Mining the Generational Curriculum


wisdom is better than silver and gold...


Table of Contents

Instructions for this report found here
  1. Music and Driving: Music... To Ease Your Mindby Terence Nakamatsu
  2. How Music Affects Drivers: Music to Drive By by Thaddeus Oba
  3. Definitions of Traffic Psychology: What A Driver Knows by Chris Flores
  4. How Drivers Communicate with Each Other: Opening Your Eyes by Jayson Nakasone
Suggestions for Future Generations


SELECTION 1: Music and Driving: Music... To Ease Your Mind

by Terence Nakamatsu

Why I Chose This Report:

I chose this report because I am interested in how music affects the way people drive. Choosing this report seemed like a good way to look into this connection. I chose Terence's report in particular because the title caught my attention. While I'm driving, as well as doing practically everything else, I love music. I need music. When you're alone, driving without music is torture. Whether it's reggae, rock, hip-hop, blues, jazz, or soul; music makes any drive more pleasurable for me.

Steps That Led Me to This Report:

I found this report by using Dr. James subject index. It was under the heading of Driving and Music.

Summary of This Report:

Terence starts off his report with a number of summaries and responses to e-mail postings from past generations, bringing in his own personal experiences and ideas. Then he moves on to discuss various factors involved in how music may affect driving behavior. First he considers the idea that "different types of music can affect different people in different ways," giving the web explorer the option of listening to several different types of music. Then he brings up the volume of the music. I think that volume is perhaps one of the more important of the factors, mainly because at very high levels, the music prevent you from hearing things like sirens and screeching tires; (not to mention people yelling at you.) He realizes this danger but "despite the dangers, will still listen to music at loud volumes." Next, Terence talks about what he believes has the most impact on the way we drive: music tempo. He poses the question, "Can you consciously listen to a slow song like, "Memories" by Elvis, and race someone?" Perhaps. Last, he gives links to several reports on Music and Driving and a short review of each. He also devotes a reference section with interesting topics he found by searching through Eric and Uncover. He concludes with the suggestion that a change in the music you listen to could improve your driving. "You'll be amazed what a change in music could do for you. I tried it and it made me a better driver."

Reaction to This Report:

I enjoyed Terence's report. He does a good job of supporting his views with examples, quotes from prior students, and his own personal experience. Although I don't agree with him on some issues, he seems to have a good grasp on the relationship between music and driving. One good point which he makes in his conclusion is that music can influence the way you drive, however, you are in control of the music, your car, and your mind."

Comparison to Other Reports:

Terence's report was well organized, easy to follow, and a good example of a polished looking web page. It is one of the best web pages that I found looking while mining through the generational reports. It surpassed other's pages with it's style and neat organization. The optional music files are a good addition, giving people the opportunity to listen to different types of music. You can tell that he spent quite a bit more time on this report than others who did this topic.

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SELECTION 2: How Music Affects Drivers: Music to Drive By

h3>by Thaddeus Oba

Why I Chose This Report:

I decided to look at selections on music and driving because I was interested in the relationship between the two. While browsing through different reports on music and driving, I came upon this one. It looked modest and simple, with a detailed Table of Contents, so I began to look through it. Things aren't always better when they are fancy. Like the old saying goes, you can't judge a web page...

Steps That Led Me to This Report:

I found this report by using Dr. James subject index. It was under the heading of Driving and Music.

