We Need to Talk about… Well, in Language Lessons We Only Have to Talk about Something

I was reading an article about life in other planets and I thought of warm-up (or pocket) activity on religion and the existence of extra-terrestrial intelligence.

It goes like this…

During a conversation course for C1 or C2 students, the teacher can start the lesson by asking students the question:

WOULD THE EXISTENCE OF EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL INTELLIGENCE HAVE A PROFOUND IMPACT ON RELIGION, SHATTERING COMPLETELY THE TRADITIONAL PERSPECTIVE OF GOD'S SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP WITH A MAN?

Right after asking them the question, the teacher could ask them to work pair (or in small groups) and try to say what they think about the topic after they had reflected upon. Ask them to say as much as possible about the existence of extra-terrestrial intelligence and how it would affect people’s lives here on Earth.  

I believe this is one way of providing students with some activities with the purpose of improving their oral abilities. Of course, the teacher must talk to the students about the topic and let make them aware of the purpose of the activity – after all, we don’t want our students to be offended by the questions I make. In some countries, however, this question should never be asked. So, make sure you know when you could use it and in doing so, you would avoid problems with you pupils.

Transcript: So one of my recent columns in Scientific American was called Sky Gods for Skeptics, or as they used to call it, Aliens for Atheists.

Basically the idea is that aliens and extraterrestrials in our imagination—and we haven’t found any yet so they’re all in our imagination—are often portrayed as these almost god-like deities, you know, they’re super advanced technologically, scientifically, morally. They’ve somehow overcome war and poverty and these sorts of things. And so I got to thinking about this. It’s very similar to the religious impulse, which is that: we’re not alone. There is something out there more powerful than us who knows about us and cares about us; who loves us. That’s the kind of deep religious impulse: “We’re not alone.” And that’s the same impulse people get when they think about extraterrestrials.

The crux of my article in Scientific American is that there was there was a new paper published that showed that people who have this longing—so there’s variation in this: some people have more of that longing than others—those who have that longing but are not religious are more likely to believe extraterrestrials are out there.

In other words, if you have the religious beliefs, God, Jesus, Mohammed, whatever your religion is, you don’t really need the aliens, so you’re satisfied with that. But if you don’t have that then you’re more likely to go for the extraterrestrial hypothesis as a viable one in the sense that “it makes me feel good”.

Because let’s face it, religions have no more evidence for god than scientists have for extraterrestrials. It’s all imagination and speculation based on reason and logic and arguments, but we still don’t have any empirical evidence. So short of that I find it interesting that it becomes sort of an emotional appeal or a deep desire for us to feel like there’s somebody else out there, and "I’m not alone". And let’s face it, that does feel good, and there’s nothing wrong with that—but we should always suspend judgment until we actually have evidence for this. We may be the only ones in the cosmos that are sentient beings, and if so, all the more reason we should care for our world and each other, because that would mean this is it.

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“Like... I mean... like er…” The verb 'to like' isn't that complicated, but many of the other uses of the little word are misunderstood and unfairly maligned, says University of Victoria sociolinguist

I asked one question on my profile on Quora and booooom… many answers were proposed to that simple question. After checking some of them out, I came across this article written by Alexandra D’Arcy, who studies the history of like at University of Victoria.

And “using centuries-old texts, personal letters, court documents and even CBC Radio archives from B.C. settlers, she shows that "like" may be increasing in use, but it's not random or a new phenomenon”.

If you think you should read (and listen to) it, I would strongly recommend you to take some minutes in order to read it here (Like, don't blame 'like' on kids these days, says sociolinguist)  

PORTAL DA LÍNGUA INGLESA has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-partly internet websites referred to in this post, and does not guarantee that any context on such websites are, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

In some instances, I have been unable to trace the owners of the pictures used here; therefore, I would appreciate any information that would enable me to do so. Thank you very much.

Is something important missing? Report an error or suggest an improvement. Please, I strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact me!

