Gardening – Natural Science NOT Rocket Science-Gardening
Gardening - Natural Science NOT Rocket Science
Don't force yourself out of the most profitable hobby in the universe because you think it's too hard to learn ...It isn't!Gardening is fast becoming the world's number one hobby, and with all the latest 'alternative' information we have to hand, gardening as a natural science is fun to learn about and rewarding in the extreme...Produce your own fruit and veg - cut the shopping trips.Keep it organic!- be nice to the planet, and your body.Stay fit and healthy with exercise and fresh air.Spend quality family time in the outdoors.Turbo boost your creative spiritAnd if that isn't enough to be going on with, learn about plant-kind in all it's glory. From trees through to fungi, there are millions of plants to research, grow and eat- no chance of getting bored!First you have to take your first step.Start gardening, be a gardener, enjoy your garden.Starting from scratch? Let your imagination run wild. Stand in the centre (-ish) of your garden and imagine..close your eyes if you like.Don't hold back. Let your creative thoughts flow. How much can you do with your space? Don't imagine for one minute that a simple lawn will let you off the hook here. A lawn needs maintaining, and mowing regularly - for EVER..and it can get kind of boring to look at as well! How about creatinga butterfly patcha wildflowers cornera vegetable plota herb gardena water featureThen you will need a shed to store your tools. Where would that be best placed in your garden? Don't waste a sunny position with a garden structure. Sheds don't need to be in full sun to survive!Is there enough space to place garden furniture? Rather than going for the table-and-four-chairs-on-patio style, can you place benches and small tables in semi-shady spots near the honeysuckle or round the herbs?When you think you have a reasonable idea of all you want from your garden, take some notes and think about it for a while. Don't leap in too soon-more often than not you'll land up doing the same job twice. Browse through garden catalogs, take a little time and do a little planning.But not for too long! Don't let the ideas wither into another was-gonna-do-one-day file.If you have enough of a budget to buy your garden structures and furniture, do this first, and position them in your garden. Then create your flower beds, vegetable plots and wildlife patches around these structures.If you don't have cash up front, don't worry. The things you need will come to you. For now, prepare the space as if you DID have the shed, or bench or whatever, and work around these areas.Start all the patches and work on them as and when you can, or start one patch and get it finished before moving on to the next. How you work in your garden depends on a number of things...size of land and budgethelping hands availableseasons and the weathertime slots and energy levels!Treat gardening as an ongoing hobby rather than a project to be started and finished. Plants are growing life forms and will always be changing the shape and feel of your garden. Go with it where you can, and prune heavily where you have to!Get the kids involved with quick-germinating seeds, and fast-growing plants. Many retailers offer special seed mixtures for kids. Pumpkins are great for getting the kids interested in gardening.Learn about edible flowers and teach the children what can and can't be eaten - and why.Don't let the grass grow under your feet. Get in on the action now. Turn off the TV, put your wellies on and leap into nature!About The AuthorLinda Gray is a freelance writer and, with her partner. has spent ten years renovating a neglected acre of woodland. Find heaps of straight gardening advice and pots of inspiration at http://www.flower-and-garden-tips.com
Creativity, Innovation, and Science ? Separate and Distinct or Not?
Creativity, Innovation, and Science ? Separate and Distinct or Not?