Summary of This Report:

Thaddeus begins his report with his reactions to e-mail posts. Despite the fact that there is no form of introduction, at least the words music and driving are in the title. His e-mail reactions are intelligent, but since he doesn't show the actual e-mails, it's a guessing game as to what exactly he is reacting to. He mentions that "the problem is not the music, but one's low ability to filter out stimuli which may hinder driving." I would have to agree. I think that some people are better than others at directing their focus of attention. Some people also seem to have an easier time focusing attention on multiple tasks simultaneously. (i.e.-driving, drinking coffee, and singing along to their favorite song.) He responds to one e-mail about the influence of news or commentaries which may elicit emotional responses, thereby affecting one's driving. Thaddeus repeatedly responds to these e-mails with one central theme: "music can influence one's driving behaviors; but it is how the driver reacts to the music and how they can control themselves, in terms of not projecting the aggressive beat to their driving behaviors." He goes on to give a personal recount of music in his life and his driving career. He reflects on how his musical taste has changed and how that music has affected his emotions while driving. He mentions that his "self control and self regulation allowed him to discriminate between the emotions he felt and his performance on the road." He comments on a couple of newsgroups, and gives links to other students' of his generation which did similar reports. A short review of how "Rothe hasn't really covered explicitly the topic of music and driving" and "there weren't many resources in ERIC." He concludes by saying that future generations, in doing this report, should "bring their own personal experiences with music and driving and come up with a theory on why music does have an emotional impact on our driving."

Reaction to This Report:

I found Thaddeus' report to be lacking in several aspects. First of all, I think he should have started out with some sort of introduction. He leaves it up to the reader to figure out what this web page is all about. Second, he responds to e-mails which can't be found anywhere on his page; not even the links. The reader is forced to speculate on what the e-mail actually said, if it was even a real e-mail at all. Also, his reactions seemed to be too repetitive, with not enough insight; a regurgitation of a few simple ideas. It wasn't all bad however; I do agree with the some of the ideas that he does present. It was interesting how he gave tha suggestion to future generations to "come up with a theory on why music has an emotional impact on our driving." Maybe he should have done that, instead of passing the duty off to others.

Comparison to Other Reports:

I found Thaddeus' report to be mediocre at best. Especially after reading Terence Nakamatsu's well organized and creative report. I did like the simple format and the reactions, despite the guessing game about the actual e-mails.

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SELECTION 3: Definitions of Traffic Psychology: What A Driver Knows

by Chris Flores, G10

Why I Chose This Report:

While browsing through Dr. James subject index under the heading of Traffic Psychology: Definitions; I happened to notice Chris's name. He was a classmate of mine in high school. I decided to investigate...

Steps That Led Me to This Report:

I decided to do one of my reports on the definitions of Traffic Psychology. I figured I might as well start looking into some of the reports of past generations on this subject. Using Dr. James subject index, I found the heading entitled, "Traffic Psychology: Definitions."

Summary of This Report:

Chris begins his report with reviews of past reports on this subject, along with a personal response to each. He gives other students' definitions of Traffic Psychology. Mentioning how he disagrees with Cheddiemae deRizzio, G8; he says, "I agree with her on the fact that the cognitive side is very important in understanding drivers, but she makes no mention of the other two aspects, the affective and sensorimotor domains. Sometimes your feeling can take over and you won't even think before you act." I agree. I think that affect can take over sometimes; that is why a driver must use the cognitive side to regulate feelings and emotions, and not let them distract the focus of the task at hand: safe driving. He mentions the responsibility of the passenger to help the driver by providing another pair of eyes and ears. Passengers can be helpful when pulling out of a driveway, parallel parking, watching for things on the road that the driver may not see, etc. Besides modifying our own driving, he says "we need to realize that there are different driving personalities on the road and we have to know how to recognize them and how to deal with them." I couldn't agree more. No matter how much you are able to modify your own driving and attitudes toward driving, there will always be other drivers out there; aggressive drivers, under-aggressive drivers, angry drivers, clueless drivers, and people who simply don't know how to drive. The list is endless. Every driver is unique. You have to realize this and be able to deal with it. Chris finishes off his report by giving his ideas and personal accounts of his experiences as a driver, a pedestrian, a passenger, and as a moped rider. He advises future generations that they could improve upon his report by using more than just five definitions, and look for different points of view like those of experts in traffic psychology, rather than just those of students. Good advice, but the trouble is: I think Dr. James is one of the only people in the world who would qualify as such. Perhaps in time the field of Traffic Psychology will become a more prominent subject, both in print and on the Internet.