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SHIRKING RESPONSIBILITIES: THE PETER PAN SYNDROME EXPLAINED

The Peter Pan syndrome is used to describe people who do not want to grow up and assume responsibility. This has a far-reaching effect on all aspects of their life. We will go into a little more detail about this syndrome and understand the nuances of the same.

The Peter Pan syndrome is not recognized as a mental health disorder by the World Health Organization (WHO).

There might have been countless times when you've had to occasionally say 'Oh grow up!' to the significant other, for all the childish behavior that he/she throws your way―the imperative word here being, occasionally. All of us are prone to childish behavior from time to time; and while we may display these nonconformist behavior patterns, it's only a slight detour from our normal behavior, and we come back to being our responsible selves sooner or later. However, what if this irresponsible behavior is not an occasional burst, but is, rather, a set personality?

The Peter Pan syndrome works on these lines. This syndrome describes people who exhibit immature behavior and do not want to grow up or take on adult responsibilities. The term is based on the widely popular book―Peter Pan-the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up by J. M. Barrie, and describes a boy who is cocky and irresponsible. This phenomenon translates into real life much in the same way. Studies suggest that people born in the late 1980s and 1990s are more likely to develop this syndrome owing to reasons of over-protective parents, high costs of living, lack of developing normal, coping mechanisms, and the difficulty in finding partners.

CHARACTERISTIC TRAITS

Even though the Peter Pan Syndrome features in both men and women, it is more common in men than in women. Let us understand the characteristic traits of this syndrome.

AVOID RESPONSIBILITY, SEEK PLEASURE

People who develop this syndrome, seem to do so, like we mentioned before, owing to certain external factors like overprotective parents and tremendous economic and societal pressure. They shirk away from most forms of responsibility and all their energy is focused on finding pleasure in life. In doing which, they manage to shut out their sense of what is right and what is wrong, and they become hedonistic in intent. They glorify their adolescence or childhood―which was sans responsibility and want to be in this state forever.

BROKEN PROMISES AND THE BLAME GAME

They cannot assume responsibility for any of their actions, and if something goes wrong, they are quick to blame others. People with this syndrome cannot necessarily keep promises either. They hate if people are dependent on them.

THE FEAR OF REJECTION

They hate being rejected and are scared of loneliness. Which is why they want to be surrounded by people at all times. In fact, they usually crave to be the center of attention.

LACK OF CONFIDENCE

They are highly concerned about their appearance and hate criticism of any kind. In a way, this is because they lack confidence. Even though it is not very apparent, this low self-esteem drives them to be properly dressed, become the center of attention by developing the gift of the gab and distract people in this manner, such that they do not focus on their negative traits.

EMOTIONS AND THE LACK OF THEM

A person who has this syndrome finds it very difficult to express emotions. They have not developed the coping abilities to life's small disappointments, and therefore, they tend to get hurt easily. To protect themselves from this hurt, they tend to take on an 'I don't care' attitude so that they can justify anything with this statement.

TRENDS IN RELATIONSHIPS

Men are usually more likely to be affected by this syndrome than women. It has been studied that men who are afflicted by this syndrome choose to be in relationships with women who are much younger than themselves. Every time commitment is demanded or the relationship is expected to be taken to a different level, they bail out and end things because they hate taking up responsibilities of any kind. They usually prefer to be in relationships with younger women so that they are not riddled with demands of commitment, and they can continue to live life on a day-today basis, seeking pleasure.

DENIAL AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE

In refusing to take up responsibilities, they manage to avoid confronting and facing problems (both simple and complex), and instead, develop a sense of denial, adopting the policy that if they do not acknowledge the problem, the problem does not exist. In many cases, a direct result of which is that they take to drugs and alcohol to numb their senses, and escape into a world that is devoid of responsibilities.

TROUBLE WITH JOBS

Given that they shirk away from responsibilities, they find it difficult to assume expected and necessary responsibilities at a job. The result of which is that they often find it difficult to sustain a proper job. Even when they are at a stage in their lives where they need to have a proper and steady job, they might, instead, be stuck in menial jobs, which they find difficult to sustain for long periods of time as well.

