Description This text features a novel, hands-on approach to the study of rhetorical devices. The student will become more engaged in the study of critical thinking by seeing its direct application to current events, student life, and decision-making. Bio K.D. "Douglas" Borcoman has been an adjunct and full-time professor of philosophy for over 20 years, during which time he has taught many critical thinking, logic, and introduction to philosophy courses. In addition, he is the Instructional Technology Consultant for the California State University Academic Technology Unit, in which role he trains faculty members in the use of various educational technologies. During his career, Mr. Borcoman has been a Deputy Probation Counselor as well as an alternative correctional education instructor specializing in technology as a mentor teacher. In these capacities, he created many critical thinking learning opportunities for participants in his courses, often conducted in conjunction with the NASA Educators program. He is also the producer-director of a video series entitled Critical Thinking Through Dialogue. Robin Alice Roth, Ph.D., is a full-time Instructor at CSUDH in the Philosophy Department and specializes in 19th and 20th Century Continental Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion, History of Philosophy, and Religious Studies. Dr. Roth has published numerous works and taught Critical Reasoning for the TVCSUDH program aired throughout the USA and regarded as one of the most popular education programs. Having traveled the world lecturing on her research, she is well-known for her significant contributions in contemporary Continental Philosophy and some of her work was re-published in Europe and Asia as the best in 20th Century Continental Philosophy. She received her Ph.D. in Philosophy at DePaul University, Chicago, her B.A., M.A. and Certificate at CSULB, and she has received numerous grants.

Instinctual Intelligence is the first book that explores the evolution of human instincts. It offers uniquely modern approaches to align the passion and power of our instinctual heritage with the more enlightened possibilities of human life. Get to understand how of our basic instinctual systems- self-protection, social connection, resource gathering, playfulness and sexuality, and survival responses- function in everyday life. Learn how the full expression of instinctual intelligence becomes restricted by the time we reach adulthood. Drawing on leading-edge research in evolutionary neurobiology, clinical psychology, and spiritual development, explore how athletes (Tiger Woods), musicians (Madonna), business leaders (Oprah), and spiritual practitioners (Dalai Lama)- and learn how they achieved mastery in their chosen fields. Each person's instinctual intelligence simultaneously evolves the biological, social, cultural, and spiritual fabric of humanity.

Without inductive reasoning, we couldn't generalize from one instance to another, derive scientific hypotheses, or predict that the sun will rise again tomorrow morning. Despite the widespread nature of inductive reasoning, books on this topic are rare. Indeed, this is the first book on the psychology of inductive reasoning in twenty years. The chapters survey recent advances in the study of inductive reasoning and address questions about how it develops, the role of knowledge in induction, how best to model people's reasoning, and how induction relates to other forms of thinking. Written by experts in philosophy, developmental science, cognitive psychology, and computational modeling, the contributions here will be of interest to a general cognitive science audience as well as to those with a more specialized interest in the study of thinking.

Reasoning Skills for Handling Conflict is an easy to follow text in reasoning skills that centers on the problem of people disagreeing and trying to find ways to reach agreement. The first chapter covers how to tell what type of disagreement people have, and the remaining chapters center on each different type of disagreement: attitude, verbal, factual, conflicts of interest, and moral. This text is appropriate for a class in critical reasoning, logic, or peace studies for Grades 11 through College. It is in a workbook format with frequent exercises. Tests and powerpoint presentation software are available to instructors who use this book.

The research projects presented in this book are the most recent studies of intelligence. They will improve our understanding of the human's ability to learn, understand or deal with new or trying situations and how people apply knowledge to manipulate one's environment or to think abstractly as measured by objective criteria (as tests). Understanding intelligence is important because it improves our understanding of how the brain works and could potentially be a gateway to improving education on all levels from individual teaching methods to widely used curriculums.

