Summer Break!

Today begins summer break! How will you spend the next 2 weeks? I suggest trying to see the world (and your dissertation) from different angles, as Mandy is demonstrating in the attached photo. This is perfect time to read new books on the subject or get out of your writing comfort zone by going somewhere new to write- a coffee shop or park may inspire new connections!

Working on your dissertation in the same way, will begin to get you into a rut, perhaps it is time to shake things up! Try new things, perhaps it is time to take a break from your paper and think about other topics. Consider getting away for a few days with your family or friends, even an afternoon away may help freshen your outlook. To give you a visual break over the next 2 weeks, I will post some Montana photos for you. Today's break photo was taken near my home in Bozeman MT. Because of the smoke from fires in CA we have been having some spectacular sunsets!

Next time I will consider the need for an awareness of ignorance. Do you have an issue or a question that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Would you like to be a guest writer? Send me your ideas! leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu

 

Curiosity and Pleasure

Have you also found the "unbelievable pleasure of spirit" mentioned by Copernicus in learning and satisfying your curiosity? Researchers (Kang et al., nd) have reported a relationship between the caudate nucleus and curiosity. This area of the brain is also activated when enjoying food and sex. It appears that the same neural pathway is activated for intellectual investigation as for the most primal pleasures. 

The caudate nucleus (see attached MRI photo) is also activated in response to visual beauty, and there appears that there may be a connection between aesthetics and search for knowledge. A number of studies have suggested that in viewing art there is preference for mystery, for examples, scenes that hint at something the viewer cannot see, such as a path that goes into the distance (see the photo example, I attached). It appears that things we do not yet know give us pleasure. 

How can this information be applied to your dissertation? Recognize the times of searching for information and the pleasure when you find answers. This is separate from the relief of getting something accomplished; it is an innate pleasure of knowing the answer to a piece of the puzzle. Use this as a reward along the way to completing your project. 

Next time we will begin summer break. Do you have an issue or a question that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Would you like to be a guest writer? Send me your ideas! leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu