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~ Finding, formulating and solving life's frustrations.

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Tools of Thought

20 Wednesday Oct 2021

Posted by petersironwood in Uncategorized

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index, problem solving, summary, thinking, tools of thought

Tools of Thought (Summary and Index)

In December, 2018, I began writing a series of essays on “tools of thought.” I realize that many readers probably read these tools at the time they were first published. However, in times of great division such as those we now face, effective thinking is more important than ever yet every day in the news and in social media, I see many examples that overlook even the most basic tools of thought. I therefore decided that it would be worthwhile to reprint the index of such tools now.

I suppose many readers will already be familiar with many of these tools. Nonetheless, I think it’s worthwhile to have a compilation of tools. After all — plumbers, carpenters, programmers, piano tuners, sales people — they all have tool kits. I see at least three advantages to having them together in some one place.

Without a toolkit you may be prone to try to use the tool that just so happens to be nearest to hand at the time you encounter the problem. You need to tighten a screw and you happen to have a penny in your pocket. You don’t feel like walking all the way down into the garage to get your toolkit. A penny will do. I get it. But for more serious work, you are going to want to consider the whole toolkit and choose the tool that’s most appropriate to the situation at hand.

First, the existence of a toolkit serves as a reminder of all the tools at your disposal. This will help you choose appropriately. 

Second, you may only be familiar with one or two ways to use a tool. I may have thought of ways to use a tool that are different from the way you use it. In the same way, you undoubtedly know useful things about these tools of thought that I have never thought of. We can learn from each other. 

Third, having all the tools together may stimulate people to invent new tools or see a way to use two or more in sequence and begin to think about the handoff between two tools. 

Here’s an index to the toolkit so far.

Many Paths(December 5, 2018). The temptation is great to jump to a conclusion, snap up the first shiny object that looks like bait and charge ahead! After all, “he who hesitates is lost!” But there is also, “look before you leap.” What works best for me in many circumstances is to think of many possible paths before deciding on one. This is a cousin to the Pattern: Iroquois Rule of Six. This heuristic is a little broader and is sometimes called “Alternatives Thinking.”

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/05/many-paths/

And then what?(Dec. 6, 2018). This is sometimes called “Consequential Thinking.” The idea is simple: think not just about how you’ll feel and how a decision will affect you this moment but what will happen next. How will others react? It’s pretty easy to break laws if you set your mind to it. But what are the likely consequences?

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/06/and-then-what/

Positive Feedback Loops(December 7, 2018). Also known as a virtuous or vicious circle. If you drink too much of a depressant drug (e.g., alcohol or opioids), that can cause increased nervousness and anxiety which leads you to want more of the drug. Unfortunately, it also makes your body more tolerant of the drug so you need more to feel the same relief. So, you take more but this makes you even more irritable when it wears off.

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/07/systems-thinking-positive-feedback-loops/

Meta-Cognition.(December 8, 2018). This is basically thinking about thinking. For example, if you are especially good at math, then you tend to do well in math! Over time, if your meta-cognition is accurate, you will know that you are good in math and you can use that information about your own cognition to make decisions about the education you choose, your job, your methods of representing and solving problems and so on.

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/08/meta-cognition/

Theory of Mind(December 9, 2018). Theory of Mind tasks require us to imagine the state of another mind. It is slightly different from empathy, but a close cousin. Good mystery writers – and good generals – may be particularly skilled at knowing what someone else knows, infers, thinks, feels and therefore, how they are likely to act.

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/09/theory-of-mind/

Regression to the Mean(December 10, 2018). This refers to a statistical artifact that you sometimes need to watch out for. If you choose to work with the “best” or “worst” or “strongest” or “weakest” and then measure them again later, their extreme scores will be less extreme. The tool is to make sure that you don’t make untoward inferences from that change in the results of the measurement.

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/10/regression-to-the-mean/

Representation(December 11, 2018): The way we represent a problem can make a huge difference in how easy it is to solve it. Of course, we all know this, and yet, it is easy to fall into the potential trap of always using the same representations for the same types of problems. Sometimes, another representation can lead you to completely different – and better – solutions.

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/11/representation/

Metaphor I (December 12, 2018): Do we make a conscious choice about the metaphors we use? How can metaphors influence behavior?

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/12/metaphors-we-live-by-and-die-by/

Metaphor II (December 13, 2018): Two worked examples: Disease is an Enemy and Politics is War.

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/13/metaphors-we-live-and-die-by-part-2/

Imagination (December 14, 2018): All children show imagination. Many adults mainly see it as a tool for increasing their misery; viz., by only imagining the worst. Instead of a tool to help them explore, it becomes a “tool” to keep themselves from exploring by making everything outside the habitual path look scary.

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/14/imagination/

Fraught Framing (December 16, 2018): Often, how we frame a problem is the most crucial step in solving it. In this essay, several cases are examined in which people presume a zero-sum game when it certainly need not be.

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/16/fraught-framing-the-virulent-versus-virus/

Fraught Framing II(December 17, 2018). A continuation of thinking about framing. This essay focuses on how easy it sometimes is to confuse the current state of something with its unalterable essence or nature. 

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/17/fraught-framing-the-presumed-being-ness-of-state-ness/

Negative Space(December 17, 2018). Negative space is the space between. Often we separate a situation into foreground and background, or into objects and field, or into assumptions and solution space. What if we reverse these designations?

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/17/negative-space/

Problem Finding(December 18, 2018). Most often in our education, we are handed problems and told to solve them. In real life, success is as much about being able to find problems or see problems in order to realize that there is even something to fix.

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/18/problem-finding/

More recently, I wrote a series of posts about the importance of Problem Finding, Problem Framing, and Problem Formulation. I haven’t yet put this in the form of “Tools of Thought” — these posts are specific experiences from my own life where I initially mis-formulated a problem or watched my friends do that. 

https://petersironwood.com/2021/01/12/the-doorbells-ringing-can-you-get-it/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/01/13/reframing-the-problem-paperwork-working-paper/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/01/14/problem-framing-good-point/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/01/16/i-say-hello-you-say-what-city-please/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/01/16/i-went-in-seeking-clarity/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/01/18/problem-formulation-who-knows-what/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/01/20/wordless-perfection/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/01/22/how-to-frame-your-own-hamster-wheel/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/01/28/measure-for-measure/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/02/01/the-slow-seeming-snapping-turtle/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/02/03/a-long-days-journey-into-hangover/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/02/04/training-your-professor-for-fun-profit/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/02/05/astronomy-lesson-invisible-circles/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/02/08/tag-youre-it/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/02/18/ohayogozaimasu/
https://petersironwood.com/2021/03/20/career-advice-from-polonius/

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Author Page on Amazon

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Non-Linearity. (December 20, 2018). We often think that things are linear when they may not be. In some cases, they can be severely non-linear. Increasing the force on a joint may actually make it stronger. But if increased force is added too quickly, rather than strengthening the joint even further, it can destroy it. The same is true of a system like American democracy.

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/20/non-linearity/

Resonance. (December 20, 2018). If you add your effort to something at the right time, you are able to multiply the impact of your effort. This is true in sports, in music, and in social change.

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https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/20/resonance/

Symmetry(December 23, 2018). There are many kinds of symmetry and symmetry is found in many places; it is rampant in nature, but humans in all different cultures also use symmetry. It exists at macro scales and micro scales. It exists in physical reality and in social relationships.

https://petersironwood.com/2018/12/23/symmetry/

2020 Hindsight: Blog in Review

04 Monday Jan 2021

Posted by petersironwood in Uncategorized

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2020 Vision 

Happy New Year! I wish everyone has a good new year. Thank you to everyone who reads, follows, or comments on this blog! I am hoping you will find this index useful.

Looking Back (Great Wall of China)

In 2020, we had a large family get-together planned to celebrate my birthday in late May. By early March, it was obvious that I would have to cancel. There was no-one in my family whom I loved so much that I wanted to risk their life by having them travel during a pandemic rather than wait another year to see them. I am, like most people, hoping 2021 will be a better year on many dimensions. Science has provided us with a variety of vaccines. The mere existence of those vaccines does not mean the pandemic is over. It will only be under control (not totally vanquished) when more than 75% of the people are vaccinated. Please continue to wear masks in public, stay socially distanced, and wash your hands. 