The classic text--now updated with a new interpretive approach to the WAIS(R)-III

Assessing Adolescent and Adult Intelligence, the classic text from Alan Kaufman and Elizabeth Lichtenberger, has consistently provided the most comprehensive source of information on cognitive assessment of adults and adolescents. The newly updated Third Edition provides important enhancements and additions that highlight the latest research and interpretive methods for the WAIS(R)-III.

Augmenting the traditional "sequential" and "simultaneous" WAIS(R)-III interpretive methods, the authors present a new approach derived from Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) theory. This approach combines normative assessment (performance relative to age peers) with ipsative assessment (performance relative to the person's own mean level). Following Flanagan and Kaufman's work to develop a similar CHC approach for the WISC(R)-IV, Kaufman and Lichtenberger have applied this system to the WAIS(R)-III profile of scores along with integrating recent WAIS(R)-III literature.

Four appendices present the new method in depth. In addition to a detailed description, the authors provide a blank interpretive worksheet to help examiners make the calculations and decisions needed for applying the additional steps of the new system, and norms tables for the new WAIS(R)-III subtest combinations added in this approach.

Assessing Adolescent and Adult Intelligence remains the premier resource for the field, covering not only the WAIS(R)-III but also the WJ III(R), the KAIT, and several brief measures of intelligence, as well as laying out a relevant, up-to-date discussion of the discipline. The new, theory-based interpretive approach forthe WAIS(R)-III makes this a vital resource for practicing psychologists, as well as a comprehensive text for graduate students.

This guide to the WAIS-III and WMS-III tests is written to help clinical practitioners achieve efficient and accurate interpretations of test results. The only interpretive guide to be based on data obtained while standardizing the tests, this reference source provides new models for interpreting results, as well as practical information on the diagnostic validity, demographically corrected norms, and accuracy of the tests in measuring intelligence and memory.
The focus of information is to allow clinicians to reduce variance in the interpretations of scores, indicating how best to factor in socio-economic status of respondents, interpreting meaningful change in serial assessments, and scoring with alternate or omitted sub-tests. Also included in the book are chapters on accommodating clients with disabilities. The final chapter discusses frequently asked questions (with answers) on the use and interpretation of the tests, as well as practical issues to help make scoring time-efficient and accurate.
KEY FEATURES
* Only guide to be based on data obtained in the standardization of the tests
* Practical examples given to help guide interpretation of scores
* Focuses on information to make faster, more accurate scoring interpretations

Historical and contemporary papers on the philosophical issues raised by the Turing Test as a criterion for intelligence. The Turing Test is part of the vocabulary of popular culture-it has appeared in works ranging from the Broadway play "Breaking the Code" to the comic strip "Robotman." The writings collected by Stuart Shieber for this book examine the profound philosophical issues surrounding the Turing Test as a criterion for intelligence. Alan Turing's idea, originally expressed in a 1950 paper titled "Computing Machinery and Intelligence" and published in the journal Mind, proposed an "indistinguishability test" that compared artifact and person. Following Descartes's dictum that it is the ability to speak that distinguishes human from beast, Turing proposed to test whether machine and person were indistinguishable in regard to verbal ability. He was not, as is often assumed, answering the question "Can machines think?" but proposing a more concrete way to ask it. Turing's proposed thought experiment encapsulates the issues that the writings in The Turing Test define and discuss. The first section of the book contains writings by philosophical precursors, including Descartes, who first proposed the idea of indistinguishablity tests. The second section contains all of Turing's writings on the Turing Test, including not only the Mind paper but also less familiar ephemeral material. The final section opens with responses to Turing's paper published in Mind soon after it first appeared. The bulk of this section, however, consists of papers from a broad spectrum of scholars in the field that directly address the issue of the Turing Test as a test for intelligence. Contributors John R. Searle, Ned Block, Daniel C. Dennett, and Noam Chomsky (in a previously unpublished paper). Each chapter is introduced by background material that can also be read as a self-contained essay on the Turing Test

In a complex and uncertain world, humans and animals make decisions under the constraints of limited knowledge, resources, and time. Yet models of rational decision making in economics, cognitive science, biology, and other fields largely ignore these real constraints and instead assume agents with perfect information and unlimited time. About forty years ago, Herbert Simon challenged this view with his notion of "bounded rationality." Today, bounded rationality has become a fashionable term used for disparate views of reasoning.

