08.24.11 | posted by Joe Hice |

Creativity is just connecting things

Steve Jobs described creativity and the creative process better than anyone.

“Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That’s because they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things. And the reason they were able to do that was that they’ve had more experiences or they have thought more about their experiences than other people.

“Unfortunately, that’s too rare a commodity. A lot of people in our industry haven’t had very diverse experiences. So they don’t have enough dots to connect, and they end up with very linear solutions without a broad perspective on the problem. The broader one’s understanding of the human experience, the better design we will have.” [Wired, February 1996]

Everybody’s doing it; We fulfill dreams, get moving, The Gator Nation.  All just connecting the dots.  And yes, I’ve felt guilty because I couldn’t explain how ideas happened.

Sometimes they — the connection between the dots — were right there, staring you in the face.  Other times it took research and discussion, but inevitably, the solution just arrived.  Or did it emerge.  Or did it just magically appear.  I like the magic.

Working to understand the dots at Moffitt.  While the dots are different, they are starting to align. And here, it’s really all about passion.  Dots with passion. I love that.

1 of Many

Passion Rules!

07.19.11 | posted by Joe Hice |

A bit much for moi

When I worked at Bombardier some time ago, we produced all literature and video materials for Sea-Doo watercraft in English and French.  Bombardier is a French Canadian company so it made sense, even though sales in Quebec were only a handful.

But today, Quelle horreur! French-Canadians Michel and Lynda Thibodeau were awarded roughly $12,500 after suing Air Canada because the airline’s flight attendant failed to address them in their mother tongue as legally required, the Canadian Press reports.

The Thibodeau’s lawsuit was based largely on being unable to find an agent who spoke French and a baggage announcement that was made only in English when they were traveling from Ottawa to the United States. The couple was seeking $500,000 Canadian in damages.

The carrier, it should be noted, must communicate in both English and French when there is demand.

An important note: Mr. Thibodeau speaks English fluently.

Thibodeau has a history of being litigious. He sued an Ottawa bus company in 2002 because the bus driver said “Hello” not “Bonjour.”

It would be easy to chalk this up to one Quebecois being a jerk, but there are actually political groups that cheered the Thibodeau’s victory in court.

It really is a different world up there.

One of Many

Passion des règles!

05.24.11 | posted by Joe Hice |

UF students win Bateman competition

A team of University of Florida public relations students took first prize in the Public Relations Student Society of America’s 2011 Bateman Case Study Competition.

Conducted annually, the Bateman Competition judges teams of college students on their ability to develop and present a comprehensive public relations campaign.

Recent public relations graduates Elizabeth Dow, of Ellicott, Md.; Alex Glover, of Ormond Beach, Fla.; Ruth Michel, of Keystone Heights, Fla.; Seeta Rebbapragada, of Hollywood, Fla.; and Maura Reese, of Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. presented their campaign in person to Ally Financial representatives in New York City May 13. UF joined Elon University and Loyola University New Orleans in the finals. (more…)

05.20.11 | posted by Joe Hice |

Will today be the day?

When you wake up tomorrow — 5/21/2011 — ask yourself, will today be the day?

To be continued . . . perhaps.

1 of Many

Passion Rules!

04.04.11 | posted by Joe Hice |

Park Scholar, Garik Sadovy Named Udall Scholar

The Udall Foundation is pleased to announce that 80 students from 61 colleges and universities have been selected as 2011 Udall Scholars. Among them is Garik Sadovy ‘12 from Wake Forest, North Carolina. Sadovy is working towards a major in materials science and engineering and a minor in environmental science. He is a Park Scholar and a member of the University Honors Program. Sadovy serves as president of Tau Beta Pi, a national professional engineering society.

Garik Sadovy ‘12 at the summit of Mt. Shasta during a summer research project in California.

“This impressive Scholars class represents the best and brightest; they are the future environmental and tribal leaders in this country. The Udall Foundation is thrilled to help them advance their education,” said Terrence L. Bracy, chair of the Board of Trustees of the Udall Foundation. (more…)

03.23.11 | posted by Joe Hice |

REGISTER NOW FOR SCOPE ACADEMY 2011!

Web registration is now open for the NC State University College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences’ annual Scope Academy celebration. We hope that all science fans will join us Saturday, April 9, as we celebrate the latest breakthroughs in our disciplines.