Posts from 2020 can be categorized as: Poetry, Essays on America, Further Myths of the Veritas, purely fictional stories about a child sociopath, purely fictional stories about how the GRU plotted to turn part of the GOP into a death cult, and miscellaneous stories. 

Poetry

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/18/hauntings-across-the-time-zones/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/19/wilburs-story/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/22/a-suddenly-springing-something/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/23/piano/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/26/race-place-space-face/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/01/the-bubble-people/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/02/dont-they-realize-how-much-better-off-they-are-now/amp/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/02/dont-they-realize-how-much-better-off-they-are-now/amp/

https://wordpress.com/post/petersironwood.com/3971

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/04/ambition/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/05/the-impossible/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/07/peace/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/08/wonder-wonder-who-kept-the-wonder/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/09/camelot-is-in-your-heart/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/10/fate-and-late-on-the-interstate/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/15/sunless-sunday-of-faith/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/17/the-truth-train/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/17/maybe-it-needs-a-new-starter/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/20/the-mysterious-american-continental-breakfast/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/23/wristwatch/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/25/the-joy-of-juggling/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/27/the-most-serious-work/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/30/is-a-dream/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/05/imagine-all-the-people/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/07/a-cats-a-cat-thats-that/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/09/the-jewels-of-november/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/11/a-wildly-webbed-world/

https://petersironwood.com/tag/easter/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/13/life-is-a-dance/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/16/the-pandemic-anti-acedemic/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/19/you-must-remember-this/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/21/choosing-the-script/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/23/hi-golf-ku/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/29/comes-the-reign/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/02/mothers-day/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/03/timeline/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/08/snowflake/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/23/you-gave-me-no-fangs/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/24/blood-red-blood/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/30/screaming-out-a-warning/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/13/ah-wilderness/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/15/answers-to-your-many-questions/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/20/the-watershed-virus/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/07/13/who-are-the-speakers-for-the-dead/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/07/27/trump-truth-treason/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/08/05/the-ailing-king-of-agitate/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/08/11/put-in-the-fool-put-out-the-fool/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/08/17/roar-ocean-roar/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/08/20/try-the-truth/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/08/23/listen-you-can-hear-the-echoes-of-your-actions/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/09/06/my-captains-no-captain/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/09/09/comes-the-dawn/
https://petersironwood.com/2020/10/13/con-formation-confirmation/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/10/30/t-rump-swan-song/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/11/14/good-morning/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/11/19/the-tree-of-life/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/11/28/take-a-glance-join-the-dance/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/14/how-the-nightingale-learned-to-sing/

Essays on America 

https://petersironwood.com/2020/01/09/essays-on-america-the-temperature-gauge/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/01/10/by-the-numbers/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/12/cancer-always-loses-in-the-end/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/20/checks-and-balances/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/24/the-pie-of-life/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/27/fire-and-ice/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/28/essays-on-america-addictions/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/12/covid-19/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/31/keys-that-open-keys-that-close/amp/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/29/essays-on-america-oops/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/06/drowning-in-the-obvious-denied-by-the-oblivious/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/08/what-about-the-butter-dish/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/11/absolute-is-not-just-a-vodka/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/17/sports-fans-only/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/28/where-does-your-loyalty-lie/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/02/essays-on-america-my-cousin-bobby/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/02/essays-on-america-poker-chips/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/06/anifa/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/28/essays-on-america-happy-talk-lies/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/30/unmasked/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/07/25/the-only-them-that-counts-is-all-of-us/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/07/31/essays-on-america-the-update-problem/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/08/01/essays-on-america-the-stopping-rule/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/08/10/push-forward-or-sideways-or-backwards/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/08/18/a-tight-flock-unified-by-division/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/08/21/the-primacy-effect-the-destroyers-advantage/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/08/29/trumpland-a-nearly-perfect-solution/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/09/06/points-and-trajectories/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/09/15/essays-on-america-the-interview/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/10/14/essays-on-america-highlights-lowlifes/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/10/26/fascism-leads-to-chaos/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/11/03/opponent-does-not-mean-enemy/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/12/child-like-or-childish/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/17/bounce/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/18/masklessness-is-not-manliness/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/20/shooting-the-moon/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/22/essays-on-america-a-query-on-quislings/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/24/pardon-me/

Myths of the Veritas 

https://petersironwood.com/2020/01/14/a-map-of-sorts/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/01/15/loves-afterglow/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/01/17/tu-swift-tells-his-tale/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/01/19/shadow-walkers-walk/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/01/21/jaccim-knows-the-way/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/01/26/the-book-of-anti-life/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/01/30/jaccim-fails-to-explain/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/04/return-from-the-old-place/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/06/many-paths-for-many-weapons/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/13/many-shiny-things/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/21/wartime-playtime/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/25/serious-fun-and-games/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/06/myths-of-the-veritas-inversnaid-revisited/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/11/a-difficult-journey/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/15/choosing-the-path-more-traveled-by/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/19/light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/24/mint-tea-golden-coins/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/29/fishing/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/31/open-door-policy/

https://petersironwood.com/tag/light/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/08/tall-trees-high-vines/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/18/gifts-that-keep-on-giving/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/26/myths-of-the-veritas-books/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/22/getting-in/amp/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/09/myths-of-the-veritas-many-paths-awakes/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/11/such-sweet-sorrow/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/24/wake-up/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/07/06/red-death-plague-rage-assuaged/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/07/08/myths-of-the-veritas-all-that-glitters/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/07/23/she-who-saves-many-lives/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/08/21/shadow-walkers-ministers/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/09/09/the-healing-tea/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/10/03/the-seven-grandmothers/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/10/24/tu-swifts-reunion/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/11/18/two-boxes-each-contains-the-other-boxs-key/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/05/led-by-the-deer/

Stories of a Child Sociopath (This series of stories is meant to give insight into the way a sociopath’s mind works. Most people don’t seem to “get it.” I’m hoping these stories will help.)

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/01/donnie-plays-bull-dazzle-man/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/03/donnie-plays-doctor-man/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/04/donnie-learns-golf/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/05/donnie-plays-soldier-man/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/10/donnie-visits-granny/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/14/donnie-gets-a-hamster/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/18/donnie-takes-a-blue-ribbon-for-spelling/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/18/donnie-gets-his-name-on-tennis-trophy/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/27/donnie-lets-his-brother-take-the-fall/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/09/16/donnie-boy-watches-a-veterans-day-parade/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/10/06/ramming-your-head-into-a-brick-wall-does-not-make-you-a-hero/

The GRU plans to turn the GOP into a Death Cult (This sequence of four short stories is *fiction* — but not implausible fiction — meant to illustrate and warn that death cults need not be small. In the middle ages, after the European Christians failed to conquer the Holy Lands, they mounted a crusade composed only of children under the theory that they would be more “pure” and therefore more likely to prevail. Of course, most of them died en route from starvation or disease and the remainder were easily decimated by their adult opponents). 

https://petersironwood.com/2020/07/11/plans-for-us-some-gruesome/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/10/20/finding-the-needle-man-in-the-haystack-of-america/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/11/06/that-fatal-flaw/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/11/10/nasha-marionetka/

Chrysalis 

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/28/as-gold-as-it-gets/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/29/do-unto-others/

Miscellaneous Stories,  Essays, & Satire

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/21/the-touch-of-one-hand-clasping/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/02/29/the-lost-sapphire/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/13/by-any-other-name-selection/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/20/cars-that-lock-too-much/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/22/jennifers-invitation/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/03/26/last-call/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/19/you-must-remember-this/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/22/thrumperdome/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/04/25/process-re-engineering-moves-to-baseball/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/02/john-vs-worrier/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/14/true-believer/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/25/little-grandma/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/05/31/the-urgent-e-mail/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/06/13/overheard-conversations-of-fiction/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/07/11/captain-donny-boy-steers-the-titanic-luckily-the-iceberg-was-a-liberal-hoax/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/07/13/how-did-i-get-here/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/07/29/he-is-the-very-model-of-a-modern-consigliere-general/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/09/01/5060/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/09/02/oxymorons-of-the-mango-mussolini/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/09/05/skirting-the-turtle/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/09/07/getting-into-the-right-shape/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/09/25/the-isle-of-right/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/10/08/rejection-letter/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/10/20/let-me-not/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/11/01/that-cold-walk-home/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/11/09/a-short-brutal-life-in-the-slammer/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/01/that-first-time-is-so-special/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/03/living-on-the-edge/

https://petersironwood.com/2020/12/08/the-itsy-bitsy-spider-the-waterspout/

Author Page on Amazon 

https://www.amazon.com/author/truthtable

Good Morning!