This book promotes bounded rationality as the key to understanding how real people make decisions. Using the concept of an "adaptive toolbox," a repertoire of fast and frugal rules for decision making under uncertainty, it attempts to impose more order and coherence on the idea of bounded rationality. The contributors view bounded rationality neither as optimization under constraints nor as the study of people's reasoning fallacies. The strategies in the adaptive toolbox dispense with optimization and, for the most part, with calculations of probabilities and utilities. The book extends the concept of bounded rationality from cognitive tools to emotions; it analyzes social norms, imitation, and other cultural tools as rational strategies; and it shows how smart heuristics can exploit the structure of environments.

Analogy has been the focus of extensive research in cognitive science over the past two decades. Through analogy, novel situations and problems can be understood in terms of familiar ones. Indeed, a case can be made for analogical processing as the very core of cognition. This is the first book to span the full range of disciplines concerned with analogy. Its contributors represent cognitive, developmental, and comparative psychology; neuroscience; artificial intelligence; linguistics; and philosophy.

The book is divided into three parts. The first part describes computational models of analogy as well as their relation to computational models of other cognitive processes. The second part addresses the role of analogy in a wide range of cognitive tasks, such as forming complex cognitive structures, conveying emotion, making decisions, and solving problems. The third part looks at the development of analogy in children and the possible use of analogy in nonhuman primates.

Contributors: Miriam Bassok, Consuelo B. Boronat, Brian Bowdle, Fintan Costello, Kevin Dunbar, Gilles Fauconnier, Kenneth D. Forbus, Dedre Gentner, Usha Goswami, Brett Gray, Graeme S. Halford, Douglas Hofstadter, Keith J. Holyoak, John E. Hummel, Mark T. Keane, Boicho N. Kokinov, Arthur B. Markman, C. Page Moreau, David L. Oden, Alexander A. Petrov, Steven Phillips, David Premack, Cameron Shelley, Paul Thagard, Roger K.R. Thompson, William H. Wilson, Phillip Wolff.

Fifteen years ago, psychologist and educator Howard Gardner introduced the idea of multiple intelligences, challenging the presumption that intelligence consists of verbal or analytic abilities only,those intelligences that schools tend to measure. He argued for a broader understanding of the intelligent mind, one that embraces creation in the arts and music, spatial reasoning, and the ability to understand ourselves and others.Today, Gardner's ideas have become widely accepted,indeed, they have changed how we think about intelligence, genius, creativity, and even leadership, and he is widely regarded as one of the most important voices writing on these subjects.Now, in Extraordinary Minds , a book as riveting as it is new, Gardner poses an important question: Is there a set of traits shared by all truly great achievers,those we deem extraordinary,no matter their field or the time period within which they did their important work?In an attempt to answer this question, Gardner first examines how most of us mature into more or less competent adults. He then examines closely four persons who lived unquestionably extraordinary lives,Mozart, Freud, Woolf, and Gandhi,using each as an exemplar of a different kind of extraordinariness: Mozart as the master of a discipline, Freud as the innovative founder of a new discipline, Woolf as the great introspector, and Gandhi as the influencer.What can we learn about ourselves from the experiences of the extraordinary? Interestingly, Gardner finds that an excess of raw power is not the most impressive characteristic shared by superachievers rather, these extraordinary individuals all have had a special talent for identifying their own strengths and weaknesses, for accurately analyzing the events of their own lives, and for converting into future successes those inevitable setbacks that mark every life.Gardner provides answers to a number of provocative questions, among them: How do we explain extraordinary times,Athens in the fifth century B.C., the T'ang Dynasty in the eighth century, Islamic Society in the late Middle Ages, and New York at the middle of the century? What is the relation among genius, creativity, fame, success, and moral extraordinariness? Does extraordinariness make for a happier, more fulfilling life, or does it simply create a special onus?

