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This third millennium has been variously characterized by sociologists, economists, and futurists as the Creative Age (Florida, 2002), the Digital Age (Thomas & Brown, 2011), and the Conceptual Age...

During the twentieth century, it became clear that national economies can make progress only by investing in human capital. Knowledge increases human productivity and creativity, and society can prosper only through human self-awareness, understanding of the world around them and by increasing the quality of their lives. In the information age, progress was made through information and technology, with particular emphasis on critical thinking. But in the conceptual economy of the 21st century, influenced by three key developments ; over-supply, outsourcing, and automation, it has become clear that critical thinking, even with the help of high technology, is no longer sufficient to make a living or to be competitive in the labor market. In the 'Value age' these capabilities need to be complemented by highly conceptual and highly sensitive traits. The integration of critical and creative thinking is a fundamental factor in personal productivity and the essential condition for achieving sustainable economic development. The self-assessment of Algebra University College students was designed to investigate the extent to which students integrated critical and creative thinking into their own circumstances and to explore whether there is a correlation between the type of thinking they are more inclined to and their study programs.

The world has entered into an era of disruptive innovation where transformation is needed. In the conceptual age, a business needs to have new experiences and create ideas. This paper aims to identify the most important challenges of Small Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in exploiting innovative opportunities. The main issue facing many SMEs - industrial and service with less than 50 employees, is how they can foster effective innovation. There are 118 questionnaires were distributed and gathered from SMEs in Surabaya, Indonesia. This research is using factor analysis which shows the six main challenges: lack of managerial training and experience, inadequate education and skills, national policy and regulatory environment, technological change, lack of market information, and lack of credit. Qualitative approach through interview is also used for interpretation of data. In conclusion, human capabilities and intelligence are not enough to compete but require technology and information to creatively transform.

This introductory chapter sets out the challenges all schools face in preparing young people for a world vastly different from the one most teachers grew up in. It then moves to consider how to design pedagogical activities that are likely to result in creative learning outcomes. The changes that new technologies are making to our living, learning and earning are unprecedented. This means, among other things, that value-adding learning environments will continue to become more digitally resourced, more networked, more self-directed, more software mediated, more open and more accessible. Yet we need to be thinking more radically about what children learn and how they learn it than ‘going digital’ in the learning environment. Fortunately, we are beginning to understand that creativity is a key driver of a sustainable and productive economy for a global and ethical citizenry. Moeover, we now know that creativity is in many respects both teachable and learnable. In understanding how important creative capacity is to the Conceptual Age, teachers can work towards making it less vaporous and more visible as a set of dispositions and capabilities that are at the centre of curriculum design and implementation.

The purpose of our study was to establish the guidelines for interpreting neonatal flash visual-evoked potentials (FVEPs) by examining the correlation between maturation of the waveforms and conceptual age (CA). We retrospectively analyzed 220 consecutive neonatal FVEPs performed on premature and full-term infants. The CA of the participants ranged from 28 to 52 weeks. The FVEPs were categorized into 6 groups according to CA: 28 to 31+ weeks, 32 to 35+ weeks, 36 to 39+ weeks, 40 to 43+ weeks, 44 to 47+weeks, and 48 to 52 weeks. The data were analyzed in each group and compared among these 6 groups. The waveforms changed from 28 weeks to 52 weeks of CA. In the CA age range 28 to 31+ weeks N3 was well visualized, followed by P3. The morphology of P2 including both latency and amplitude became prominent starting from CA age range 32 to 35+ weeks. The triphasic waveform with clear negative-positive-negative components (N2-P2-N3) presented after 32 weeks. Mean P2 latencies decreased steadily with increasing age. Mean amplitudes of all waveforms (P2-N3 and N3-P3) varied except that of N2-P2 which increased steadily with CA. We conclude that FVEPs can be useful in the evaluation of maturation and function of the visual pathway in neonates. The FVEP is abnormal when the waveforms N3 and P3 are nondetectable in neonates at 28 weeks of CA or older; and when the waveform P2 is non-detectable, or has low amplitude or prolonged latency, in neonates at 36 weeks of CA or older.

University CS departments are incorporating game design and development to prepare their students for the game industry's expectations.

PurposeTo highlight the need for a new paradigm for business thinking as the information age matures and white‐collar jobs shift to lower cost providers overseasDesign/methodology/approachThe emphasis of our business culture and education in developed countries has been dominated by a logical, sequential form of thinking associated with the left hemisphere of the brain. To compete, we will now have to promote and develop the type of creative, non‐sequential, “big‐picture” thinking skills that are usually associated with the right hemisphere.FindingsAlthough some people show more creative abilities at an early age than others, we all have these capabilities. Through development with music, breathing, even video games, these right‐brain skills can be stimulated and strengthened.Originality/valueAlthough there has been much research into the different forms of thinking the left and right hemispheres of the brain excel at, this focuses application to a relatively new and alarming trend that threatens business and employment in the USA as knowledge work becomes an outsourceable commodity.

Every child born with deafness displays a pathological language development. An early and specific approach is mandatory, hence requiring an universal hearing screening. Available evidence indicate that performing acoustic otoemissions prior to six months of age is the most reliable method. The recording of the AOE is performed successfully from the 30th week of conceptual age. To obtain AOE in the newborn, one needs to wait until the 3rd day post delivery in 98% of cases. The reliability of the test, the socio-economical cost, the consequences of the screening and the role of the family have to be discussed.

Kita sekarang berada di zaman konsepsual. Ekonomi dan masyarakat yang dibina berdasarkan urutanlogik pada zaman informasi kini disemai untuk memenuhi keperluan emosi dan persepsi dunia. Globalisasitelah mencapakan lagi fenomena ini yang mana ianya menular ke dalam zaman konseptual itu sendiri.Perkara ini telah menyumbang kepada permintaan para pengguna hari ini yang mahukan agar merekadiperakui sebagai individu – mereka menghendaki produk-produk yang mampu membuatkan merekaberasa sesuai selain produk-produk yang boleh berfungsi secara baik untuk mereka. Sehubungan denganitu, ianya amat penting di kalangan pekerja kreatif untuk mengubah cara pemikiran mereka agar dapatdipertingkatkan kemahiran-kemahiran inovasi dan kreatif sejajar dengan kehendak zaman konseptual.Kertas kerja ini memberikan penerangan am mengenai corak perkembangan dan rekabentuk, mengupasciri-ciri pekerja kreatif yang diperlukan dalam ekonomi kreatif dan mencadangkan jenis-jenis latihan yangdiperlukan untuk mempertingkatkan lagi kemahiran-kemahiran inovasi dan kreatif di dalam industri kreatif. Abstract We are now in the conceptual age. The economy and society built on the logical order of the informationage are now nurtured to fulfil the emotional and perceptual world. Globalisation has further magnifiedsuch phenomenon as it encroaches on the conceptual age. Consequently, today’s consumers demandto be treated as individuals – they want products that make them feel right instead of products that canjust do the right thing for them. In conjunction with this, it is now imperative that creative workers need tochange their mind-sets so as to enhance their innovative and creative skills in line with the demands of theconceptual age. This paper aims at providing a general overview of the development and design trend,illuminating on the characteristics of creative workers required in the creative economy and proposingtypes of trainings needed to enhance their innovative and creative skills for creative industries.

The age of mass production with its requirement for high levels of controlled interaction is at an end. The outputs of large, relatively unqualified workforces can now be delivered more quickly and efficiently by technology. The organisation of the twenty first century displays very different characteristics from those of its twentieth century predecessor. The organisation of 2020 will be different again. As we move from the post-industrial age of the knowledge economy into what has been described as the conceptual age organisations are becoming progressively more loosely-knit, constantly reconfiguring entities where a premium is placed on the ability rapidly to adapt to changing competitive environments. Providing leadership to this amorphous entity will be quite a challenge but our models of leadership are still rooted largely in the industrial age and are inappropriate for our current needs, still less our future. Please note this paper was written before the sad death of Steve Jobs.

It is possible that some readers find the book full of notions of abstract reasoning that would astonish a medieval theologian, so to speak. Nevertheless, it becomes clearer by the day that in the emerging Conceptual Age to be able to reflect on abstract ideas and relationships, understand notions that are removed from the mere facts of “here and now,” and perceive analogies between what appear to be totally unrelated entities (and thereby understand higher levels of abstraction), will be the key to the solution of the increasingly complex and subtle problems that characterize the 21st century. As noted several times in this book, the theory of simple ideas and “quick and dirty” solutions is under increasingly suspicion nowadays, and the far-reaching consequences of this suspicion are yet to be assessed.

Statements about 'the Google Generation' and 'Digital Natives' are creating unhelpful generalizations that block the capacity to intervene in superficial information literacy practices. The goal in this paper is to move beyond the cliches of Web 2.0, offering productive and positive trajectories to move librarians, teachers, students and citizens from the information to the conceptual age. The paper has a particular focus on the consequences for education and economic development of investing simplistic phrases with explanatory power.

