Publications on January 2010: I got 2 new rejections and 1 acceptance.
When I got the acceptance, I wanted to believe it will be a change of trend and I will get more papers accepted. However, didn’t want to celebrate too fast, as I knew two more feedbacks should be coming this month. Today those feedbacks are here and showed me still I am not in the correct track.
Right now I admit I am NOT in a good mood and I am tired of this. — What I am doing?. I love what I do and I doing my best, which it seems it is not enough. I wish to know how to improve this.
Then, in 2010 I am changing my writing strategy according to the feedbacks gather in all 2009 and the resources that I have. I hope it works to advance on this. But, let’s see.
It is my impression that USA promotes detective movies, novels and TV shows. At least it has a wide sample of that genre. Then when I read the article of “how to catch an iPhone thief” I could say the fact that happens in the USA and in CA, makes it just the perfect location.
Actually, if I want to look at it as a game definitely all the “pervasive games” and ARG could follow this interesting real-event that really put the “player” in action, and learn from it. This is what I call motivation, creativity and use of your skills and knowledge to recover what belongs to you.
Without a doubt my blog deserves this section of “use of technology and creativity”, but let me put it in perspective first, as I do not refer to using it only for using it.
From my perspective, we construct our reality; therefore we constantly are interpreting meaning and motives of all what each one of us do. In this process of creating meaning, our society and culture occupies a significant role. In research terms, my way of thinking and analyze phenomena is subscribed to a social constructivist paradigm, and most of my reflections are sustained on Vygostky’s Activity Theory.
Besides the “theory” behind my way of thinking, I am also a believer of the strong relationships of the use of the technology and creativity with the specific location and situation due to what I had seen and experience in my volunteer_nomadic_life. It is not surprising to see the “same” artifact, but they turn only meaningful and understandable when you immerse yourself in that specific world in which they are used.
Anyway, this section /category is going to be enjoyable at least for me 😉
Since I first read the notice of the earthquake, I had been following closely. Maybe this time I identify a bit more as I lived the earthquake of Mexico ’85 on a fifth floor of a building.
My impotence and anger increases, not only for the wish to be helpful now, but because this is the result of SELFISHNESS and NEGLIGENCE, driven by POWER, CORRUPTION and CONSUMPTION. And, from my perspective, ALL of us are GUILTY.
The first simple common sense idea to support my claims is: aren’t we able to produce quality in our constructions? The shaking of the earth is not the problem, the problem is the low quality constructions of shelters, or the lack of proper maintenance. We know it – Governments listen: stealing the money or safe money of quality shelters has a high price.
Wondering….
….Wondering why people use the common resources no for the quality and improvement of the community, instead to seek cheap and fast solutions?
(I might assume that the “next” elections might have an answer)
…. Wondering why do we keep on supporting no-sustainable solutions? Example of this is the over populated cities instead to promote quality of life in harmonize medium and small communities.
(I might assume that macro-economy might have an answer)
…. Wondering why do we have to consume what we do not need? Do we need 20 pairs of ‘cheaper’ shoes made of plastic that makes them disposable and promote consumption using our no removable natural resources, or we need two pairs of quality shoes which even might last longer with local removable resources.
All our scope of “needs” can go through the same reflection: do we need to eat meat daily? Can you cultivate our own salad?
A growing list of painful questions increases in my head and in my heart daily. And with tragic human events that could be avoid, the query process increases exponentially… why? why? why? 🙁 .
With Haiti I just confirm: our self-generated destruction process is growing faster than we are even aware of it. This involves all of us and it will affect all of us.
Less quantity, more quality and beyond this more self-responsibility. Most of today’s catastrophes, of the human race and of our planet, are the result of our socio-economical-system that we created and it is destroying us.
More will come related to this topic, because the dead of thousands of people from the last natural disasters (or even millions if we start to add) cannot be only a piece of consuming sensationalist news. We should reflect seriously about this and beyond that take action to change the trend.
I can’t write more about this at this moment, I must finalize my commitment with my thesis first. Be my best and give my best effort is the primary way to contribute for a change
If one wants to be a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) two things must be present in the basic foundations of this path, according to my actual perspective. Both of this elements I am learning them in a very hard way, as I was clueless about them and no-one guide me about them. Those two essentials research basics are: Research philosophy and Publication-Ethics. Both are equally important.
First element: Research Philosophy
Seldom one hears/reads researchers’ awareness about this. Actually, even I wonder how many PhD students have re-read at least partially some of the research classics lectures (Plato, Socrates, etc.). In this University, where several PhD students are enroll. It is not only if one reads classics or not, the whole research should be anchor in some philosophy, why are we doing what we are doing? and/or so what? This is as important as clear and focus research questions, which by the way are related.
(Photo: Location of the philosophical classics at our University. A VERY hidden and secure place in some corner at the library)
Second element: Publication-Ethics
My ignorance in this topic and the lack of guidance I have and had, made me done ethical mistakes. I am learning slowly and in a hard-painful way not only for me, but also for people that I respect and I work with.
One should be very clear of one’s research, one’s responsibilities and obligations as researcher and of the well establish ethics of the research community. Each publication that one does it is not a superficial outcome to add in a CV, as sometimes a system wants us to believe, or as I though it was.
Each paper involves much work, reflection, knowledge, time, values, that it is a concrete outcome of how we are growing as researchers within a research community. Each publication must be in harmony with several dimensions (personal, team, university, community, etc.). Authorship, contributions, ideas, how the paper is written, the integrity of the document, etc. all these has a weight.
From my perspective, any researcher should understand these two basic elements and promote them to truly support the grow of knowledge of everybody. I am learning this, as other things. I am not an expert yet but today I want to make public that I know the relevance of this facts, and I subscribe to improve this practice.
Photos: old articles, old books, old thoughs… maybe we should reflect that what is old is actually our basics before we forget them completely….