If you're good at finding the one right answer to life's multiple-choice questions, you're "smart." But "intelligence" is what you need when contemplating the leftovers in the refrigerator, trying to figure out what might go with them or if you're trying to speak a sentence that you've never spoken before. As Jean Piaget said, intelligence is what you use when you don't know what to do, when all the standard answers are inadequate. This book tries to fathom how our inner life evolves from one topic to another, as we create and reject alternatives. Ever since Darwin, we've known that elegant things can emerge (indeed, self-organize) from "simpler" beginnings. And, says theoretical neurophysiologist William H. Calvin, the bootstrapping of new ideas works much like the immune response or the evolution of a new animal species,except that the brain can turn the Darwinian crank a lot faster, on the time scale of thought and action. Drawing on anthropology, evolutionary biology, linguistics, and the neurosciences, Calvin also considers how a more intelligent brain developed using slow biological improvements over the last few million years. Long ago, evolving jack-of-all trades versatility was encouraged by abrupt climate changes. Now, evolving intelligence uses a nonbiological track: augmenting human intelligence and building intelligent machines.

The Bell Tolls. The Demand for and Assessment of Mental Ability: The Supply of and Demand for Intelligence. The Juxtaposition of Individual and Institutional Assessment. Mapping Social Policy against a Theoretical Backdrop: Academic Merit versus Fair Representation: A Case Study of Undergraduate Admissions Policy at the University of California at Berkeley. Mapping Admissions and Other Social Policy against a Philosophical Backdrop. Intelligence versus Higher Education as a Determinant of Worldly Success: The Sociopolitical Perspective. Academic Aptitude versus Achievement: Scientific Interpretations of Intelligence. Rationalist versus Empiricist Views: The Philosophical Backdrop on the Learnability of Intelligence. The Illusory Faces of Implicit Intelligence Policy. The Impact of Implicit Intelligence Policy on Explicit Policy: The Potential Value of Impact Analysis on Intelligence Policy. The Impact of Implicit Intelligence Policy on Explicit University Admissions Policy. Recommendations and Conclusions: Toward a Coherent and Explicit Intelligence Policy. From Here to a Coherent and Explicit Intelligence Policy. Appendixes. Index.

"This is a genuinely exciting volume that breaks new ground by linking cognitive theory to the literatures on socialization and values. The pathways that lead from competence to beliefs about competence to actual behaviors are intriguing. Cognitive, clinical, developmental, and social psychologists will find real treasures in these chapters, and the study of competence will be greatly advanced by the compilation of these writings."-Stephen J. Ceci

In Minimal Rationality, Christopher Cherniak boldly challenges the myth of Man the the Rational Animal and the central role that the "perfectly rational agent" has had in philosophy, psychology, and other cognitive sciences, as well as in economics. His book presents a more realistic theory based on the limits to rationality which can play a similar generative role in the human sciences, and it seeks to determine the minimal rationality an actual agent must possess.Christopher Cherniak teaches in the Philosophy Department at the University of Maryland.

