WHO KNEW OR
DEJA VU?
 After identification,
the next task that engages our
brains is integrating recent
information with prior knowledge. Once a caveman knew
there was a large animal nearby, he then had to
ponder, "Hmm, is it
dinner or am I dinner?" Some large animals
made a feast for the tribe. Other large animals
made a feast of the tribe.
| After clearing the
wedding ring/gender/sexual orientation
hurtle, [see last Hot
Rat] the smart
person seeking companionship will strike
up a conversation and try to answer the
question, "Is this
someone I want to get involved
with?"
Or, "Will
this person want to share my
company?"
A reasonably accurate answer to either
question requires some prior experience
of similar situations. By comparing past
experience with the new experience, two
benefits may arise. If the new experience
is similar to past experience, then the
individual can proceed with a sense of
confidence. If the new situation is
novel, as it unfolds it becomes part of
the knowledge base used for future
decisions -- and a little bit exciting. |
Application users will compare
new programs to others they may have used and
wonder, "Can I
work this thing? Is this tool
something that is suitable for my use?"
Even though interface elements may be familiar, a
new application may require some training before
efficient use is possible. For instance, if I
asked you to model a 3D object with the Softimage
brand 3D tool suite and you had never used any
modeling package before, your reaction would no
doubt be, "Where’s the
manual?" or "HELP!" If you had experience
with 3D modeling but not Softimage,
then you might assume that the new program would
be similar to the tools you had used before.
Still, it is likely that you
would want to test that assumption to see if your
skills were transferable.
In any event, for us to
take effective action it is not enough to simply
remember the past. We have to search for
differences and seek similarities. We
must integrate new information with prior
knowledge so that we can predict
the future -- a very useful survival
skill.
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