14 Saturday Nov 2020

Posted by petersironwood in Uncategorized

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ecology, GreenNewDeal, index, poem, poetry, story

{Today, I rediscovered this poem which I originally wrote for our holiday letter on December 31, 1999. It seems apropos two decades later.} 

Photo by Johannes Plenio on Pexels.com

Good Morning! 

The sunlight sparkles on the snow;

Sparkles on the sea; 

On the fields of wheat; 

On the forests.

Photo by Mike Krejci on Pexels.com

A New Day:

A New Millennium.

Lids flutter open

In waves across the world — 

Minds at last awake 

From their deeply troubled dreams.

Blind ambition opens sleepy lids;

Wipes the sand away from slumber.

Humanity awakes!

At long last, 

The veil is lifted from minds and hearts.

Hands touch hands

The world round.

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Everyone laughs as if on cue.

To think that we were ever so blind.

To think that we were ever so silly.

We chuckle and shake our heads.

Our teen-age years of rebellion are over. 

Guns fall silent. 

People see beneath the skin.;

People hear beneath the accent. 

We are glad to have so many brothers,

So many sisters, so many long-lost cousins. 

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

With joy, the people begin the long,

Long journey back to Eden. 

We remake our traveling spaceship jewel.

We replant the surface of the earth. 

Seen from space,

Our whirling little marble greens again.

Our whirling edge of blue clears again.

Seen from our backyards, 

The moon grows clear and huge.

And stars once more appear in night skies. 

Birds fly over Mexico City.

Dictators become gardeners.

Soldiers become poets. 

Plastic turns to wood.

Creation is re-created.

Paradise, always there —

Suddenly appears.

Our multi-millennial blindness is cured.

Our multi-millennial sleep is over.

Good Morning! 

—————————-

Other Poems —- 

The Truth Train

The Pandemic Anti-Pandemic

Life is a Dance

T-Rump Swan Song

Comes the Dawn

https://petersironwood.com/2020/08/23/listen-you-can-hear-the-echoes-of-your-actions/

Try the Truth!

Roar, Ocean, Roar!

The Ailing King of Agitate 

Who are the Speakers for the Dead? 

The Watershed Virus 

Ah! Wilderness!

Essays on America: Poker Chip

Screaming Out a Warning

You Gave me no Fangs

Blood Red Blood

Snowflake

Mother’s Day

Comes the Reign

Choosing the Script

The Jewels of November

Imagine all the People…

The Most Serious Work

The Joy of Juggling

Wristwatch

Maybe it Needs a New Starter

https://petersironwood.com/2020/09/06/my-captains-no-captain/

A Cat’s a Cat and That’s That

Fate and Late on the Interstate

Camelot is in your Heart

Peace

Ambition

The Impossible 

The Bubble People 

Race, Space, Place, Face

Piano

A Suddenly Springing Something

Hauntings across the Time Zones

Essay Index for 2019

03 Friday Jan 2020

Posted by petersironwood in America, politics, psychology, Uncategorized

≈ 45 Comments

Tags

2019, America, essays, index, Resistance, story, Storytelling, summary

Thanks, dear reader, for stopping by! Happy New Year!

photo of fireworks

Photo by Anna-Louise on Pexels.com

In 2019, my blog saw roughly 14,000 views from 122 different countries spanning every continent but Antartica. If you happen to know someone in Antarctica, I’d appreciate it if you could get them to stop by and comment on something for 2020. Even if you don’t know anyone in Antarctica, you could move there, but that’s likely too much to ask. Anyway, comments are always welcome from any part of the globe.

This post is meant to make finding things within this blog a little easier by providing an index.

There were three main topics that I dealt with in 2019.

Informal Lessons on Stories, Storytelling, & Their Use in Creating Value.

Essays about contemporary politics and psychology.

Book II of The Myths of the Veritas.

I began with a series of expository posts on stories and storytelling. These were associated with a design course I taught at the University of California, San Diego. These informal articles should prove useful for business leaders, writers, and particularly for those in HCI, UX, design, Human Factors and related fields. Stories are useful throughout the design, development, and deployment of systems and services. Below is an index to those informal papers on stories and storytelling.

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

The Story of Story: 1

The Story of Story: 2

The Story of Story: 3

The Story of Story: 4 (Character)

Using Story in Design – 1

Using Story in Design – 2

Using Story in Design – 3

Using Story in Design – 4

Using Story in Design – 5

The second major class of posts are essays. Mainly, these essays have been inspired by actual 2019 events, large and small. Beyond the immediate danger of Trump, there are also additional essays and these are indexed below as well.

What’s Wrong with People, Anyway?

Essays on America: You Bet Your Life!

Doing the Dishes.

Essays on America: Winning by Cheating is Losing. It is not Winning

Corn on the Cob (An Essay on Gratitude).

three yellow corn cobs bell pepper cucumbers and chili peppers

Photo by Adonyi Gábor on Pexels.com

Essays on America: How do you Re-culture a Culture? 

Mobility

Essays on America: Declaration of Interdependence

Essays on America: Labelism

Essays on America: Wimbledon 

Essays on America: Wednesday

Essays on America: Mueller Time?

Finding the Mustard

Essays on America: A Tale of Two Nannies

Essays on America: A Little is not a Lot.

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Essays on America: Ice.

Essays on America: The Game

Essays on America: “At Least he’s our Monster!”

A Once-Baked Potato

baked potatoes with rosemary garnish

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Essays on America: A Profound and Utter Failure

Essays on America: Sexual Fantasies for Political Gain? 

Horror Story

close up photo of spider

Photo by Michael Willinger on Pexels.com

Essays on America: Level the Playing Field 

Interview with Giant Slug

Essays on America: RIP, GOP.

Essays on America: “It’s Just Tommy being Tommy.”

baby child close up crying

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Essays on America: “It’s your call!”

Essays on America: Beware of Sheep in Wolves’ Clothing.

Essays on America: The Screaming Defense

Essays on America: Rejecting Adulthood

The final class of posts are fictional. With the last post of 2019, I finished Book Two of The Myths of the Veritas. These will be indexed tomorrow in a separte post.

——————————

Next year, I will finish the trilogy of The Myths of the Veritas in the blog. I also plan to publish four books next year. Two of these will be the first two books of The Myths of the Veritas.

A different book will comprise a Pattern Language for Collaboration and Teamwork. The fourth book will be Essays on America. 

All of these should be available on Amazon.

Happy New Year!!

photography of fireworks display

Photo by DreamSky on Pexels.com

The Blog in Review

28 Thursday Dec 2017

Posted by petersironwood in America, family, Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

competition, environment, history, index, innovation, life, military, politics

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Year End Summary (2017) and Index of Peter S Ironwood Blog. (Several readers mentioned that the wordpress navigation structure may leave something to be desired. Hopefully, for some readers, the following index may be helpful). Many of these blog posts are not meant as the “final word” on these subjects. I am hoping people can use them as a “jumping off place” for conversation with their neighbors, students, and colleagues.

Trumpism is a New Religion. 

Astounded that more than 15 people voted for Trump, the year began with my attempts to understand my error(s). It was about this time that I saw more and more evidence that many Trump supporters were impervious to his most outrageous, incompatible, or nonsensical acts, tweets, and pronouncements. My explanation is that for some, Trumpism is really more of a religion than a political movement. This still seems correct to me. Others, have completely different reasons for voting for Trump. For some, for instance, I really think they have seen zero change in their lives regardless of who is President and they have seen promises never kept by both parties. As a result, for them, the President is seen as “Chief Entertainment Officer” and Trump provides plenty of that. In terms of a religion, Trumpism is much more compatible with the values inherent in modern day business than is Christianity. In essence, in fact, Christianity is incompatible with business values. So, it’s quite understandable that Trumpism has become popular.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/01/09/trumpism-is-a-new-religion/

The Crabs are Biting. 