Why do three out of four professional football players go bankrupt? How can illiterate jungle dwellers pass a test that tricks Harvard philosophers? And why do billionaires work so hard--only to give their hard-earned money away?
When it comes to making decisions, the classic view is that humans are eminently rational. But growing evidence suggests instead that our choices are often irrational, biased, and occasionally even moronic. Which view is right--or is there another possibility?
In this animated tour of the inner workings of the mind, psychologist Douglas T. Kenrick and business professor Vladas Griskevicius challenge the prevailing views of decision making, and present a new alternative grounded in evolutionary science. By connecting our modern behaviors to their ancestral roots, they reveal that underneath our seemingly foolish tendencies is an exceptionally wise system of decision making.
From investing money to choosing a job, from buying a car to choosing a romantic partner, our choices are driven by deep-seated evolutionary goals. Because each of us has multiple evolutionary goals, though, new research reveals something radical--there's more than one you making decisions. Although it feels as if there is just one single self inside your head, your mind actually contains several different subselves, each one steering you in a different direction when it takes its turn at the controls.
The Rational Animal will transform the way you think about decision making. And along the way, you'll discover the intimate connections between ovulating strippers, Wall Street financiers, testosterone-crazed skateboarders, Steve Jobs, Elvis Presley, and you.

What fascinates us about intelligence? How does intelligence impact our daily lives? Why do we sometimes fear intelligence? Human intelligence is a vital resource, yet the study of it is pervaded by neglect and misconceptions. The Psychology of Intelligence helps make sense of the contradictory social attitudes and practices in relation to intelligence that we have seen over the decades, from the idea that it drove eugenicist policies and actions in the past, to our current backlash against "experts" and critical thinking. Showing how our approach to intelligence impacts our everyday lives in educational, occupational, medical, and legal settings, the book asks if it is possible to lift the taboo and move beyond the prejudices surrounding intelligence. Challenging popular assumptions, The Psychology of Intelligence encourages us to face intelligence in ourselves and others as an important fact of life that we can all benefit from embracing more openly.

An entertaining guide to human nature that reveals how people really make big choices. What makes somebody change their world view completely? Why do some people refuse to alter their perceptions, despite prevailing evidence that says they should? And how can you persuade them to change their minds? Eleanor Gordon-Smith meets six ordinary people who made life-altering decisions. From the woman who realised her husband harboured a terrible secret, to the man who left the cult he had been raised in since birth, and the British reality TV contestant who, having impersonated someone else for a month, discovered he could no longer return to his former identity, all of the people interviewed radically altered their beliefs about the things that matter most. Their stories explore the limits of human reason and persuasion.

"Pullman offers his readers essential insights into how humans reason and make decisions. Both concise and far-reaching, his work teaches us how to challenge intuitive logic and examine the processes for deliberative reasoning. This text will prove foundational for students in their intellectual journey toward the development of real skills in critical thinking. By pointing to simple yet profound examples, Pullman's text is both readable and provocative as it challenges us to consider the very mechanisms by which we understand our own cognitive biases." --Bradley A. Hammer, Department of English and Comparative Literature, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

What does the place of information within the cosmos have to do with the life of any one person or with the nature of right and wrong? It changes everything. Information can be viewed as nothing more than an ephemeral artefact of matter, energy, space and time. Or it can be viewed as a component of the universe every bit as real and consequential as the others. This book shows not only that information is real in its own right, but that the intelligence found in people would not have come into existence if it were not. The most powerful tool and weapon of humans is the information system their minds together comprise. Individuals in all their variety are the way they are because that is the way that together they are most intelligent. From the evolutionary mechanism which generated human intelligence to the affairs of people today, the driving force has always been the role of information in individual lives. The result of their decisions through the distant past has been a kind of intelligence new in the universe. People together form a functional mental system that is of a higher order of complexity and intelligence than any individual mind could be. Individual minds are designed not to survive alone in a wilderness, but to complement the human information system as a whole. To make the system function, human intelligence and morality necessarily evolved together. People can think together only if they get along. The basic outlines of morality are as fixed and timeless and as rooted in human evolution as the intelligence it evolved with. Each is both cause and product of the other. The intelligence of the human information system as a whole is the central principle of human life. Acknowledging the reality of information changes forever the divide between secular and religious outlooks. Religions envision the information world by belief in an invisible network of connections between people and the world around them. But these connections exist in hard reality because the existence of information is just as real and provable as the existence of rocks. Dividing reality, by believing that physical things are real and information is not, trivialises the most important aspect of human existence. Once the illusion that information is not real is given up, the basic relationships of life re-assume the kinds of firm definitions that they have always been given by religions. To live in harmony with the reality of information, each person must find a way to recognise that their own thoughts and feelings, which consist of information, are just as real as any objects they think about. This has always been the essential doorway to reality, opening to a world of enormous intelligence, love and beauty. Reasons to care about other people appear clearly and simply as features of the way things are, endowing every life with a sense of purpose as an indispensable element of the human information system. Together, humans exist to wonder and speculate, create and explore, seek truth and solve the riddles of the universe.