Extracted from text ... Southern African Journal of Anaesthesia & Analgesia ? March 2006 36 TRAVEL FELLOWSHIP Introduction Ex premature infants less than 60 weeks conceptual age are at risk of apnoea following general anaesthesia. For this reason regional anaesthesia (spinal or caudal) has been advocated to reduce the incidence of apnoea following inguinal surgery in these high-risk infants. Spinal anaesthesia is technically difficult in these infants with a reported failure rate of up to 15%. Caudal block has a longer duration of action and has a higher success rate in experienced hands. However dural puncture, particularly in small infants, is a recognised ..

Because of an increased survival rate in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), more and more “ex-preemies” are presenting to the operating room for surgical procedures. Remember that the premature infant is defined as being less than 37 weeks gestational age. Therefore, an “ex-preemie” by definition has now reached greater than 37 weeks conceptual age. This discussion will consider the anesthetic management of premature, as well as ex-premature, infants.

Purpose: To analyze the effect of presence with or absent of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and its stage, birth weight, conceptual age and associated diseases on the axial length of premature infants' eye. Methods: A total of 102 eyes of 51 premature infants less than 36 weeks of conceptual age were evaluated in this study. Fundus examination for ROP and axial length measurement were conducted at 40, 52 and 64 weeks of postconceptual age. The medical records were reviewed retrospectively. Independent t-test analysis, simple regression analysis, and one-way ANOVA were performed to assess the influence of each factor on axial length. Results: The mean axial length at 40, 52 and 64 weeks were 17.35, 18.80 and 19.78 mm, respectively. The mean axial length with and without ROP at 40 weeks were 17.10 mm and 17.54 mm, respectively, which were statistically significant (p=0.000). There was a significant decrease in axial length at 40 weeks in the higher ROP stage (p

Polygraphic recordings were made on 10 preterm infants recovering from respiratory distress syndrome and 12 healthy preterm control infants at 40, 52, and 64 weeks' conceptual age to study the influence of respiratory distress syndrome on the development of the sleep apnoea profile. Two significant differences were found: infants with respiratory distress syndrome not only had a lower incidence of non-obstructive apnoea and periodic breathing at 40 weeks but also a persistently higher incidence of obstructive and mixed apnoea at 52 and 64 weeks' conceptual age; the latter finding being related to non-rapid eye movement sleep only. While the lower incidence of both types of apnoea at 40 weeks suggests an advanced maturation of respiratory drive, the persistence of obstructive and mixed apnoea related to non-rapid eye movement sleep may reflect the impact of respiratory distress syndrome on airway structures.

Only a few studies have concerned themselves with the development of the fetal vertebral column, and this paper attempts to extend the literature. Standards are presented for the growth in width of the human vertebral column between 10 and 26 weeks of conceptual age. The growth patterns show that cervical and lumbar enlargements are not present at 8 weeks but develop slowly and become clearly present at 26 weeks. The growth equations also show that groups of vertebrae have their own growth patterns, indicating that the vertebral column could be separated into five groups: C1-C5, C6-C7, T1-T12, L1-S1, and S2-S5. Furthermore, comparisons with growth patterns available for growth in length from other studies reveal that some vertebrae appear to develop in one dimension independently of another.

The relative composition of skin, muscle, and bone and their distribution patterns throughout the body are given for a series of Macaca mulatta from 171 days conceptual age through adulthood. In terms of percent of total body weight, the musculature of these animals doubles during the firs postnatal year whereas bone and skin decrease. Regionally, the muscles of the thighs, back extensors, truncal-forelimb and upper arms increase most markedly. The thighs double and the upper arms increase whereas the trunk, hands, feet, and tail decrease. The biomechanical implications of these changes for motor development are discussed.

In utero radiographic measurements of the skull of a rhesus monkey fetus provide estimates of conceptual age and body weight with about a 6% and 15% error of estimate, respectively.

The accuracy and precision of gestational dating, based on single measurements of the fetal biparietal diameter (BPD), was estimated in a consecutive series of 970 apparently normal, singleton pregnancies. The BPD sizes used varied between 11 and 60 mm, corresponding to 9-22 postconceptional weeks. The 'conceptual ages', used for reference, were estimated by means of ultrasonic measurements of the fetal crown--rump lengths (CRL). The association between the estimated conceptual age (dependent variable) and BPD size (independent variable) was found to be well represented (R2 = 0.972) by a second order polynomial: conceptual age = 44.7 + 1.069 X BPD + 0.01382 X BPD X BPD. To check the validity of the proposed equation, we used 23 fetuses conceived by artificial insemination with donor semen as controls. There was good agreement between the virtual conceptual ages of the control cases and their corresponding BPD-estimated conceptual ages (0.5 days mean difference, 3.6 days SD) when the suggested regression equation was used. The estimated precision of BPD-dating was minumum +/- 4.4 days (= +/- 2SD) at 9-10 completed postconceptional weeks. At 14 completed weeks the corresponding precision was found to be +/- 11 days (+/- 2SD). At the end of the studied BPD size interval, i.e. 56-60 mm BPD corresponding to 22 conceptual weeks, the precision was +/- 15 days. From an obstetrical point of view it seems obvious that the imprecision of gestational dating associated with BPD measurements greater than 35 mm should call for ultrasonic dating procedures to be performed earlier in pregnancy.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

