RE: [xmca] Looking forward by looking back, sort of.

"dropping it". That's a good example!

Don Cunningham
Indiana University

Ancora Imparo!

-----Original Message-----
From: xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu [mailto:xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu]
On Behalf Of xmcabb@comcast.net
Sent: Thursday, June 28, 2007 4:32 PM
To: eXtended Mind, Culture, Activity
Subject: RE: [xmca] Looking forward by looking back, sort of.

> So maybe the question is not "What do you think?" but "Where does that
> thought come from?"
>

How about another question or two -- Where is this going? Is this
theoretical convergence?

I have a personal history that seems relevant. In 1981 when I was a
grad student, I was coauthor on a report entitled "Kinesthetic
representations in problem solving" In it John Clement (UMass) and I
presented an analysis of two situations in which a physicist and,
separately, a beginning physics student, solved physics problems and
demonstrated body motions while "thinking aloud" about the problems. We
could not provide compelling evidence to determine whether the motions
were (1) an integral element of the problem solving, i.e. directly aided
in problem solving; (2) epiphenomena; or (3) used in communication.
Also we were stuck on *representation* at a time when there was a lot of
debate about how visual information was "stored in the mind" -- some
suggesting it was in visual form, while others were promoting
propositions (easier to deal with in AI in 1981). So we never attempted
publshing, especially since the cog. sci. journals did not seem
receptive to this kind of
 thing.
  Seems like dropping it was the only thing we could do, in retrospect.

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Received on Thu Jun 28 15:07 PDT 2007