A Question of Lateral Thinking

There are six eggs in the basket. Six people each take one of the eggs. How can it be that one egg is left in the basket?

Try it; let’s see if u can answer this question. You would if you were familiar with Edward de Bono’s Lateral Thinking methods. His new book How to Have Creative Ideas: 62 exercises to develop the mind (Paperback) is a tool book for such exercises.

This is certainly not for the faint hearted. It focuses on the use of a technique of lateral thinking: the random word. Its premise is that the mind sometimes needs a random input to stimulate a productive train of thought. One picks a word at random and then juxtaposes it to the task. The random word generates new ideas that would have been unlikely in the normal course. In this, there’s is no story. It’s a toolbox for thinking to face life in the real world.

The whole book comprises of 62 games designed to help you learn to make connections where none appear on the surface.

de Bono, a psychologist and physician, has written 70 books with extensive translations. His instruction on thinking have been sought by many organizations: Boeing, BT, Nokia , Sanofi, Rolex, Siemens, 3M, Ericsson, GM, Nestle, Bosch, Goldman Sachs, Ernst & Young and many others.

He writes prolifically about lateral thinking - a concept he pioneered. He defines lateral thinking as methods of changing concepts and perception, wherein innovation and creativity can be improved by using his methods. de Bono is a master of this game and given us tools to develop our minds, to learn, to grow and to live.

Now the answer to the question above: The last person took the basket with the last egg still inside.

G Ravi

I want……(Blogs for product feedback)

Blogs are best used by corporates to either get early product feedback, or to track chatter on their products/ services. This use of blogs as proxy for market research has really tickled the fancy of the corporate world.
EmPower Research specializes in different levels and kinds of analysis of blogs and other forms of new media.
I thought this was a good opportunity to actually use our corporate blog for feedback for various companies on their products and services. I would request my colleagues at EmPower to also input their thoughts here.
To kick start, I will put in my contributions :
a)One thing that I really want is a “track changes” functionality on Microsoft Powerpoint (just like word)…any time I see feedback on a deck (often in the proverbial editor’s blue ink) by my colleagues, I think about how easy it would be to just “track changes”. Hey, are you listening, Mr. Gates?
b)Another one that I really need is a tab on the soda and beer cans that do not break while opening the can! (I have often had to resort to a sharp instrument to then poke it open!)How about it, Mr. Mallya?
Well, that’s it for now. Will post more later.

Grandma's secret...Garlic

For long, our good old grandmas have been staunch believers of garlic's inherent anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties.

Their stand has now been vindicated now by researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in the United States saying that they have found out precisely why garlic makes such a valuable health tonic. Garlic enhances the body’s own production of a compound that relaxes blood vessels, increases blood flow, and prevents blood clots and oxidative damage.

Much of the research into the pharmacological benefits of garlic has focused on the organic polysulphides that the clove is rich in, the best known of which is allicin.

But the new research suggests that allicin and similar biologically active compounds are only a part of the positive effects of garlic and that it is the chemical messenger that is produced when these compounds are metabolised that is important.

Allicin stimulates the release of hydrogen sulfide from red blood cells. Though this compound is lethal in large doses, in minute doses it relaxes the blood vessels and promotes smooth flow of blood, the researchers said.

So the next time, your mom or grandma dish out their secrets, don't wrinkle your nose, but heed to their advice. You never know, research could back up their claim at a later date.