13 science favourites of 2015

13 science favourites of 2015

See the 13 books recommended by Science News for 2015

Does exercise help keep our brains young?

Does exercise help keep our brains young?



Fantastic article in The New York Times about exercise and our brain. We know as we get older our brain slows along with the rest of us - but it needn't - it can be kept firing along almost as well as when we were much younger.

The Language Animal by Charles Taylor - Kialta Institute of Education 03 9034 4893

The Language Animal by Charles Taylor - Kialta Institute of Education 03 9034 4893

In seminal works ranging from "Sources of the Self "to "A Secular Age, "Charles Taylor has shown how we create possible ways of being, both as individuals and as a society. In his new book setting forth decades of thought, he demonstrates that language is at the center of this generative process. For centuries, philosophers have been divided on the nature of language.

Those in the rational empiricist tradition Hobbes, Locke, Condillac, and their heirs assert that language is a tool that human beings developed to encode and communicate information. In "The Language Animal," Taylor explains that this view neglects the crucial role language plays in shaping the very thought it purports to express. Language does not merely describe; it constitutes meaning and fundamentally shapes human experience. The human linguistic capacity is not something we innately possess. We first learn language from others, and, inducted into the shared practice of speech, our individual selves emerge out of the conversation.Taylor expands the thinking of the German Romantics Hamann, Herder, and Humboldt into a theory of linguistic holism. Language is intellectual, but it is also enacted in artistic portrayals, gestures, tones of voice, metaphors, and the shifts of emphasis and attitude that accompany speech. Human language recognizes no boundary between mind and body. In illuminating the full capacity of the language animal, Taylor sheds light on the very question of what it is to be a human being."

Accounting and Finance - Kialta Institute of Education 03 9034 4893

Accounting and Finance - Kialta Institute of Education 03 9034 4893



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BBC Facebook quizzes - Kialta Institute of Education 03 9034 4893

BBC Facebook quizzes - Kialta Institute of Education 03 9034 4893



I can't stand those quizzes - nor the websites that ask you to log in using your Facebook ID - a privacy nightmare. See the article from the BBC

"Recently I, along with at least 17 million others, visited an app via Facebook which offered to provide me with a word cloud of my most used words on the social network.

When I clicked on the link, it asked for permission to access a bunch of my Facebook data and my hand hesitated over the mouse."
​Jane Wakefield BBC



​And so it should, Jane, so it should...



 International Rail - global train tickets and rail passes.  When we travelled around Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic, we bought the 3 Country Eurail Pass. Every time I’ve been to the UK, I’ve bought a BritRail. Hop on, Hop off, as much travel as you like.

Linkword Languages - Kialta Institute of Education 03 9034 4893

Linkword Languages - Kialta Institute of Education 03 9034 4893

We're very proud of our new affiliation with Linkword Languages

 Linkword Languages sells language courses in Spanish, French, Italian, German, Greek, Russian, Dutch, Portuguese, Welsh, Mandarin, Hebrew, Polish, and Japanese. These courses use the scientifically proven Linkword method to increase speed of learning by up to 3 times faster than normal learning methods.

At home we have three languages - English, Greek and Welsh.

Sia, my wife, is of Greek background, and it is actually her first language, even though she was born in Melbourne! David goes to a Greek speaking school but is named after Saint David, patron Saint of Wales.

​My patron Saints are St David and St Govan. I learnt some Welsh a while ago and try to maintain it as much as I can.
​

​If you're interested in other languages, check out Linkword Languages - a great way of learning

Peachpit Press - Kialta Institute of Education 03 9034 4893

Peachpit Press - Kialta Institute of Education 03 9034 4893



Among the other book publishers we are affiliated with, Peachpit Press stands out as offering technology books, eBooks and videos for creative people

Adobe Photoshop, Digital Photography, Apple, Gadgets and Digital Lifestyle, Design, Productivity, Digital Audio and Video, Web Design and Development

Blog - Kialta Institute of Education 03 9034 4893

Blog - Kialta Institute of Education 03 9034 4893



We received the report today on the future of Melbourne's northern suburbs employment and skills training, presented by NORTH Link andNorthern Melbourne Regional Development Australia (RDA) and launched by the Hon Colin Brooks MP and Parliamentary Secretary to Premier of Victoria on 18th November 2015

28 Keys for Creating a Safety Culture

28 tried and true methods of ensuring the right culture of safety in your organisation

Developing a strong safety culture will have a great impact on the reduction of incidents. The development of a safety culture should be the top priority for all managers and supervisors.

This is an introduction to the key points of creating a safety culture that we have tried in our own company as well as helping institute in others.

What is a safety culture?

A safety culture is the shared beliefs, practices and attitudes in an organisation. Culture is the environment created by those beliefs, practices and attitudes which shape our behaviour. An organisations safety culture is the result of a number of factors such as:

• Management and employee norms, assumptions and beliefs
• Management and employee attitudes
• Values, myths, stories
• Policies and procedures
• Supervisor priorities, responsibilities and accountability
• Production and bottom line pressures v's quality issues
• Actions or lack of action to correct unsafe behaviours
• Employee training and motivation
• Employee and management involvement or 'buy-in'

Have a read of the blog on our website and leave a comment.

How to Win an Argument??

I was reading a tweet today, which led to a video on How to Win an Argument. It claimed "...go into one knowing you have a good chance of making your point when you are armed with this advice."

Unfortunately, a Google search will bring up lots of YouTube videos on winning an argument, and so many of them showing people yelling. That's not the way to win anything worthwhile.

See our blog post for more...

http://www.kialta.com.au/blog/how-to-win-an-argument