A person afflicted with the Peter Pan syndrome will usually find it very difficult to adjust in the normal settings of society, doing things that are expected of someone their age. When and if a person ever realizes that he is afflicted with the same and wants to change for the better, a consultation with a counselor and/or psychiatrist is necessary.

Disclaimer - This article is for informative purposes only and does not in any way attempt to replace the advice offered by an expert on the subject.

From: https://psychologenie.com/peter-pan-syndrome-explained

PORTAL DA LÍNGUA INGLESA has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-partly internet websites referred to in this post, and does not guarantee that any context on such websites are, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

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Stanford researchers have found that, contrary to previous studies, insulin levels and a specific genotype pattern don’t predict weight-loss success

Low-fat or low-carb? It’s a draw, study finds

Stanford researchers have found that, contrary to previous studies, insulin levels and a specific genotype pattern don’t predict weight-loss success.

(Original text can be found here)

New evidence from a study at the Stanford University School of Medicine might dismay those who have chosen sides in the low-fat versus low-carb diet debate.

Neither option is superior: Cutting either carbs or fats shaves off excess weight in about the same proportion, according to the study. What’s more, the study inquired whether insulin levels or a specific genotype pattern could predict an individual’s success on either diet. The answer, in both cases, was no.

“We’ve all heard stories of a friend who went on one diet — it worked great — and then another friend tried the same diet, and it didn’t work at all,” said Christopher Gardner, PhD, professor of medicine and the lead author of the study. “It’s because we’re all very different, and we’re just starting to understand the reasons for this diversity. Maybe we shouldn’t be asking what’s the best diet, but what’s the best diet for whom?”

Past research has shown that a range of factors, including genetics, insulin levels (which helps regulate glucose in the body) and the microbiome, might tip the scales when it comes to weight loss. The new study, published Feb. 20 in JAMA, homed in on genetics and insulin, seeking to discover if these nuances of biology would encourage an individual’s body to favor a low-carbohydrate diet or a low-fat diet. The senior authors of the study are Gardner; Abby King, PhD, professor of health research and policy and of medicine; Manisha Desai, PhD, professor of medicine and of biomedical data science; and John Ioannidis, MD, DSc, professor of medicine.

A TALE OF TWO DIETS

In his quest to find out if individual biological factors dictate weight loss, Gardner recruited 609 participants between the ages of 18 and 50. About half were men and half were women. All were randomized into one of two dietary groups: low-carbohydrate or low-fat. Each group was instructed to maintain their diet for one year. (By the end of that year, about 20 percent of participants had dropped out of the study, due to outside circumstances, Gardner noted.)

Individuals participated in two pre-study activities, the results of which were later tested as predictors of weight loss. Participants got part of their genome sequenced, allowing scientists to look for specific gene patterns associated with producing proteins that modify carbohydrate or fat metabolism. Then, participants took a baseline insulin test, in which they drank a shot of glucose (think corn syrup) on an empty stomach, and researchers measured their bodies’ insulin outputs.

In the initial eight weeks of the study, participants were told to limit their daily carbohydrate or fat intake to just 20 grams, which is about what can be found in a 1½ slices of whole wheat bread or in a generous handful of nuts, respectively. After the second month, Gardner’s team instructed the groups to make incremental small adjustments as needed, adding back 5-15 grams of fat or carbs gradually, aiming to reach a balance they believed they could maintain for the rest of their lives. At the end of the 12 months, those on a low-fat diet reported a daily average fat intake of 57 grams; those on low-carb ingested about 132 grams of carbohydrates per day. Those statistics pleased Gardner, given that average fat consumption for the participants before the study started was around 87 grams a day, and average carbohydrate intake was about 247 grams.

What’s key, Gardner said, was emphasizing that these were healthy low-fat and low-carb diets: A soda might be low-fat, but it’s certainly not healthy. Lard may be low-carb, but an avocado would be healthier. “We made sure to tell everybody, regardless of which diet they were on, to go to the farmer’s market, and don’t buy processed convenience food crap. Also, we advised them to diet in a way that didn’t make them feel hungry or deprived — otherwise it’s hard to maintain the diet in the long run,” said Gardner, who holds the Rehnborg Farquhar Professorship. “We wanted them to choose a low-fat or low-carb diet plan that they could potentially follow forever, rather than a diet that they’d drop when the study ended.”

CONTINUING TO MINE THE DATA

Over the 12-month period, researchers tracked the progress of participants, logging information about weight, body composition, baseline insulin levels and how many grams of fat or carbohydrate they consumed daily. By the end of the study, individuals in the two groups had lost, on average, 13 pounds. There was still, however, immense weight loss variability among them; some dropped upward of 60 pounds, while others gained close to 15 or 20. But, contrary to the study hypotheses, Gardner found no associations between the genotype pattern or baseline insulin levels and a propensity to succeed on either diet.

“This study closes the door on some questions — but it opens the door to others. We have gobs of data that we can use in secondary, exploratory studies,” he said. Gardner and his team are continuing to delve into their databanks, now asking if the microbiome, epigenetics or a different gene expression pattern can clue them in to why there’s such drastic variability between dieting individuals.

Perhaps the biggest takeaway from this study, Gardner said, is that the fundamental strategy for losing weight with either a low-fat or a low-carb approach is similar. Eat less sugar, less refined flour and as many vegetables as possible. Go for whole foods, whether that is a wheatberry salad or grass-fed beef. “On both sides, we heard from people who had lost the most weight that we had helped them change their relationship to food, and that now they were more thoughtful about how they ate,” said Gardner.

Moving forward, he and his team will continue to analyze the reams of data collected during the yearlong study, and they hope to partner with scientists across Stanford to uncover keys to individual weight loss.

“I’m hoping that we can come up with signatures of sorts,” he said. “I feel like we owe it to Americans to be smarter than to just say ‘eat less.’ I still think there is an opportunity to discover some personalization to it — now we just need to work on tying the pieces together.”

The study’s other Stanford co-authors are postdoctoral scholars John Trepanowski, PhD, and Michelle Hauser MD; research fellow Liana Del Gobbo; and senior biostatistician, Joseph Rigdon, PhD.

Gardner, Desai and Ioannidis are members of the Stanford Cancer Institute. Gardner and Ioannidis are members of the Stanford Cardiovascular Institute. Gardner and Desai are members of the Stanford Child Health Research Institute. Gardner is a member of Stanford ChEM-H. Ioannidis is a member of Stanford Bio-X.

The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health (grants 1R01DK091831, T32HL007034 and 1K12GM088033), the Nutrition Science Initiative and Stanford’s Clinical and Translational Science Award (grant UL1TR001085).

Stanford’s departments of Medicine and of Health Research and Policy also supported the work.

PORTAL DA LÍNGUA INGLESA has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-partly internet websites referred to in this post, and does not guarantee that any context on such websites are, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

In some instances, I have been unable to trace the owners of the pictures used here; therefore, I would appreciate any information that would enable me to do so. Thank you very much.

Is something important missing? Report an error or suggest an improvement. Please, I strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact me!

Your feedback is welcome. Please direct comments and questions to me at bruno_coriolano@hotmail.com

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Glasses wearers really are more intelligent - it's in the genes

As leis da União Europeia exigem que eu informe aos visitantes da UE sobre os cookies usados e os dados coletados no meu blog. em muitos casos, essas leis também exigem que eu tenha o consentimento deles. Aviso, então, que não coleto dados de ninguém e aproveito para dizer que não tenho o menor interesse na vida privada das pessoas que visitam este blog.

It may seem merely a cliche born of centuries of educated people straining their eyes in dimly-lit libraries, but new genetic research suggests those who wear glasses really are more intelligent.

Researchers at the University of Edinburgh analysed the genetic data of more than 44,480 people.