There is a pervasive belief that creativity and innovation are separate and distinct from the concept of science. That creativity and innovation cannot be scientific. This is completely false.An event begins to fall into the realms of science when experiments are repeatable and the results reproducible. The myth that creativity occurs out of the blue combines to create the impression that it is impossible to design repeatable experiments that generate reproducible results.One useful definition for this article is to define creativity as problem identification and idea generation and innovation as idea selection, development and commercialisation.To make creativity scientific, ask two questions:a) Can repeatable experiments (processes, structures etc) be designed to increase problem identification? Is an increase of output reproducible?b) Can repeatable experiments (processes, structures etc) be designed to increase idea generation? Is an increase of output reproducible?To make innovation scientific, ask three questions:a) Can repeatable experiments (processes, structures etc) be designed to increase idea selection effectiveness? Is an increase of output reproducible?b) Can repeatable experiments (processes, structures etc) be designed to increase development output? Is an increase of output reproducible?c) Can repeatable experiments (processes, structures etc) be designed to increase commercialisation output? Is an increase of output reproducible?Answering the above:a) It is not unusual for people to agree that repeatable experiments (processes, structures etc) can be designed to increase problem identification. Results ? an increase of output - are reproducible.b) When people need to generate ideas, they will herd people into a room with a flip chart and conduct an idea brainstorming session. Implicit in this action is the acceptance that certain processes and structures etc... increase idea generation. In fact there are an infinite number of processes and structures that increase idea generation and make insight more likely (see MBA dissertation at www.managing-creativity.com). Results ? an increase of output - are reproducible.c) It is not unusual for people to agree that repeatable experiments (processes, structures etc) can be designed to increase problem idea selection effectiveness. Results ? an increase of output - are reproducible.d) It is not unusual for people to agree that repeatable experiments (processes, structures etc) can be designed to increase development output. Results ? an increase of output - are reproducible.e) It is not unusual for people to agree that repeatable experiments (processes, structures etc) can be designed to increase commercialisation output. Results ? an increase of output - are reproducible.In conclusion, given the nature of creativity and innovation, it may not be possible to design repeatable experiments that produce exactly the same ideas, but it is possible to design repeatable experiments that always produce an increase in idea generation. Though you cannot predict what an idea will be, where it will occur and what form it will take you can increase the likelihood of ideas occurring. Further, you can increase the number of ideas produced, the rarity of those ideas, the diversity of those ideas and the frequency of their production.There is much more to this??This topic is covered in depth in the MBA dissertation on Managing Creativity & Innovation, which can be purchased (along with a Creativity and Innovation DIY Audit, Good Idea Generator Software and Power Point Presentation) from http://www.managing-creativity.com. You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.**********************************You are free to reproduce this article as long as no changes are made and the author's name and site URL are retained.Kal Bishop MBA is a management consultant based in London, UK. He has consulted in the visual media and software industries and for clients such as Toshiba and Transport for London. He has led Improv, creativity and innovation workshops, exhibited artwork in San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and written a number of screenplays. He is a passionate traveller. He can be reached on http://www.managing-creativity.com
How to Replace Bad Habits with Good Ones: The Science of ?Habit Management? – Goal-Setting
How to Replace Bad Habits with Good Ones: The Science of ?Habit Management?
Few things are more difficult than kicking bad habits or developing more positive ones. But it is definitely worth the effort. Bad habits like smoking, overeating or self-criticism shorten lives and lead to underachievement, and unsuccessful attempts to change them lower self- esteem.In contrast, good habits create a kind of "success auto-pilot," leading to greater accomplishment with less thought and less effort.So how do you best eliminate bad habits and create good ones? Research from the new field of "positive psychology" ? the scientific study of happy, successful people ? points to at least four proven techniques for successful habit management.1. Replace a bad habit with a good one. Completely eliminating a habit is much harder than replacing it with a more productive habit. Studies of people who compulsively bite their fingernails have shown that it is very difficult for them to completely give up their habit, and much easier for them to substitute biting with the more productive habit of grooming their nails.Similarly, people who talk too much during meetings struggle to become silent, but find it much easier to replace their compulsive talking with highly attentive listening.2. Exercise. A habit of regular exercise is obviously important for lasting weight loss. But you may not realize that exercise helps in accomplishing a variety of goals, and in eliminating a number of bad habits.Frequent exercise helps break habits of overeating, and in kicking all kinds of addictions, particularly if exercise is substituted for an end-of-the-day cocktail or cigarette. Among smokers who become competitive runners, for example, over 80% give up smoking.3. Reward success. The most fundamental law in all of psychology is the "law of effect." It simply states that actions followed by rewards are strengthened and likely to recur. Unfortunately, studies show that people rarely use this technique when trying to change personal habits. Dieters, for example, routinely overlook weeks of exercise and restrained eating, only to let a single lapse "snowball" into a total relapse and complete collapse.Setting up formal or informal rewards for success greatly increases your chances of transforming bad habits into good ones, and is far more effective than punishing yourself for bad habits or setbacks.4. Schedule your bad habits. If you are really struggling to kick a bad habit, try limiting the habit to a specific time and place. If you are struggling to quit cigarettes, allow yourself to smoke from 9-9:30pm, and only in an uncomfortable "smoking stool." When the urge to smoke strikes, tell yourself that you'll have plenty of time to smoke during your pre-scheduled smoking period. Research and case studies confirm that this rather unconventional approach can be a useful first step in changing bad habits.Copyright