Building Problem Solvers

After working through Building Problem Solvers, readers should have a deep understanding of pattern directed inference systems, constraint languages, and truth maintenance systems.

This supplement to Building Problem Solvers contains the Common Lisp code examplesreferenced throughout the text. The code is available on disk and can also be downloaded viaftp.

If a fundamental goal of schooling is to prepare young people for the unknowable future, why do we assign students so many clearly defined tasks with predetermined solutions? According to educator and creativity expert Ronald A. Beghetto, the best way to unleash students''problem solving and creativity—and thus prepare them to face real-world problems—is to incorporate complex challenges that teach students to respond productively to uncertainty. In this thought-provoking book, Beghetto explains * How to foster "possibility thinking" to help students open up their thinking in creative, sometimes counterintuitive ways. * The process of lesson unplanning, a way of transforming existing lessons, activities, and assignments into more complex classroom challenges. * Four basic action principles that teachers and students can use to design and solve complex challenges both inside and outside the classroom. * The steps for creating legacy challenges, which require students to identify a problem, develop a solution, and ensure that their work makes a lasting contribution. With planning forms and detailed sample activities, this practical guide will enable teachers at every grade level to design a full range of challenges in any subject area. Invite uncertainty into your classroom—and discover what your students are capable of.

From executives complaining that their teams don’t contribute ideas to employees giving up because their input isn’t valued--company culture is the culprit. Courageous Cultures provides a road map to build a high-performance, high-engagement culture around sharing ideas, solving problems, and rewarding contributions from all levels. Many leaders are convinced they have an open environment that encourages employees to speak up and are shocked when they learn that employees are holding back. Employees have ideas and want to be heard. Leadership wants to hear them. Too often, however, employees and leaders both feel that no one cares about making things better. The disconnect typically only widens over time, with both sides becoming more firmly entrenched in their viewpoints. Becoming a courageous culture means building teams of microinnovators, problem solvers, and customer advocates working together. In our world of rapid change, a courageous culture is your competitive advantage. It ensures that your company is “sticky” for both customers and employees. In Courageous Cultures, you’ll learn practical tools that help you: Learn the difference between microinnovators, problem solvers, and customer advocates and how they work together. See how the latest research conducted by the authors confirms why organizations struggle when it comes to creating strong cultures where employees are encouraged to contribute their best thinking. Learn proven models and tools that leaders can apply throughout all levels of the organization, to reengage and motivate employees. Understand best practices from companies around the world and learn how to apply these strategies and techniques in your own organization. This book provides you with the practical tools to uncover, leverage, and scale the best ideas from every level of your organization.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the International Conference on Evolutionary Computation held jointly with the 4th Conference on Parallel Problem Solving from Nature, PPSN IV, in Berlin, Germany, in September 1996. The 103 revised papers presented in the volume were carefully selected from more than 160 submissions. The papers are organized in sections on basic concepts of evolutionary computation (EC), theoretical foundations of EC, modifications and extensions of evolutionary algorithms, comparison of methods, other metaphors, and applications of EC in a variety of areas like ML, NNs, engineering, CS, OR, and biology. The book has a comprehensive subject index.

This book is the first to systematically describe the key components necessary to ensure successful implementation of Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) across mental health settings and non-mental health settings that require behavioral management. This resource is designed by the leading experts in CPS and is focused on the clinical and implementation strategies that have proved most successful within various private and institutional agencies. The book begins by defining the approach before delving into the neurobiological components that are key to understanding this concept. Next, the book covers the best practices for implementation and evaluating outcomes, both in the long and short term. The book concludes with a summary of the concept and recommendations for additional resources, making it an excellent concise guide to this cutting edge approach. Collaborative Problem Solving is an excellent resource for psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and all medical professionals working to manage troubling behaviors. The text is also valuable for readers interested in public health, education, improved law enforcement strategies, and all stakeholders seeking to implement this approach within their program, organization, and/or system of care.