LANGUAGE AS A PART OF THE SYSTEM IN WHICH WE DEVELOP OUR PERSONNAE

Henry C. Alberts Adjunct Professor

University of Maryland, University College

College Park, Maryland

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WHAT DO WE KNOW, AND WHEN DO WE KNOW IT?

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BRAIN SYNAPTIC CONNECTIONS

HYPOTHESIS #1 - AUTONOMIC FUNCTIONS (LIFE SUPPORT MECHANISMS AND REFLEX ACTIONS) FORM FIRST - MAY BE THE RESULT OF SPECIES GENETIC INHERITANCE

HYPOTHESIS #2 - SYNAPTIC AGGREGATIONS AND THEIR EFFECTS ON BEHAVIOR AND THOUGHT PROCESS RESULT FROM A MARKOV CHAIN PROCESS

HYPOTHESIS #3 – INCOMING STIMULI FROM SENSORS HAVE AN EFFECT ON THE TOTALITY OF THE BRAIN’S SYNAPTIC NETWORK (RETA)

HYPOTHESIS #4 – THE SAME STIMULUS RECEIVED AT A DIFFERENT TIME CAN HAVE A DIFFERENT EFFECT ON THE TOTAL SYNAPTIC AGGREGATION

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WHEN DO OUR SENSING MECHANISMS BECOME ACTIVE?

STUDIES INDICATE THAT PRESSURE APPLIED TO THE MOTHER’S UTERINE AREA IS RESPONDED TO, AND THAT SOUNDS AND OTHER PRESSURE CHANGES ARE RECOGNIZED IN UTERO

CLASSICAL MUSIC HAS BEEN CLAIMED TO HAVE AN EFFECT ON FETUS DEVELOPMENT

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SOME THOUGHTS ON LANGUAGE USAGE

HYPOTHESIS #1 – PHYSICAL OBJECTS CAN BE NAMED AND REFERRING TO THE NAME CAN CONJURE UP VISUALIZATIONS OF THE OBJECT

HYPOTHESIS #2 – THE REFERENCE TO OBJECTS CAN BE FORMED INTO A MATRIX ACROSS SEVERAL LANGUAGES – THE OBJECT IDENTIFICATION IN EACH OF THE LANGUAGES INCLUDED IN THE MATRIX

OBJECT ENGLISH FRENCH GERMAN

CHAIR CHAIR CHAISE STUHL

TABLE TABLE TABLE TISCH

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SOME THOUGHTS ON LANGUAGE USAGE

HYPOTHESIS #3 – IDEAS AND NON PHYSICAL CONCEPTS CAN BE NAMED BUT UNDERSTANDING THE MEANING OF THE NAME ALSO REQUIRES UNDERSTANDING THE CONTEXT WITHIN WHICH IT EXISTS AND HOW IT RELATES TO THE GESTALT OF THE SURROUNDING ENVIRONMENT

HYPOTHESIS #4 – IF THE LANGUAGE HAS NO SET OF WORDS THAT PERMIT THE STATEMENT OF SUCH REFERENCE THE IDENTIFICATION AND UNDERSTANDING OF IDEAS AND NON PHYSICAL CONCEPTS NEEDS EXPLANATION IN DETAIL IN EACH LANGUAGE IN ALREADY EXISTING WORDS

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SOME THOUGHTS ON LANGUAGE USAGE

HYPOTHESIS #5 – UNDERSTANDING COMPLEX RELATIONSHIPS AND IDEAS CAN BE HELPED USING WARFIELD’S INTERACTIVE MANAGEMENT METHODOLOGY TO CREATE A COMMON LANGUAGE AND TO VISUALIZE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN ELEMENTS OF COMPLEXITY

HYPOTHESIS #6 – DEVELOPING DEEP UNDERSTANDING OF COMPLEX IDEAS AND RELATIONSHIPS INTO A COMPLETE GESTALT MAY REQUIRE A GREAT DEAL OF TIME AND DEVELOPMENT OF MUCH PROSE TO EXPLAIN. AGAIN, THE LANGUAGE MAY NOT HAVE WORDS SUITABLE FOR EXPLAINING THE IDEAS

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SOME THOUGHTS ON LANGUAGE USAGE

HYPOTHESIS #7 – LANGUAGE GENERALLY DEVELOPS TO EXPRESS PERCEPTIONS AND TO PROVIDE A MEANS TO ALLOW UNDERSTANDING USING IDEAS EXISTING WITHIN THAT LANGUAGE

HYPOTHESIS #8 – ABSENT THE NEED TO ACHIEVE COMMON UNDERSTING THERE MAY BE NO LANGUAGE SUITABLE TO TRANSFER THE FULL IMPORT OF THE IDEA OR ITS COMLELXITY

HYPOTHESIS #9 – AS INVOLVEMENT ACROSS LANGUAGES AND CULTURES EXPANDS WITH “GLOBALIZATION” LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT WILL NEED ACCELERATION AND COORDINATION

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OUR SENSING MECHANISMS FEEL AND RESPOND TO COMPRESSIONAL WAVES,

(SOUNDS)

LIKE MUSICAL TONES, LANGUAGE IS A SET OF PRESSURE CHANGES THAT FORM PATTERNS.