Howard Andrew Knox (1885--1949) served as assistant surgeon at Ellis Island during the 1910s, administering a range of verbal and nonverbal tests to determine the mental capacity of potential immigrants. An early proponent of nonverbal intelligence testing (largely through the use of formboards and picture puzzles), Knox developed an evaluative approach that today informs the techniques of practitioners and researchers. Whether adapted to measure intelligence and performance in children, military recruits, neurological and psychiatric patients, or the average job applicant, Knox's pioneering methods are part of contemporary psychological practice and deserve in-depth investigation.

Completing the first biography of this unjustly overlooked figure, John T. E. Richardson, former president of the International Society for the History of the Neurosciences, takes stock of Knox's understanding of intelligence and his legacy beyond Ellis Island. Consulting published and unpublished sources, Richardson establishes a chronology of Knox's life, including details of his medical training and his time as a physician for the U.S. Army. He describes the conditions that gave rise to intelligence testing, including the public's concern that the United States was opening its doors to the mentally unfit. He then recounts the development of intelligence tests by Knox and his colleagues and the widely-discussed publication of their research. Their work presents a useful and extremely human portrait of psychological testing and its limits, particularly the predicament of the people examined at Ellis Island. Richardson concludes with the development of Knox's work in later decades and its changing application in conjunction with modern psychological theory.

A Tested, Proven Approach to Problem Solving-Updated with New Material and Current, Real-Life Examples Strategies for Creative Problem Solving, Third Edition, will help you hone your creative skills and apply those skills to solve nearly any problem. Drawing on National Science Foundation-funded, advanced research that studied problem-solving techniques in all areas of modern industry, this book presents a comprehensive, systematic problem-solving framework. Through hands-on techniques and exercises drawing on realistic examples, you will learn how to approach an ill-defined problem, identify the real problem, generate and implement the best solution, evaluate what you've learned, and build on that knowledge. This third edition has been updated and revised, further enhancing its value for engineers, technical practitioners, students, and anyone who wants to improve their problem-solving skills. Updates include More than twenty-five new examples-based on recent, real-world events and topics-that illustrate the various problem-solving techniques Expanded coverage of critical thinking and reasoning An introduction to structured critical reasoning New discussion of managing complex change Expanded and improved explanations of the components of problem-solving strategies The first edition of this book earned ASEE's 1996 Meriam-Wiley Distinguished Author Award, and now it's more focused and useful than ever. Companion Web Site The book's companion Web site (www.engin.umich.edu/scps) is a valuable resource for students and instructors. The site contains Interactive Computer Modules: Seven simulations linked to the book's content and designed to deepen your expertise with every stage of the problem-solving process Summary Notes: Chapter-specific material that highlights important points in each chapter-excellent for classroom presentations and concept review Professional Reference Shelf: Additional examples and problem-solving materials Additional Study Materials: Course syllabi and Web links to related material

Written specifically for instructors, "The Student EQ Edge: Facilitation and Activity Guide "is designed to be used alongside the main volume, " The Student EQ Edge," and guides educators, counselors, and advisors in employing case studies, self-assessment questions, reflection and discussion questions, and activities and assignments that will help their students move from understanding to action.

