Global Thinking, or the Utility of Trivia

The constant emphasis on specialization produces university graduates who do not or cannot look at problems broadly. As a result, engineers, scientists and executives—indeed graduates in all fields—including the supposedly broad-based humanities—often cannot solve problems that require knowledge out...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of technical writing and communication 2001, Vol.31 (3), p.223-239
Main Author: Harris, John S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aeronautics
Aviation Technology
Aviation Vocabulary
Cognition & reasoning
Colleges & universities
Communications
transports
civil engineering
Global Approach
Globalization
Higher Education
History of science and technology
Problem Solving
Specialization
Technical Communication
Technical Writing
Technology
Thinking Skills
Transports
Citations: Items that this one cites
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Summary:The constant emphasis on specialization produces university graduates who do not or cannot look at problems broadly. As a result, engineers, scientists and executives—indeed graduates in all fields—including the supposedly broad-based humanities—often cannot solve problems that require knowledge outside of their specializations. Or their narrowness causes them to commit embarrassing blunders that could be avoided if they took a broader view. The case of the British Westland Lysander P12 Ground Strafer aircraft illustrates the problem of narrow thinking. Very little direct information is available on this ingenious but obscure prototype airplane, but by examining many peripheral matters we can determine not only why the P12 was built but also how it was built. Further, we can also determine why it failed. Had the initial designers approached the problem in a broad way, and using information that was then available, they would have seen in advance that the project would fail. The case is instructive as an industrial problem, but it also demonstrates the value of global thinking methodology.
ISSN:0047-2816
1541-3780
DOI:10.2190/J570-9MKA-7BHN-ULN9