The last three and a half years of classes in the PhD program has been filled with exciting learning opportunities!  From a young age I have always been eager to learn, and this PhD Program has been a fresh and extremely invigorating opportunity.  Previously I had been a learner with vacuum cleaner mentality.  Anything new, I would inhale and store pell-mell in a heap!  Many of my classes are stressing, modeling, and giving opportunities to practice critical and integrative thinking.  It has been very difficult to understand what the professors are looking for as we struggle to complete the assignments using old habits and ancient tools.  Regurgitation and linear thinking prevailed and won high marks but they are no longer sufficient. 

 As demonstrated by the following interaction on a community Internet chat, obviously I have a long way to go.  One neighbor had posted directions of what to do, “if you are having a heart attack and you are alone, you can help yourself as follows:…” It was labeled as "Self CPR".  I read the information and thought it sounded plausible.  I immediately copied & pasted it in my PDA for future need.  Another message popped up expressing the concern of someone who has taught CPR for years, and another wrote that according to the Snopes website http://www.snopes.com/medical/homecure/coughcpr.asp the directions were not acurate.  While reading the information from Snopes, I realized how easy it can be to blunder into danger when we fail to first, read and think critically, and then research information to validate the information! Although according to Snopes, part of the information was correct, without proper training and the important missing pieces, relying on that information could cause serious harm and possibly death to a person experiencing a heart attack! Although I have not yet had the time to investigate further, it is a great illustration on the importance of research!  A plea came from another neighbor to “Please be careful to research these mass emails before posting or forwarding.” and another mentioned the importance of citing sources.

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