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Personal Brain

Sean Moroney

Description This is one of a number of mind-mapping programs; this one is released by a company called TheBrain Technologies. Mind mapping is an analytical process of exploring ideas that are related to each other and setting up a graphical display in which the ideas are represented as nodes with links connecting one to another. In the display, which is commonly 2-dimensional, the links may be directed line segments that indicate a hierarchical relationship. Other types of links may be defined. One such useful type of link might be an association between two ideas unique to the individual setting up the map. A software program representing a mind-map is far more flexible than a map made on paper, in that the map can be moved around, with the central position containing different nodes. This allows for a dynamic assessment of relationships between ideas. Not yet developed (as far as I know) is a 3-dimensional extension of this idea; it could be implemented holographically, but the technology isn’t there yet.

Impact on Teaching and Learning Mapping ideas and their relationships can be useful to a teacher, in that the subject matter of a course can have links made to practical real-world ideas. I’m thinking primarily of teaching in a physics class. There is a flow of ideas that have to be presented to convey the material of the subject. The subject becomes more lively if the instructor can have a set of related topics on which to move tangentially, providing applications and insights. For the student, the mind-map will be a work in progress as knowledge is gained about the subject matter of the course. New concepts can start at new nodes. As these become integrated with the whole of the knowledge gained so far, links can be made between separate parts. By manipulating the map and exploring the ideas that can move into proximity with one another, the student can begin to see connections between different chunks of knowledge, and perhaps even bridges between different fields.

Examples or Demonstrations The following link connects to webinars that discuss applications of the program. While this link is to the home page of the program, which means it might be construed as advertising, it does provide some useful insights. Some videos are also provided by the company; all of these are found at the link http://www.thebrain.com/community/recorded-events/. The types of applications found were primarily business and management. There is no reason evident why applications can’t be set up for any field of knowledge

Practical Applications This can be thought of as a tool for memory enhancement. By structuring knowledge in a mind-map format, things forgotten or things not yet known can become accessible. This can be a tool for discovery of new knowledge as well as a tool for the reinforcement of previous learning. Not yet on the horizon are textbooks that come with mind-maps of the subject matter. This is something that can enhance studying. In addition, it should be possible to link two textbooks together to see the relationships that can be detected between different branches of knowledge.

External Links http://www.thebrain.com/ - This is the company that offers the PersonalBrain software.