Monday, December 1, 2014

Who Killed Creativity: ...And How Do We Get It Back: Seven Essential Strategies to Make Yourself, Your Team and Your Organisation More Innovative

Andrew Grant, Gaia Grant with Jason Gallate 
online access from Books24x7
check holdings in CityU LibraryFind

The essential guide to building a culture of creativity and innovation throughout an organization

Your help is needed to crack an unsolved crime: creative thinking is critical for future fulfillment and survival, and yet it is now declining at an alarming rate. In this original mystery-style approach, you will have the opportunity to match your knowledge against that of the latest brain researchers, psychologists, and sociologists as you are taken on a humorous and often startling journey to discover why creativity is dying an untimely death. The '7 Rescue Strategies' then provide proven innovation solutions, from personal issues through to organizational imperatives. Authors Andrew and Gaia Grant have travelled the world for more than 25 years working with more than 20,000 international keynote and workshop participants in more than 30 countries at all levels. With a fascinating forensic approach, revealing carefully researched facts and anecdotal insights, this is a compelling modern tale. And there is a final twist that will leave you wondering.... Can we really live happily ever after?

(Excerpt from amazon.com)

黑白之間:中國書法審美文化

崔樹強 著
check holdings in CityU LibraryFind

受儒家思想的影響,在書法品評中,常常由書法論到人,於是,很多人把書法美的特點歸結為書家人格的美。揚雄《法言‧問神》云︰「言,心聲也;書,心畫也。聲畫形,君子小人見矣。聲畫者,君子小人所以動情乎!」柳公權發展了這一思想,他的「心正則筆正」的名言,以新的命題將人格、倫理與書法的關係聯繫起來。後來,明代項穆在《書法雅言‧心相》裡說得就更充分了︰

在這裡,他把書法同人格聯繫起來,試圖從主體的角度說明書法美的根源,是有價值的。書法和人品、性情有關,書法要表現人的精神意氣、情感意志,書法美也能折射人格美。但是,並不是說書法的美就「在」人心的感覺、情緒、思維裡,而是說要「通過」感覺、情緒、思維去尋找美,「發現」一朵微花的美、一灣溪水的美,要「發現」大化流行和生生自然中所蘊含的生命節奏,用最抽象的線條生動地表達出來。書法有和諧的結構、節奏的規律、豐富的形象,它最深層的美的源泉,在於那自然動象中不絕的生命活力。人們只有把心靈的起伏、情慾的波濤、思想的矛盾,表現在舞動的漢字形象裡,表現在跡化的線條節奏裡,只有當你的心具體表現在形象裡,旁人才會看見你精神的美,你也才能真切具體地發現你心裡的美。

書法同時傳達了自然的美和精神的美。

(摘錄自博客來網路書店)

Monday, November 24, 2014

Mastering the Art of Quitting: Why It Matters in Life, Love, and Work

Peg Streep, Alan B. Bernstein 
check holdings in CityU LibraryFind

Find out why the happiest, most successful people have the ability both to persist and to quit.

In a culture that perceives quitting as a last resort and urges us to hang in, Mastering the Art of Quitting tackles our tendencies to overanalyze, ruminate, and put a positive spin on goals that have outlived their usefulness.

Bestselling author Peg Streep and psychotherapist Alan Bernstein demonstrate that persistence alone isn't always the answer. We also need to be able to quit to get the most out of life. They reveal simple truths that apply to goal setting and achievement in all areas of life, including love, relationships, and work:

• Quitting promotes growth and learning, as well as the ability to frame new goals.
• Without the ability to give up, most people will end up in a discouraging loop.
• The most satisfied people know when it's time to stop persisting and start quitting.
• Quitting is a healthy, adaptive response when a goal can't be reached.

Featuring compelling stories of people who successfully quit, along with helpful questionnaires and goal maps to guide you on the right path, Mastering the Art of Quitting allows you to evaluate whether your goals are working for or against you, and whether you need to rechart certain aspects of your life.

When is it time to stop persisting and start quitting?

Take a moment and answer the following questions. Just thinking about the answers will give you insight into your ability to quit artfully and restart your life.

• Do you believe that "winners never quit and quitters never win"?
• How realistic are you when it comes to setting goals?
• What matters more: staying the course or exploring new possibilities in life?
• How much of your sense of self relies on other people's judgments?
• Do you tend to hang in longer than you should, even when you're unhappy?
• When you try something new, do you focus on the effort you have to put in or the possibility of failure?
• Are you a procrastinator or a delayer when it comes to getting things done?
• How much do you worry about making a mistake? Do you second-guess yourself?
• How hard is it for you to get over a setback?

(Excerpt from amazon.com)


創新者的工具箱:65個創造性解決問題的思維技巧 (Creative Problem Solver's Toolbox)

理查德・福布斯著 (Richard Fobes)
online access from SuperStar Digital Library
check holdings in CityU LibraryFind

《創新者的工具箱》一書描述了65個非常適合學習的思維技巧,它們能夠幫助你在面對各種類型的問題時,通過冷靜而有條理的分析,找到創意獨特、新穎可行的解決辦法。作者選用了200多個例子,涉及商務運營問題、撫養孩子、改善人際關係、求職應聘、發明創造以及解決全球問題等,其中包括一些非常有名的發明創造的幕後故事,比如打字機、籃球運動、盲文、化學元素週期表等的發明過程,告訴你轉換思路並不難,你也可以將這些技巧應用在現實生活當中,突破思維定勢,找到解決問題的最佳辦法。

(摘錄自中國圖書網)

Monday, November 17, 2014

Fabricated : The New World of 3D Printing

Hod Lipson, Melba Kurman
online access from ProQuest Ebook Central
check holdings in CityU LibraryFind

Fabricated tells the story of 3D printers, humble manufacturing machines that are bursting out of the factory and into homes, businesses, schools, kitchens, hospitals, even the fashion catwalk. The magic happens when you plug a 3D printer into today's mind-boggling digital technologies. Add to that the Internet, tiny, low cost electronic circuitry, radical advances in materials science and biotech and voila! The result is an explosion of technological and social innovation. Fabricated provides readers with practical and imaginative insights to the question "how will 3D printing technologies change my life?" Based on hundreds of hours of research and dozens of interviews with experts from a broad range of industries, Fabricated offers readers an informative, engaging and fast-paced introduction to 3D printing now and in the future.

(Excerpt from amazon.com)




學會創造性觀察:攝影中的設計、色彩和構圖 (Learning to See Creatively)

布賴恩・彼得森 (Bryan Peterson)
online access from SuperStar Digital Library
check holdings in CityU LibraryFind

《學會創造性觀察:攝影中的設計、色彩和構圖》的要點,拓寬視野,如何觀察,廣角、全幀魚眼、街景變焦、攝遠鏡頭和超近攝影。構圖的六元素:線條、輪廓、形狀、質感、圖案、色彩。怎樣構圖,取景、黃金分割和三分法則、地平線、斜線、畫中畫、橫幅與直幅、佈置場景、打破規律。光的有關知識,光的利用、光的方向、光的色彩、多雲和雨天的光。數碼攝影的有關知識:優缺點、圖像處理軟件。如何成為一名出色的攝影師:職業要求、重要素質、挑戰和超越、確定主題。

(摘錄自amazon.cn)