This volume is a unique, multidisciplinary collection of scholarly reviews encompassing contemporary research on decision making and aging, including work on development and aging, and child and adolescent development. Decision Making over the Life Span presents contributions from a range of researchers at the forefront of this exciting new field that spans neuroscience, economics, and psychology.NOTE: "Annals" volumes are available for sale as individual books or as a journal. For information on institutional journal subscriptions, please visit http: //ordering.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/subs.asp?ref=1749-6632&doi=10.1111/(ISSN)1749-6632.ACADEMY MEMBERS: Please contact the New York Academy of Sciences directly to place your order (www.nyas.org). Members of the New York Academy of Science receive full-text access to "Annals" online and discounts on print volumes. Please visit http: //www.nyas.org/MemberCenter/Join.aspx for more information about becoming a member.

Praise for Mind Over Matter Why Intellectual capital is tHe Chief Source of Wealth
"Ron Baker has written another great book on the thoughts and theories on intellectual capital.As usual, he has an awesome depth of content, knowledge, and thought. A great read."
--Reed Holden, founder, Holden Advisors Corp., www.holdenadvisors.com, and coauthor, The Strategy and Tactics of Pricing and Pricing with Confidence: 10 Ways to Stop Leaving Money on the Table
"At a time when the virtues that made America great--individualism, hard work, and free trade--are openly debated by well-meaning politicians, Ron Baker gives us Mind Over Matter. It is a story detailing the triumph of human spirit, imagination, and creativity. Ron tells us what the 'knowledge economy' really means. He gives a prescription for transforming human and intellectual capital into the foundation for sustainable prosperity. Mind Over Matter is a provocative book deserving of a thoughtful read. It is a timeless message to be treasured for generations."
--Robert G. Cross, Chairman and CEO, Revenue Analytics, Inc., www.revenueanalytics.com
"Ron Baker is an absolute master at challenging the 'physical fallacy, ' e.g., the basis on which we assign value to businesses by focusing on tangible rather than intangible assets. This book builds on his previous books and helps the reader understand how critical intellectual capital is to the key to success in the twenty-first century. Ron pulls from the greatest business thinkers and economists, ?from Drucker to Karl Sveiby as well as current company success stories to fund his rich gold mine of proof. The biggest benefit of the book is to change the paradigm of those who are the passive keepers of the 'books.' This is a must-read for anybody who wants to flourish in the age of intellectual capital."
--Sheila Kessler, PhD, President, Competitive Edge, www.CompetitiveEdge.com
"This book helps us understand some of the origins and sources that have led Ron Baker to the many contributions he has made to our understanding of good practice in running professional businesses."
--David Maister, author and leading consultant to professional firmswww.davidmaister.com
"Reading Ron Baker's book was the only delightful incident that robbed my sleep on the flight to Frankfurt today. It was sheer pleasure--I must have entertained or annoyed fellow passengers with repeated nodding and several exclamations. Baker has a terrific style that captures my mind while he entertains and educates by showing lines of connection between authors, incidents, and theories that I have never seen before. He hardly uses the 'You have to do this and that' approach, which I despise in most business books. I sum it up in two words: outstanding stuff "
--Friedrich Blase, Kerma Partners, www.kermapartners.com
"This is a wonderful read for anyone who wants to explore the power of constructive thinking. In Mind Over Matter, Ron examines the power of creative thought over the conventional wisdom that you must make a tangible product for wealth to be created. The opening chapter sets a wonderful stage for the book, which develops the power of the new business equation and the underlying theory of the various types of intellectual capital. This is a must-read book for every business leader."
--Peter Byers, Chartered Accountant, Byers & Co. Ltd, New Zealand
"Peter Drucker coined the term knowledge worker a half century ago. We are all still only beginning to fully comprehend the implications. In Mind Over Matter, Ron Baker has switched on a beacon for us to follow. If we have the courage to embrace the concepts Ron posits, perhaps it will be less than another half century before we begin to reap the rewards as individuals and as a society."
--Ed Kless, Senior Director, Partner Development and Recruitment, Sage Software