The next blog post returns to a retrospective look at some of my childhood experiences and thoughts about how these experiences shed light on current events. In this case, I recount various “fishing” experiences and how seriously children think about the world. Are fish the only animals that can be caught with bait?

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/01/17/the-crabs-are-biting/

Parametric Recipes and American Democracy. 

A parametric recipe is my term for recipes that allow for a variety of ingredients. I like to make omelets, for instance. There are many different vegetables and cheeses that can be incorporated. The exact ingredients and proportions don’t matter. But there are things you would never want in any omelet – toxins, poisons, and things that simply make you sick to your stomach. Have we forgotten what is unacceptable in a democracy?

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/02/11/parametric-recipes-and-american-democracy/

Big Zig-Zag Canyon. 

This post begins with a recounting of a hike on Mt. Hood, near Portland, Oregon (which coincidentally is one of my favorite cities). The post is about how one’s expectations can be wrong about just how hard things can get — over and over.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/02/20/big-zig-zag-canyon/

The Invisibility Cloak of Habit.

With experience we learn. That’s the good news. In some cases though, our previous experience leads us astray. In fact, in some cases, our previous experience just about blinds us to what is going on right before our eyes.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/02/25/the-invisibility-cloak-of-habit/

City Mouse and Country Mouse.

At least in the USA, I know that a spectrum of political opinions occurs everywhere but that one of the greatest correlates of differences is whether a person lives in a rural or urban area. I don’t believe one of these venues is, in every way, superior to the other, but it does seem that the different situations should logically lead to different values that work well in that venue. 

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/03/04/city-mouse-and-country-mouse/

Math Class: Who Are You?

It strikes me that part of what feeds pathological greed — and perhaps as well the greed that we all fall prey too — is partly the result of a serious misconception about who we are and our relationship to the rest of the living earth.  Here are some back of the envelope calculations to put things in a more reasonable perspective.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/03/09/math-class-who-are-you/

The Great Race to the Finish!

Every human activity has both an instrumental/extrinsic value and an experiential/intrinsic value. In most cases, doing something as quickly as possible reduces its intrinsic value. It may or may not increase its extrinsic value although the financial interest behind the “Captains of Industry” always assume it does. Most of us are in something of a hurry most of the time. Why? Does it really make our lives more pleasurable? And, where are we rushing to?

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/03/24/the-great-race-to-the-finish/

Ripples.

Our decisions have long-lasting, perhaps eternal, consequences. Even mechanical ripples last a long time, but another human can multiply the input given a hundred fold so that the effect of any action can increase over time. Individual decisions can actually impact the evolution of the species as well.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/04/11/ripples/

 Family Matters: Parts One, Two and Three.

A three part series exploring how the happenstance of our birthplace (over which we obviously have no control) has a huge and lasting influence on our lives.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/04/30/family-matters-part-one/

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/05/11/family-matters-part-two-garlic-cloves-and-puffer-fish/

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/05/27/family-matters-part-3-the-whole-is-greater-than-the-sum-of-its-parts/

Claude the Radioman.

Claude refers to a toy soldier whose function was communication. As a small child, it was my least favorite because it had no weapon. As an adult, I think he has the most powerful one of all.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/05/28/claude-the-radio-man/

Citizen Soldiers: Parts 1, 2, and 3. 

A three part series on the premise that, like it or not, we are all soldiers. Of course, it’s different to be in the actual military and be at a front. But, we are soldiers in the sense that we are at risk pretty much everywhere mainly from other human beings. We are soldiers as well in the sense that our actions are important determiners of the outcome. We need to be smart as well as loyal.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/06/07/citizen-soldiers-1-early-enlistment-no-retirement/

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/06/16/citizen-soldiers-part-two-boot-camp/

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/06/24/citizen-soldiers-3-galoshes-in-the-gutters/

Pies on Offer: Rhubarb & Mincemeat.

Are you focused on grabbing the biggest piece of pie you can? Or, are you more interested in baking more pies and inventing new kinds of pies?

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/07/20/pies-on-offer-rhubarb-mincemeat/

What if … ?

