Information Processing and Human Learning - Page 2

Integration is necessary for the web designer and developer. This perspective arises out of the idea that most of our work is split between logic and creativity. That we must be logical and creative at the same time within any facet of our job reflects this split, and it is from this split that the idea of integration comes about.

But where did the idea of this split originate? A field of study known as learning theory focuses on this very issue. The specific theory of greatest interest to this discussion is referred to as split brain (see Figure 2.1). In split-brain theory, the pervasive belief is that the left and right hemispheres of the brain are each responsible for distinct types of information processing.

Figure 2.1
Split brain theory suggests that the left and the right hemispheres of the brain are responsible for different kinds of information processing (http://www.exploratorium.edu/memory/braindissection/index.html).

For more than 40 years, a psychobiologist named Roger Sperry studied the brain's physical functions. He found that the left side of the brain is typically more dominant, and is involved in reason and language. The right hemisphere has instead a nonverbal focus. According to this theory, it is responsible for such expressions as art, music, and other creative processes.

While split-brain theory is somewhat dated as a scientific concept, it is a very common metaphor that people use to describe themselves. Because of its common use, I use the metaphor here to help clarify the essence of the communication: That most people are not integrated in their thinking and as such require more information on how to achieve a more holistic viewpoint.

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Note - Roger Sperry received a Nobel Prize in 1981 for his studies, and his work is credited with having opened up new pathways of exploration in both psychology and biology.

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Perhaps the most intriguing part of split-brain theory is that, despite the theory's basis that certain activities are managed by independent sides of the brain, people ultimately rely on both sides—our mental processes somehow, somewhere integrate.

Most people do have specific strengths in the way they think. Some people are very adept at using their whole brain. Others have a more overt dominant hemisphere.

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Unlike other aspects of cognitive function, emotions have never been readily confinable to one hemisphere... emotional effects tend to spread rapidly to involve both hemispheres.

—Roger Sperry in his Nobel Lecture, 1981

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Sperry points to the emotions as involving both hemispheres. It's possible to take Sperry's perspective and suggest that integration appears boldly at the emotional level. To create something new, to innovate, can be seen as some combination of left-brain logic and right-brain creativity. Add emotion, which is necessary to promote new ideas, and it's possible to suggest that mental integration is the precursor to innovation.

Of course, without the ability to express an idea in some articulate way, that idea cannot come to fruition. In order to go from integration to innovation to the expression of that innovation, we must have the skills and encouragement necessary to get there. True innovation involves a range of abilities, and communication becomes an essential factor when bringing ideas to light.

How to Achieve Innovation

The suggestion, then, is that if we as web designers and developers want to be innovative in our work, we must understand our areas of strength and our areas of weakness. So just how do we do this? Study Table 2.1, and write down which features you feel are your strongest. Then provide yourself with a sentence or two explaining why you believe this to be true.

Table 2.1 Left- and Right-Brain Features

This is what I came up with:

• Logical. Do you favor logic over intuition? Logic is my default mode. If I can't deal with something random or chaotic, I use logic as a means to work through it.

• Rational. Are you a rationalist or do you think holistically? Although I'm not at first glance always a rational person, I am a realist, which suggests to me that I process information in a rational way.

• Analytical. Do you analyze or synthesize? I have a friend who once said, "Hand Molly a plain white piece of paper, and you'll have an analysis back in less than five minutes."

• Intuitive. If you are intuitive, can you also be logical? Perhaps it is my gender—or just my personality—but I am very aware of my intuition and have found that when I don't listen to it, I end up hurt.

• Holistic. Do you find that your thinking tends to be very open minded, or more concerned with empiric evidence? Big-picture thinking suits me. I'm passionate but not always very precise. And, while I am interested in the empiric, I have never had a need to have proof of something in order to agree with its possibilities.

• Wholes. Do you see things in their distinct parts, or do you see whole groups? First, I see the composition, the whole. Then I see what it's made up of. I think in terms of wholes rather than parts.

Explore your personal results, and take some time to consider what they mean. This is an important exercise, because it will help you gain a better sense of how you learn, solve problems, and ultimately, how you will be best able to strengthen any weaknesses and feel confident about your strengths.

It's interesting to consider that half of my strengths come from the left brain, whereas the other half come from the right brain. Like many readers of this book, I am already integrated to some degree. But there are areas in which I am definitely weaker on both sides, and these are the areas that need attention.

Early education, at least in most high-tech societies, tends to favor left-brain modes of thinking while down-playing right-brain modes. This could be at the core of some of our real challenges: We've been educated and enculturated to think in specific ways—even if those ways are not natural to our own, unique patterns.

Integrated Web Design: Building the New Breed of Designer & Developer
Integrated Web Design: Building the New Breed of Designer & Developer
Human Memory as a Metaphor for the Web - Page 3