To determine whether prematurely born infants with a history of idiopathic apneic episodes are more prone than other infants to life-threatening apnea during recovery from anesthesia, the authors prospectively studied 214 infants (173 full term, 41 premature) who received anesthesia. Fifteen premature infants had a preanesthetic history of idiopathic apnea. Six of these required mechanical ventilation because of idiopathic apneic episodes during emergence from anesthesia. Two were ventilated for other reasons, and seven recovered normally. Infants ventilated for apnea were younger (postnatal age 1.6 +/- 1.2 months, mean +/- SD; conceptual age 38.6 +/- 3.0 weeks) than those who recovered normally (postnatal age 5.6 +/- 2.7 months; conceptual age 55.1 +/- 11.3 weeks) (P less than 0.01). No other premature or full-term infant was ventilated because of postoperative apneic episodes. The authors conclude that anesthetics may unmask a defect in ventilatory control of prematurely born infants younger than 41-46 weeks conceptual age who have a preanesthetic history of idiopathic apnea.

The quality of the awake state and attention in preterm infants has been evaluated by rating indices of attention such as widening of the eye, type of fixation, brightening, scanning, and cessation of sucking measured during visual fixation of patterns. Twenty-six infants ranging from 28 to 32 weeks' gestation at birth (mean, 31 weeks) were tested from one to four weeks postnatally until 36 weeks' gestation. Indices of attention were rated on a scale of 4 with an optimal mean index of 4. A progressive increase in behaviors associated with fixation of visual stimuli has been shown from 32 to 36 weeks of conceptual age. Mean scores ranged from 0.7 at 31 weeks' gestation to 1.8 at 34 weeks' and 2.7 at 36 weeks' gestation. The possibility therefore exists that by as early as 31 to 32 weeks from conception the human brain may be capable of waking states and thus able to process some sensory stimulation.rease in behaviors associated with fixation of visual stimuli has been shown from 32 to 36 weeks of conceptual age. Mean scores ranged from 0.7 at 31 weeks' gestation to 1.8 at 34 weeks' and 2.7 at 36 weeks' gestation. The possibility therefore exists that by as early as 31 to 32 weeks from conception the human brain may be capable of waking states and thus able to process some sensory stimulation.

Sound spectrographic cry analysis was performed on 302 cries of 48 preterm infants born at 30–37 gestational weeks. The cries were recorded during the first week of life and thereafter weekly until the infants were discharged. The control series comprised 54 cries from 27 fullterm healthy infants. The results showed that the cries of the smallest prematures compared with the controls were shorter, more high-pitched, and included bi-phonation and glide more often. The cry characteristics changed with increasing conceptual age and the older the child the more the cry pattern resembled that of the fullterm. The cries of the preterm infants when they had reached 38 conceptual weeks were similar to those of newly born fullterm infants. The results indicate that the gestational age should be taken into consideration in cry analysis.

Infants born at least 10 weeks before term were compared, when they reached 40 weeks conceptual age, with normal full term neonates on their responses to the rhythmical sound of metronome beats. Crying was significantly reduced in the presence of a 144 beat/m stimulus in term neonates whereas there was no such evidence of pacification among the group born before term. It is suggested that the different environments occupied during the 10 weeks of fetal life preceding the experiment might have contributed to the different responses given by infants in the two groups.

Summary. The association between fetal anthropometric measurements and conceptual age was determined for the femur length and the mean of two abdominal diameters for conceptual ages between 10 and 20 completed weeks. The conceptual age used for reference was determined by the fetal crown-rump length measured at an earlier examination. Two equations are presented for the calculation of conceptual age from isolated estimations of the femur length or the mean of two abdominal diameters. Mean abdominal diameter and femur length measurement values were found to have similar precisions of dating.

SUMMARY Absolute and relative growth curves have been determined for the cerebellum and whole brain of the pig foetus from 45 days to term, using fixed material. They have been related to conceptual age and a newly calculated body length curve. Equations are given for predicting (a) conceptual age from crown-rump length, and (b) cerebellum:brain ratio from either conceptual age or crown-rump length.

