Hong Kong, Internationalism and 'International-mindedness'

http://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1496572/plural-voices-international-stage-boost-hong-kongs-image

The first of many links to things for possible presentations. The concept of 'ínternational-mindedness', as an IB core concept/one of the IB Learner Profile elements is, at best, a difficult and contested concept, even at the very heart of the IB community, as we are.

What knowledge issues do you think a perspective, such as that in this article, throws up?

Memory Resources: your thoughts

Please tell me about the material here - the link to it is in an email I sent you.

What did you like or find interesting and why?

That missing link...

I think this was the groovy page from the BBC website that I mentioned coming across but not bookmarking last week.

http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20131127-secret-to-thinking-like-a-genius

Actually I think the headline story is new - but very, very relevant to what we were discussing (oh, OK, I was talking about) on Friday, in relation to the Natural Sciences and how the famous 'scientific method' sequence does not always explain how they are done. However, what's really interesting is how about 1 in 2 or 3 of the stories archived down the right COULD form the basis of a ToK presentation.

Have a look and tell me either what interests you here, or what comments you have on any of it.

At the interface of science and emotion

In fact arguably at the interface of natural and human sciences and emotion...

Here's an article that raises the topic and contextualises it somewhat. Also it makes it a 'contemporary issue', a requirement for a ToK presentation topic:

http://www.theguardian.com/science/shortcuts/2013/nov/25/emotional-intelligence-clincher-lady-ashton-eu-foreign-policy-iran

In fact within that page this link is embedded:

http://www.theguardian.com/money/2012/feb/10/emotional-intelligence-thinking-feeling-job

and at the bottom of that feature you are invited to visit JCA's website to take a free Emotional Intelligence Profile questionnaire and to receive a profile outlining key strengths and development areas.

I experienced anger when I clicked on this. Why and do you too?

Invisible Gorilla sighted in ToK (twice in one week)

While travelling in a place called Halmahera in Eastern Indonesia at Easter, I became one of very few visitors (less than 20 perhaps) ever to see a bird called the Invisible Rail (check it out, it's real!), and today we all kind of had the 'invisible gorilla' experience...

Check out more of these here http://www.theinvisiblegorilla.com/videos.html and post your comments - make it clear which part or parts you are talking about.

Can we build up 'moral muscles'?

http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/20131007-the-morality-muscle

I attended a lecture the other day (see http://www.rgshk.org.hk/public/event.php?pageId=54&eventId=573) at which it was suggested that one stumbling block to China's further growth is a quite deep-seated lack of morality (or perhaps more correctly phrased, ethics) in its financial/economic/industrial sector, which means trusted, quality brands are proving difficult to establish. One questioner from the floor suggested that "isn't it like that everywhere?", and to some extent it was agreed that it was, but equally it was pointed out that, say, Heinz didn't become a trusted 'superbrand' by producing tainted baked beans, and Glaxo didn't become a world leader by creating capsules for medicines using gelatine that was unfit for human consumption.

The hyperlinked article entitled "Managers: Train your brain for ethical decisions" explores the degree to which ethics can be cultivated. This is related to Ethics (an area of knowledge) and emotion (a way of knowing) and perhaps more...

After reading it what comments do you have? Post by Wednesday 23rd October.

A synaesthetic speaks...

Comments on the video please.

Here's the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pzd7ReqiQnE