would be to
construct a high power capacity line: the maximum net present value will thus be
300 which correspond to the great demand situation. The maximum criterion
reflects the position of the enterprise director - the optimist ignoring
possible losses. The maximin decision, i.e. to construct a low power line: the
minimum result of this strategy is the loss of 100 (which is better than
possible loss of 200 in case of construction of a high power capacity line). The
maximin criterion reflects the position of the director who is in no way
disposed towards taking risk and is notable for his/her extreme pessimism. This
criterion is quite useful in situations where risk is especially high (for
example when the existence of an enterprise depends on the results of the investment
project). Threat is determined by two components: possibilities and intention
of the contestant. Table
1. Example of construction of the matrix of strategy and states of nature for
the investment project.
To
apply the minimax criterion let us construct "a matrix of regrets" (see table
2). The cells of this matrix show the extent/value of "regret", i.e the difference between actual and the best
results which could have been achieved by the enterprise at the given state of
nature. "Regret" shows what is being lost by the enterprise as a result of making
wrong decision. The minimax decision corresponds to the strategy, whereby the
maximum regret is minimal. In our case of low power line maximum regret makes 150
(in great demand situation) and for a high power capacity line - 100 (in the
absence of demand). As 100 <150, the minimax decision would be to construct a
high power capacity line. The minimax criterion is oriented not so much towards
actual as possible damages or loss of profit. Table
2. Example
of structure of the "matrix of regrets" for minimax criterion
Gurvitz's
criterion consists in that minimum and maximum results of each strategy are
assigned "weight". Evaluation of result of each strategy equals to the sum of
maximum and minimum results multiplied by corresponding weight. Let's
assume that the weight of the minimum result is equal to 0.5, the weight of the
maximum result equals to 0.5 as well (it is the probabilistic characteristic;
in this case probability of onset of any option of events = 50 %, as far as we
have 2 options : 50 % + 50 % = 100 %; if there will be 3 options, then the ratio
can be 33,33 (%) for each or, for example, 20 %, 25 % and 55 %). Then the calculation
for each strategy will be the following: Low
power line: 0.5 х (-100) + 0.5 х 150 = (-50) + 75 = 25; High
power capacity line: 0.5 х (-200) + 0.5 х 300 = (-100) + 150 = 50. Gurvitz's
criterion testifies in favor of the construction of high power capacity line (as
50> 25). Advantage and simultaneously disadvantage of Gurvitz's criterion
consists in the necessity of assigning weights to the possible outcomes; it
allows taking into account specificity of situation, however, assigning weights
always implies some subjectivity. As a result of the fact that in real
situations there is often lack of information on the probabilities of outcomes
the use of the above methods in engineering of investment projects is quite justified.
However, the choice of concrete criterion depends on the specificity of
situations and individual preferences of an analyst (the company's strategy). Rational-universal method
of decision-making implies an unambiguous definition of the substance of a
problem and ways of its solution. Its basic advantage consists in that when realized
it allows complete and radical solving the problem or a preset task. Branch method implies
taking partial decisions directed
towards the improvement of situation, rather than complete solution of a
problem (for example, under conditions of insufficient clarity of a problem,
ways and means of its solution, in the absence of full information on the
situation, given the lack of possibility to foresee all the consequences of the
radical solution, under the pressure of the influential forces inducing to
compromises, the possibility of rise of sharp conflicts with unclear outcome, etc.). Mixed (mixed-scanning)
method implies rational analysis of the problem and singling out of its
main, key component which is attached a paramount importance and to which
rational-universal method is applied. Other elements of the problem are solved gradually
by making acceptable partial decisions that allows to focus efforts and resources
on the key areas and at the same time have complete control over other elements
of the situation, thus providing its stability. Selection/choice mechanism. The
optimal selection mechanism may be considered the consensus-based system in
which each participant of decision-making votes not for one, but for all options
(preferably more than two) and ranges the list of options in the order of
his/her own preferences. Thus, if four possible options are offered the
participant of decision-making (the voter) defines a place of each of them. The
first place is given 4 points, the second, third and forth are given 3, 2 and 1
points, respectively. After voting the points given too each option (the
candidacy/nominee) are summed up and selected option is determined based on the
quantity thereof. If sums of scores for any options are found equal, repeated
voting is held only for these options. According to the theory of information (Stanislav Yankovsky), requisite
condition of activity of intellectual (higher) system is the redundancy of incoming
and generated information, read and think "to lay up in store/as a reserve",
accumulate "assets" which expands your possibilities and get rid of
"liabilities" which reduce your potential. Any phenomenon should be analyzed
from the view point of what it gives to you and what it takes from you. Even
two most universal resources - money and information (sometimes "time" and "energy" is added
thereto) - also limit to some extent the possibilities of their holder. A very
important point in the evaluation of information is reliability of the source
of information and credibility of data itself. Specific code of marking
information carriers is applied for this purpose. Reliability of source: A -
absolutely reliable source; B - usually
reliable source; C - quite reliable source; D - not always reliable
source; E - unreliable source; F - reliability of source cannot be defined. Credibility
of data: 1 - credibility of data is proven by data from other sources; 2 - data
are probably correct; 3 - data are possibly correct; 4 - doubtful data; 5 -
data are improbable; 6 - credibility of data cannot be established. It should
be noted that many elements of scientific, research and analytical activity are
weakly formalizable, in which connection practical experience in the concrete
field of activity gains great importance.
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© 2005, International Center for Researches and Education "Areopagit" |  |