Reaction to This Report:

Reaction: Chris' report was informative and easy to follow. He does a good job of summarizing the main points and opinions of past reports, along with giving his own personal opinions and ideas in response to each. After reading this report, I felt that I gained quite a bit of information on different definitions of Traffic Psychology, some better than others; but all providing different points of view on a very new and undefined field.

Comparison to Other Reports:

I found Chris' report to be straight-forward and informative. Some of the other reports I found were more comprehensive. Two good reports I found were those of Lisa Among, G6 and Chris Murakami, G6. Others were not as well organized, simply unattractive, or confusing.

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SELECTION 4: How Drivers Communicate with Each Other: Opening Your Eyes

by Jayson Nakasone, G10

Why I Chose This Report:

While browsing through Dr. James subject index under the heading of Traffic Psychology: Definitions; I happened to notice Jayson's name. He was a classmate of mine in high school. I decided to investigate...

Steps That Led Me to This Report:

I decided to do one of my reports on the definitions of Traffic Psychology. I figured I might as well start looking into some of the reports of past generations on this subject. Using Dr. James subject index, I found the heading entitled, "Traffic Psychology: Definitions."

Summary of This Report:

Upon reading Jayson's report, it became painfully clear that it looked very familiar. It reminded me a lot of Chris Flores'. In fact, they seemed to have exactly the same views and responses to five of the same people's reports from the past. Jayson did include an extra navigation table though. They also seemed to share many of the same experiences. Jayson adds, "I don't believe that taking a 10-minute written exam and a 20 minute road test prepares a person for driving. Norms and other 'courtesy laws are understood by a very few drivers out there." I agree, I think that requiring new drivers to take a mandatory class in driver courtesy and the basics of Traffic Psychology would be a good idea. Also, I think it would be a good idea to require drivers past a certain age to take the driving test in order to renew their license. As people grow older, their sight, hearing, reaction time, and many other factors decline. Jayson goes on to mention his views on being a passenger. In regards to "backseat drivers" he writes, "I leave the driving style to the driver without question. I believe the people I ride with don't want to get in an accident themselves, so they do know their limits." I agree. When you get into someone's car, you have to realize that it is their car, and they are driving. You are the passenger. Unless you have something helpful to say like, "Watch out for that semi!!!" then you should sit in your seat quietly and enjoy the ride. Jayson then mentions his angst towards pedestrians. "The street is made for cars, not walking. That's why the make sidewalks.. The law should protect the law abiders and have no mercy on the ignorant." I agree that pedestrians should keep off the street, but the ultimate responsibility is on the driver. There are always going to be people who, for one reason or another, put themselves in harm's way. It is the responsible drivers duty to be aware of things going on around them and deal with it. Jayson advises future generations to be more aware of the different driving situations and ways of transportation. "A person cannot have the same mentality riding a bike as with driving a car."

Reaction to This Report:

Jayson's report was virtually identical to Chris Flores', with the exception of some additions to the five definitions and some rearranging and repackaging. This made it slightly better than Chris'.

Comparison to Other Reports:

I found Jayson's report to by straightforward and informative. Some of the other reports I found were more comprehensive. Two good reports I found were those of Lisa Among, G6 and http://www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/459ss97/chrismur/report2.html>Chris Murakami, G6. Others were not as well organized, simply unattractive, or confusing.

Suggestions for Future Generations

One way to improve is to use more definitions than just five. It will be easier for future generations because they will have one more generation to search through to find new definitions. There are also a lot of new sites and newsgroups popping up which may prove to be very informative. These can provide different perspectives on a subject which is still very young and under-researched. And finally, I'll repeat what Dr. James said from the very beginning, don't procrastinate! This class seems to have a very high dropout rate due the intense nature of the combination of a writing intensive course with a sink or swim computer class. Do a little at a time. Start early. Otherwise you will not finish.

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