The article discusses the nature of humanistic knowledge. Analyzing the relation between aesthetic judgment, literacy and knowledge as defined by the French seventeenth-century Jansenist school of Port-Royal, the article argues that Port-Royal's interpretation of the enthymeme can be used to define the cognitive basis of aesthetic judgments in the…

Asserts that humanities computing techniques and methodologies remain marginal to mainstream literary scholarship. Argues for large scale analyses of text databases that would incorporate a shift in theoretical orientation to include greater stress on intertextuality and sign theory. (CFR)

In this article, the author describes seven movement-related areas of cognitive neuroscience research that will play key roles in shifting the current behavioral orientation of teaching and learning to an orientation that also incorporates cognitive neuroscience discoveries. These areas of brain research include: (1) mirroring system; (2) plastic…

In an attempt to find out more about how creative people engage in thinking, more than 50 men and women considered to be prominant in the humanities, the arts, and the sciences were interviewed. Letters, diaries and autobiographies of other creative individuals were examined in an effort to provide a broad base for studying the psychology of…

Discusses "Minds and Machines," a one-semester undergraduate course for nontechnical majors. Explains that the course examines how philosophical problems of knowledge, cognition, language, and human nature can be investigated with computer-related concepts and techniques. Describes experiments conducted during the course, including mind…

In 1984, Community College of Philadelphia received a $250,000 Ford Foundation grant to design and implement a transfer curriculum for predominantly poor, minority students. This paper describes the humanities faculty's team efforts to model a vital intellectual community for students by revamping curriculum approaches, value frameworks, and…

In three major reports on higher education, some common problems emerged as recurrent themes: the absence of faculty responsibility for the curriculum as a whole, the lack of structure in baccalaureate programs, emphasis on specialization results in a tendency to downplay the humanities, thinking and problem solving skills are neglected. (MLW)

Contends that appropriately designed questions are essential tools in disciplining students' thoughts and reasoning ability. Discusses classroom techniques for using questioning strategies in an interdisciplinary humanities seminar. Includes questioning scenarios for seeking information, interpretation, and speculation/hypothesizing. (CFR)

It is one thing to lament the financial pressures put on universities, quite another to face up to the poverty of resources for thinking about what universities should do when they purport to offer a liberal education. In "Powers of the Mind", former University of Chicago dean Donald N. Levine enriches those resources by proposing fresh…

Contends that an integrated curriculum approach increases student motivation and makes learning easier because lessons have wider applications. Suggests that discipline-based art education promotes an interdisciplinary approach, particularly with social studies and language arts. Provides an example of an instructional unit combining social…

Responds to Arthur Efland's analysis of the relationship between current theories of teaching and learning and preservice art teacher education. Asserts that the cultural pluralism of today's schools is a significant factor in curriculum planning for art education. Discusses three characteristics of successful art teachers. (CFR)