In a study of individual differences in neonates, frequencies and durations of spontaneous visual alertness were recorded and visual pursuit was measured in 32 2- to 3-day-old healthy neonates. Rank correlations of .60, .65, and .74 between the three visual measures suggested that infants who alerted frequently tended also to be the infants who alerted longest and who were most capable of visual pursuit. The results showed not only this intra-individual stability in the visual behaviors but also high variance between infants in their capacity for visual alertness. The infants' sex, parity, birthweight, estimated conceptual age, and postnatal age were not significantly related to the capacity for visual alertness, nor were the moderate levels of obstetric sedation used in this sample. The three visual measures, while tapping a shared capacity, had different correlates. Frequencies and durations of visual alertness were significantly related to a number of variables which had in common, moderate degrees of underlying activation and arousal. These factors did not contribute to visual pursuit. Sensitivity to auditory stimuli was significantly correlated with the capacity for visual pursuit but was unrelated to other visual measures.

The mean concentration of citric acid in male and non-pregnant female adult guinea pig plasma was 0.308 ± 0.042 mM. Pregnant females with fetuses of 49–69 days gestational age had mean maternal and fetal plasma concentrations of 0.440 ± 0.011 and 0.217 ± 0.053 mM, respectively. Maternal and fetal values were not correlated. Neonates up to 96 h old had plasma citrate values similar to those in the fetus. The citrate concentration of the amniotic fluid was lower than that in fetal plasma and showed a negative correlation with conceptual age (p < 0.01).

We reviewed anaesthetic records of 35 infants with a history of prematurity, who presented for elective herniorrhaphy. We applied a scoring system to help evaluate risk of postoperative complications. Six patients experienced postoperative complications. All six patients had a score of five or more and gave history of either apnoea or a history of moderate bronchopulmonary dysplasia. A preoperative history of apnoea and/or moderate bronchopulmonary dysplasia appear to be valuable markers for postoperative complications. A conceptual age of 40 weeks is an acceptable lower limit of age providing there is no history of apnoea or pulmonary disease.

The “electroencephalographic age” presents an independent parameter for the estimation of the maturational stage of the newborn infant comparable to the determination of bone age by x-ray. Measurements of photically evoked responses render the electroencephalographic method more objective than visual inspection of the electroencephalogram pattern alone. The method is as harmless as translumination by flashlight and can be carried out in the nursery for premature infants by using transportable instruments.

Plasma from six chronically catheterised sheep fetuses of 113–126 days conceptual age showed high levels of corticotrophin at all ages with somewhat higher values towards term. Plasma cortisol was not clearly related to corticotrophin in individual samples but was highly correlated in the pooled data. Short bouts of hypoxia (5–10 min 10% O2 in N2 to the mother) produced no significant change in either corticotrophin or cortisol although small transient changes in PO2 and lactate occurred. The high levels of corticotrophin suggest that the possibility of stress in the chronically catheterised preparation must be considered.

The effect on plasma insulin of elevating plasma glucose levels was studied in exteriorized sheep fetuses of 68 to 142 days conceptual age and in 2 lambs, 1 and 7 days old. Fetuses of less than 110 days showed, at most, only a very small and delayed rise in plasma insulin following an injection of glucose (1.67–3.45 g/kg body weight) into the umbilical vein. In 5 out of 6 fetuses of 110 days and older intravenous glucose (0.54–1.38 g/kg) was followed by a marked but delayed rise in plasma insulin reaching a peak 25–100 min after glucose administration. In the lambs intravenous glucose (1 g/kg) gave an immediate response in plasma insulin. Intraduodenal glucose was also seen to give a marked rise in plasma insulin in a 123 day fetus and 2 lambs. Intravenous fructose (0.65 and 0.55 g/kg) to two older fetuses caused no rise in plasma insulin although glucose given subsequently evoked a marked response. The onset of appearance of a marked response to glucose in the fetus was preceded by a proliferation of secondary islets in the pancreas. The changes in plasma insulin in the exteriorized fetuses and in 2 isolated fetuses suggest that the placenta must be relatively impermeable to insulin, fetal insulin must largely be derived from the fetal pancreas and fetal tissues must take up insulin.

The developmental progress of 68 (94%) of 72 surviving infants born during 1966-69 who weighed 1500 g. (3 lb. 4 oz.) or less at birth has been assessed at follow-up. At a mean conceptual age of 2 years 3 months (range 9 months to 4 years 3 months) 59 (86.7%) appear to be normal children, 5 (7.4%) are abnormal, and 4 (5.9%) are classified as " doubtful ". These results suggest that the prognosis for infants of very low birth weight has improved following the introduction of modern methods of care.