Call for Papers: GE-International Journal of Engineering Research

Paper Submission Date: 20^th January, 2014 

www.gerp.co.uk

Call for Submission Vol 2 Issue 1
FROM

Double Blind

GE-International Journal of Engineering Research ISSN: 2321-1717
Indexed / Listed at: International ISSN Directory, Paris 

Submission

Research paper prepared in MS word template with double – column in single spaced typed pages should be submitted electronically as attachment at E-mail Id of Journal mentioned below. The manuscripts in all the subject areas are welcome. Moreover, submitted manuscript must not be previously accepted for publication elsewhere. 

Place to submit research:

editorgerp@gmail.com

Last day of submission: 20^th January, 2014 

Giftedness Across a Lifespan

Gifted individuals go through the stages of life in many of the same ways as others. Their development has parallels with those in the bell curve but there is some uniqueness in terms of the level of development in each stage. Their expectations and capacities are higher which leads them to unique perspectives. A fundamental component of this is whether they have spent their lives in acceptance of giftedness or in denial of their special talents. A paper in the journal Advanced Development by Ellen Fiedler describes this groups life’s transitions. 

 It is first beneficial to define giftedness.  The Columbus Group defines it as, “Giftedness is asynchronous development in which advance cognitive abilities and heightened intensity combine to create inner experiences and awareness that are qualitatively different from the norm.”  Because they see the world different they have spent time criticized for their mannerisms and perspectives and may have buried their talents. 

As an example, a gifted person by the name of Karolyn Kottmeyer (2007) describes her life experience as, “I know too much. I remember too much. I learn too quickly. I make people uncomfortable. And it is hard to hide these things. I try. But it is also hard to spend your life hiding…”.  It is seen as a prison and a mask whereby one’s true feelings, true identity, and true abilities are buried under everyone else’s needs.

For those who accept their traits the path is one of greater awareness and understanding of why they are different. They move through stages much like a seeker, explorer, navigator, actualizer and cruiser. This represents their ability to understand themselves and the world. 

Young Adulthood (18-35): The search for people like them who can provide companionship and friendship. They try and find a career that matches their abilities. It is difficult because their speed of thought and complexity of understand create difficulties with others. 

Middle Adult (35-65):  Generative personalities that seek to connect the big picture on what things will make the biggest difference. 

            35-50: Authenticity, do more, concern with the nature of the world, and blending of the past with the present.  Moving onto the road of self-actualization. 

            50-65: Introspective and taking care of themselves without all the previous obligations. 

Late Adult (65-Death): Advanced multi-level development whereby the individual matches their ideas with their lives. They are fully capable, creative, and fully utilized in skill. They make things happen and have little concern for other’s criticisms. 

The primary difference is their level of development that reaches beyond most others. Throughout their lives, they will maintain their curiosity, need for constant stimulation, and drive to do things. However, each stage offers greater insight into themselves. At this advanced age, some get involved in politics while others may find ways of influencing the environment. With acceptance and perseverance, this group can accomplish and contribute to the world in ways others cannot realize. 

Fiedler, E. (2012). You don’t outgrow it! Giftedness across the lifespan. Advanced Development, 13

Kottmeyer, C. (2007). Optimum intelligence: My experience as a too-gifted adult. Advanced Development, 11, 125-129.

Pictures of Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve

The preserve contains 4,000 acres of pristine land in both Peñasquitos and Lopez Canyons (1). Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve contains rivers, wildlife, waterfalls, birds and ancient trees. It is open to the public with a $3 car pass paid at the entrance. People on foot may enter free with no cost.  There are plenty of people walking the main trail so you should feel safe.

Yelp visitors rank it 4 out of 5 for local attractions (2).  Comments include great trails, take sunscreen, and lots of wildlife. Visitors admired the overall quality of the hike and the beautiful waterfalls. As the trails are well maintained bikers and children can walk easily.

On our trip, we hiked the 3.5 miles to the waterfalls and back(3). Hitting a number of side trails the total trip was somewhere around 8.5 miles. Be sure to leave early, as it will take you about 2.5 hours for a round trip with some time to watch the waterfalls. We made it back just after dark and the ranger had to wait a few minutes for us. The place closes at 5 pm when the sun goes down.