A speculation that in reality, Americans have much much more in common with each other than they think they do. The politicians and the media both have a vested interest in making people think they are farther apart on more issues than they really are.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/07/21/what-if/

If Only…

This is a work of “pure fiction” however — the protagonists and their “back stories” are true. This is a story that takes place in a nearby but parallel universe.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/07/28/if-only/

Only You…

An examination of our responsibilities and the impact of our actions.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/08/08/only-you/

You Fool!

A recounting of some of the many ways in which we humans are subject to being fooled.

 

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/08/15/you-fool/

Fool Me!

Mainly, this post focuses on the power of stories. There is an ethical difference, at least to me, between presenting a fascinating or inspiring story and presenting the same story as fact.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/08/24/fool-me/

Me Too. 

This post is about the natural tendency of people to want to be part of a larger social action. Most people drive in stop-and-go traffic in a non-optimal way. This offers a better method.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/08/27/me-too/

Too Much!

Human productivity does not go up monotonically with increasing stress. Studies have been around for decades showing that people are more productive working 30 hours a week than 50. Why do so many companies then push for 50 or more hours a week?

https://petersironwood.com/2017/09/03/too-much/

Much Lost.

Why do we grieve at the loss of another? Why do we even get attached to objects?

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/09/10/much-lost/

Lost Horizons. 

Have we modern humans lost our ability to make decisions based on a very broad, very long-term look? Doesn’t it seem natural for every generation of every species to try to make life better for the next?

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/09/17/lost-horizon/

Horizons University. 

What would it be like to build a University that focused on expanding a person’s horizons in every dimension they would be interested in? What if it focused on finding, and formulating as well as solving problems using existing knowledge and procedures?

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/09/25/horizons-university/

You Know. 

Which wolf do you feed? The “bad” wolf or the “good” wolf. Of course, sometimes, decisions involved complex trade-offs, but sometimes we “know” what the right thing to do is and instead do the convenient or selfish thing.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/10/02/you-know/

Know What? 

The first of a series of blogs that considers how various aspects of social media, combined with anonymity, not having face to face communication (with its abundant affordances), the concentration of much of the media control in a few very large multi-nationals, the filtering and bandwagon algorithms of social media, and other factors all conspire to further divide people.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/10/08/know-what/

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/10/16/whats-new/

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/10/23/new-fools/

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/10/31/fools-gold/

Gold Standard.

Every age has its pluses and minuses. Some folks today seem to feel we’ve moved too far too fast and that we should “rewind” to a better time. Interesting, but there hasn’t been a better time. The world today is hugely complex and inter-dependent. That’s the way it is. If we try to obviate all that interdependence, we will not go back to 1950 or 1890 but back to 5000 BC. Instead, what can we do to encourage civility and to distinguish news versus fake news?

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/11/07/gold-standard/

Standard Issue. 

What are some ways that social media could be changed to encourage greater civility?

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/11/13/standard-issue/

Issue Resolution.

Perhaps the experience of others was different, but I learned very little in formal school classrooms about ways to resolve conflicts. Yet, much is known beyond simple compromise, using external authority or force of arms. This posts focuses on some of those with pointers to longer descriptions of the techniques.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/11/19/issue-resolution/

Resolution: Create! 

This post encourages a more creative look at issue resolution. I believe that more progress can be made by people working together than by even a 10x increase in Facebook posts to convince everyone else that they are wrong.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/11/26/resolution-create/

Create Peace.

First of a series of blogs about the pros and cons of war and peace. Spoiler alert: war is a horrible option. We really need to get our act together to do better. People sometimes have trouble reaching agreement, but that process should be facilitate by diplomatic experts and leaders who are looking at the big picture. Some so-called “leaders” are intent on consolidating and extending their own power. Historically, that’s when power-hungry people declare war. Some might label such people SHRUGS – Super-Hyper Really Ultra Greedy Swindlers.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/12/05/create-peace/

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/12/13/peace-love-part-one-casualty-count/

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/12/14/peace-and-love-part-2-shrugs-shills/

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/12/16/peace-love-3-shrugging-off-the-shrugs/

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/12/20/love-all/

All…what? 

Where are we headed? Is there any hope? I would say yes though we are in dark times. The light will return, if not today or tomorrow, some day.

https://petersironwood.wordpress.com/2017/12/25/all-what/

 

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