Highlights of Scope Academy 2011 include:

-Special brunch for alumni, friends and faculty of the Department of Chemistry in honor of the International Year of Chemistry: http://www.chemistry2011.org/

-Entertaining and informative “Scope Seminars” led by PAMS’ own world-class faculty (this year’s seminars include two “kid-friendly” offerings: Countertop Chemistry and Patterns in Nature)

-Scope/Harrelson Lecture by Dr. Barbara Imperiali, professor of chemistry and biology at MIT and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Royal Society of Chemistry and National Academy of Sciences

Please register today at www.pams.ncsu.edu/weekend or contact the PAMS Office of College Advancement at pams_info@ncsu.edu or 919-515-3462 for more information.

1 of Many

Passion Rules!

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03.22.11 | posted by Joe Hice |

Comment on NC State Strategic Plan before Friday, March 25.

A draft of the NC State strategic plan has been posted online for about a month and comments on the plan are requested by Friday, March 25.   The plan will guide university decision-making for the next 10 years so now’s your chance to have a say, so to speak.

The strategic plan establishes our goals and strategies and will provide a roadmap by which we will measure our progress along the journey. It also includes proposed new mission and vision statements.

As noted above, the draft will be online for a final review through March 25, when the strategic plan committee will incorporate feedback into a final version for Board of Trustees review and approval in April.

Speak now or forever hold your peace.

1 of Many

Passion Rules!

03.17.11 | posted by Joe Hice |

How to Save the University

On Friday, April 8, at 7 p.m., Cary Nelson, American Association of University Professors President, will give a keynote public speech at Duke University, “How to Save the University.”

If you’re not doing anything that night I’d bet it will be an interesting exchange so plan on attending.  It should also be a good opportunity to compare our actions here at NC State to those recommended by the AAUP.

The nationwide recession has exacerbated what was already a long-term trend in public higher education—declining state support has meant shifting the revenue stream from state appropriations to more burdensome student tuition rates.

Seduced by the lure of rapid profits, some institutions have made matters worse by opting for high-risk investments. (more…)

03.16.11 | posted by Joe Hice |

NC State College of Vet Med No. 3 in Nation

When our cat Rufus was sick last year (yes we have cats to entertain the circus dogs:-) I didn’t hesitate to contact the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine for help.  A quick visit to the vet, a prescription for his nose and Rufus was better.  He has been a sneezer most of his life.  Why didn’t we do this sooner?  With one of the best Vet schools in the country at our backdoor it was a natural.  Now even more people recognize the quality of the college as highlighted in this report from David Green at the college regarding the most recent rankings.

North Carolina State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine is ranked third among the nation’s 28 colleges of veterinary medicine in the new (2012) survey by U.S. News and World Report.

In the magazine’s rankings for “Education: Graduate Schools–Veterinary Medicine,” Cornell University is first with a 4.5 score, the University of California-Davis is second with a 4.2 score, and NC State and Colorado State tie for third with a score of 4.1. NC State had been tied for 5th in previous rankings with Ohio State University, the University of Wisconsin, and Texas A&M.

For U.S. News and World Report’s complete ranking, click here. (more…)

03.08.11 | posted by Joe Hice |

“Master of Disruption” talks higher education

Clay Christensen was in town a few weeks back for the Emerging Issues Forum.  During his presentation he talked about how “disrputive innovation” would change the face of the health care industry.  Christensen has turned his thinking to higher education and in this post from InsideHigherEd.com, he talks about how disruptive innovation will change higher education.  A fascinating read.  http://bit.ly/hHiTIt

WASHINGTON — It’s one thing for Clayton M. Christensen to share with a bunch of Washington think tankers his warnings that colleges must change or die, as he did at the American Enterprise Institute last month. But directly to the faces of college presidents themselves, at the annual gathering of their main national association? Yet there was the Harvard Business School professor known for documenting how industries get transformed by “disruptive technologies” on Monday, telling hundreds of college chiefs at the annual meeting of the American Council on Education that he was not at all sure in 20 years if their institutions would still be around.

Some of Christensen’s ideas (drawn from a paper he co-wrote with Henry Eyring of Brigham Young University-Idaho called “The Innovative University: Changing the DNA of Higher Education”) and comments may have stung, notably his prediction that distance education, done well, can subject existing higher education to disruption that could render many existing institutions irrelevant in two decades. “There is good reason for many of us to think that we might be okay in 20 years. But I think we might be wrong,” he said. (more…)