Some of the side trails are interesting. They lead to the creek that is great for taking pictures. As these are quieter with less traffic there is more wildlife to be found. I was looking for a mountain lion to take a picture of but only found a few birds. Just missed a picture of a crane flying overhead.

12122 Canyonside Park Drive
San Diego, CA 92129

How Multiple Forms of Media Impact Our Social Understandings

Communication is seen as a process of information transference from one person to another. Few think about the cognitive models that develop from information transference and how different communication channels influence meaning. Dennis, et. al. (2008) discusses the nature of information conveyance and convergence when dealing with groups and how media synchronicity impacts meaning making among recipients.

Media richness theory indicates that task performance will improve when task information are matched to the medium’s information richness.  Difficult tasks require more information when compared to simple tasks while less rich media are better suited to tasks that require less information. The media used to transfer information should be based on the type of task.

For example, someone who wants to complete a simple task such as changing a wiper blade on a car will need few instructions to successfully complete this task. Changing a car transmission may require multiple forms of written instructions and videos to successful complete this task. The more difficult the task, the more media synchronicity can help.  

In communication we prepare information, transfer it through a medium, and others will process this information into their mental models. Different people obtain varying levels of information from media and process that information according to how their particular mental models work. Two people can see the same thing but each will notice the information that fits within their understanding while selectively ignoring information that does not fit within their personal models.

In groups, the meaning of information is based more in the interactive interpretation of multiple persons. Meaning requires a level of negotiation among members that are engaged in tasks. Meaning is subjective depending on the cognitive models others are using. Each group will come to their own slightly different interpretation of the information.

When transmitting information to groups it is important to understand the processes of conveyance and convergence. Conveyance processes provide transmission of diversity of new information that allows individuals to create revised mental models of situations. Convergence processes is the way in which people interpret and make models out of the information to come to mutually agreed upon understandings.  We can see this as receiving information, building models of that information, and then coming to an understanding of that information.

It is possible to see this in an example. The latest gizmo makes its way on the market. The type of spokes models, celebrities, music, and impressions provided through the media make their way into everyday conversations. Each interpretation adds to the collective development of a fad product. When the product becomes old people will leave it for something new. That is the nature of fads and hype which are socially constructed concepts of “coolness”.

The researchers found that when individuals have experience with tasks and each other they have fewer convergence processes and less need for media synchronicity. In other words, they are familiar with each other’s cognitive processes and a small amount of information is enough for them to come to a shared understanding (i.e. a tight group of teenagers who like a product). When individuals have little experience with each other or the tasks it is beneficial to use multiple rich forms of media to transfer needed information.

The study helps highlight how we use media and information to build cognitive models. When tasks are unfamiliar it is beneficial to use multiple forms of rich media to help us build new models (i.e. learning) and come to a social understanding of those models. Once the models are built, lower forms of media are enough to transfer information. Thus, understanding is based on cognitive models and they are individually constructed and then negotiated against others cognitive models to come to mutual understanding.  Therefore, understanding is a social construction process fostered by the information we receive from our environment and multiple forms of media (i.e. phone, Internet, face-to-face, music, television, You Tube, etc…).

Dennis, et. al. (2008). Media, tasks, and communication processes: a theory of media synchronicity. MIS Quarterly, 32 (3).

Call for Papers: Interdisciplinary Business and Economics

Submission Date:  March 21st, 2014

The SIBR 2014 Conference on Interdisciplinary Business & Economics Research will be held from June 5th (Thursday) to June 7th (Saturday), 2014 at the Emerald Hotel in Bangkok, Thailand.

The SIBR Conference invites submission of academic and professional research papers/abstracts from the full range of business and economics disciplines, including Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Financial Economics, Accounting and Economics, Organizational Behavior, Marketing, Business Ethics, General Management, Strategic Management, Operations Management, Public Sector Management, and other related topics. Research papers/abstracts cutting across business and non-business disciplines (e.g., education, engineering, law, politics, psychology, sociology, etc.) are also welcome.

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