LATE ARTICLES DESCRIBE SOME RESEARCH THAT INDICATES INDIVIDUALS IN UTERO RESPOND TO BEING READ TO AS SHOWN BY CHANGES IN THEIR MEASURABLE LIFE SIGNS.

IF SO, LANGUAGE IS A PART OF INDIVIDUAL “IN UTERO” DEVELOPMENT

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SOME IDEAS ABOUT CROSS CULTURAL MANAGEMENT

HYPOTHESIS #1 – DEVELOPING A LANGUAGE PERMITTING UNDERSTANDING OF COMPLEXITY REQUIRES A DISCIPLINED APPROACH THAT ENSURES EVERYONE WHO NEEDS TO UNDERSTAND THAT COMPLEXITY KNOWS THE LANGUAGE AND ITS PROPER APPLICATION

HYPOTHESIS #2 – AS USE OF THE LANGUAGE SPREADS, NEW PATTERNS OF THOUGHT CAN DEVELOP TO EXPRESS IDEAS RESULTING FROM INSIGHTS NEWLY GENERATED AND/OR MADE NECESSARY BY USE OF THAT LANGUAGE

SOME IDEAS ABOUT CROSS CULTURAL MANAGEMENT

HYPOTHESIS #3– MANY OF US HAVE EXPERIENCED THE SUDDEN FLASH OF INSIGHT INTO A COMPLEX ISSUE WHEN A SINGLE PIECE OF NEW INFORMATION IS COMMUNICATED TO US IN THE NEWLY FORMED COMPLEX LANGUAGE

HYPOTHESIS #4 – SOME PUZZLES ONLY COME TOGETHER WHEN ALL THE PIECES ARE VIEWED CONCOMMITTENTLY AND EVERYTHING IS LAID OUT ON A SUITABLE SURFACE

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HOW DIALECT OR SYNTAX CAN CREATE MISUNDERSTANDING

DIALECTIC MISUNDERSTANDING

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CALIFORNIADIALECT

“POOL TOY”

GEORGIA DIALECT

“PULL TOY”

HOW DIALECT OR SYNTAX CAN CREATE MISUNDERSTANDING

SYNTACTICAL MISUNDERSTANDING

STANDARD USAGE

“COOL”

ALTERNATE USAGE

“COOL”

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HOW DOES A LANGUAGE BOUND EXPRESSION OF IDEAS?

1. VISUALIZATION OF CONCEPTS NEEDS TO BE EXPLAINED USING VERBIAGE WITHIN AN EXISTING LANGUAGE

2. EXISTING LANGUAGE KEEPS ITS SYNTACTICAL ORIENTATION AND COMMUNICATION IS UNDERSTOOD IN THOSE TERMS

3. THE ENTIRE GESTALT OF THE IDEA AND THE CONTEXT WITHIN WHICH IT FITS IS NOT NECESSARILY TRANSMITTED NOR UNDERSTOOD

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WARFIELD’S INTERACTIVE MANAGEMENT METHODOLOGY DEVELOPS A LANGUAGE

1. ALL PARTICIPANTS EXPRESS THEIR UNDERSTANDING OF IDEAS IN THEIR OWN WORDS

2. PARTICIPANTS DEVELOP GROUP UNDERSTANDING OF THE GESTALT WITHIN WHICH THE CONTEXT NEEDS TO BE UNDERSTOOD

3. THE ENTIRE GESTALT OF THE IDEA AND THE CONTEXT WITHIN WHICH IT FITS CAN BE DEFINED AND RELATIONSHIPS AMONG FACTORS DETERMINED WITHIN THE NEWLY DEVELOPED COMMON LANGUAGE

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DEVELOPED LANGUAGE CAN BE USED TO PERMIT NEW SYSTEM INSIGHTS

1. ALL OF THE FACTORS INVOLVED ARE BOTH STATED AND DEFINED IN TERMS COMMON TO THE SYSTEM

2. RELATIONSHIPS AMONG ALL FACTORS ARE POSTULATED AND AGREED TO IN THE CONTEXT OF THE SYSTEM GESTALT

3. THE BOUDARIES OF THE SYSTEM ARE SET BY THE GESTALT UNDERSTANDING RATHER THAN BY LIMITATIONS TO THE CONTEXT OF A NON-SYSTEM FOCUSED LANGUAGE

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INTERACTIVE MANAGEMENT METHODOLOGY FOSTERS EXPANDED

BOUNDARIES OF KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING ACROSS CULTURAL

BOUNDARIES

ITS USE TO EXAMINE AND UNDERSTAND COMPLEX ISSUES IS LIKELY THE BEST

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE APPROACH TO EXPLORATION OF COMPLEXITY

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