They found that, overall, those who were more intelligent were nearly 30 per cent more likely to have genes indicating they require reading glasses than those who scored poorly.

Published in the journal Nature Communications, the research also linked higher cognitive ability to genes known to play a part in better cardiovascular health.

The results are based on the most thorough investigation of intelligence genes of its kind to date.

The research team examined 148 genomic regions related to better cognitive function, including 58 that have not previously been reported.

They said the results could help understanding of the declines in cognitive function that happen with illness and as people age.

Because of the study’s design it is not possible to say why there is a genetic correlation between intelligence, poor eyesight and cardiovascular health.

However, Dr Gail Davies, of University of Edinburgh's Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology, who led the analysis, said:

"This study, the largest genetic study of cognitive function, has identified many genetic differences that contribute to the heritability of thinking skills.

"The discovery of shared genetic effects on health outcomes and brain structure provides a foundation for exploring the mechanisms by which these differences influence thinking skills throughout a lifetime."

Those who participated in the study had all taken a variety of thinking tests which were summarised as a general cognitive ability score.

All had genetic testing that examined their DNA and none of the people had dementia or a stroke.

From: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2018/05/29/glasses-wearers-really-intelligent-genes/

PORTAL DA LÍNGUA INGLESA has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-partly internet websites referred to in this post, and does not guarantee that any context on such websites are, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

In some instances, I have been unable to trace the owners of the pictures used here; therefore, I would appreciate any information that would enable me to do so. Thank you very much.

Is something important missing? Report an error or suggest an improvement. Please, I strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact me!

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The universe is a hologram: Stephen Hawking's final words?

“For a tiny fraction of a second after the Big Bang, the universe expanded incredibly rapidly before settling into its present state.”

Do we live in a matrix? Well, to honest with you, I have absolutely no idea of how I could explain the reason why I’m asking you this crazy question. I don’t even know if there is anything that can be explained in this world. The only thing I know is that reading is one of the most important skills in any language – or at least I believe it is. Taking that into account, I just would like to share this article with you – it has been recently published and brings some food for thought, especially for those who love Stephen Hawking and Physics – so that you may improve your reading skills by reading it.

Stephen Hawking has revealed from beyond the grave his final scientific theory - that the universe is a hologram.

The cosmologist, who died on March 14, has challenged previous theories of cosmic "inflation" and the "multiverse" in a new paper published in the Journal Of High Energy Physics.

Scientists generally believe that for a tiny fraction of a second after the Big Bang, the universe expanded incredibly rapidly before settling into its present state, filled with stars and galaxies - the inflation theory.

But some have proposed that, on a grander global scale, inflation goes on forever, giving rise to a "multiverse" - a number of different universes with their own laws of physics.

Prof Hawking was always troubled by this idea, which at a fundamental level cannot be reconciled with Einstein's theory of General Relativity. In an interview last year he said: "I have never been a fan of the multiverse."

Working with Belgian colleague Professor Thomas Hertog, Prof Hawking extended the weird notion of a holographic reality to explain how the universe came into being from the moment of the Big Bang.

The new theory embraces the strange concept that the universe is like a vast and complex hologram. In other words, 3D reality is an illusion, and that the  apparently "solid" world around us - and the dimension of time - is projected from information stored on a flat 2D surface.

Hawking and Hertog's variation of the holography theory overcomes the problem of combining eternal inflation with General Relativity.

Prof Hertog, from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KT Leuven),  said: "It's a very precise mathematical notion of holography that has come out of string theory in the last few years which is not fully understood but is mind-boggling and changes the scene completely."

Applied to inflation, the newly published theory suggests that time and "the beginning" of the universe arose holographically from an unknowable state outside the Big Bang.

Prof Hawking said before his death: "We are not down to a single, unique universe, but our findings imply a significant reduction of the multiverse, to a much smaller range of possible universes."

From:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/05/02/professor-stephen-hawkings-final-theory-universe-hologram/

PORTAL DA LÍNGUA INGLESA has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-partly internet websites referred to in this post, and does not guarantee that any context on such websites are, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

In some instances, I have been unable to trace the owners of the pictures used here; therefore, I would appreciate any information that would enable me to do so. Thank you very much.

Is something important missing? Report an error or suggest an improvement. Please, I strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact me!

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6 (very useful!) Approaches to identify research gaps and generate research questions

First let’s start with a question: what is “research gap”? Research gap is a research question or problem which has not been answered appropriately or at all in a given field of study. Research gap is actually what makes your research publishable, why? Because it shows you are not just duplicating existing research; it shows you have a deep understanding of the status of the body of knowledge in your chosen field; and finally it shows that you have conducted a research which fulfills that gap in the literature.

Researchers, particularly those pursuing Master’s or PhD often find it difficult to identify the gaps in the body of knowledge in their own chosen fields. Identifying gaps and generating research questions can be regarded as the first and most important step in writing a research paper. Of course there are many approaches for overcoming this difficulty, but finding original and innovative topics, and distinguishing gaps in the literature is never an easy feat. There are different approaches to employ and not all researchers, especially younger ones, are aware of them. Here, we will try to briefly discuss them.

For starters, considering the gap finding issue, three classes of researchers can be distinguished:

• The first class is mainly the class of researchers who act according to their personal enthusiasm. These researchers have complete proficiency in their chosen field which is the result of years of experience or a rich body of knowledge acquired after covering all the important papers in their field of study.
• The second class is encouraged by peripheral factors. For instance, a researcher may choose a particular college and a certain professor. That professor might have a specific project in hand and he may suggest this project to you. The, you would investigate and if the project is close to your expectations for a masters or PhD degree, you will select it.
• It is really the same story with the third group. Again a peripheral factor, this time not the professor, forces the researcher to select a topic. For instance, the environment the researcher has grown up in, and the needs of that environment, i.e. society, will force him to focus mostly, for example, on agricultural sector.

So far we have discussed three classes of researchers each of whom chooses a topic in a different way. But what if you are not knowledgeable in your field? What if you do not want to choose a topic based on your professor’s interest? What if environmental factors are not of importance for you? Well, there are other approaches you can use in order to find a gap, topic or a popular trend in your chosen field of study; some are simple and some other sophisticated:

1. The easiest way would to read specific parts of the articles in your field of study. Of course there may be hundreds of articles in your field, but you have to find the most suitable ones by measuring their value and finding out how influential they are. After finding the most suitable articles (there are tools which can help you in this regard, but we are not discussing them here) you should examine the parts which include “introduction” section, which always has a sentence or two about the reasons why that research is done; “conclusion” section and of course “suggestions for future research”section in which the author of the article, having examined the literature and conducted a research himself, would point his readers to areas which lack investigation or need closer examination.

1. One other approach is to read systematic reviews. These papers delve deep into the literature and examine the trends and changes in a discipline or specific field of study and provide summaries of the literature which can in some cases save a lot of research time. Moreover, content analysis reports, citation analysis reports and meta-analysis reports can be very illuminating and helpful, especially the later which reports the findings of the previous researches.

1. Another approach is to visit the website of the most prominent and influential journals in your field of study. These journals often have a “Key Concepts” section which aims to assist the journal’s audience to develop an appreciation of central ideas in that field and to approach the content of articles from a perspective which is informed by present debate on aspects of both theory and practice. Key Concepts are usually very short articles and each one is dedicated to one specific topic. They are often written by well-known scholars who are expert in that field of study or topic. There is also a reference section in “Key Concept” papers which introduces the most important papers or books written about that topic.

1. There is another type of paper which is called “State of the Art” paper. State of the Art papers summarize the state of knowledge on a specific subject. They delimit research frontiers and identify fruitful and promising areas of future research. They can be classified under systematic review papers.

Now the above mentioned were some general and rather simple approaches to finding gaps, research questions and topics. There are also tools and more sophisticated approaches which can save you research time and give you better overview of the current trends and areas of interests in your field of study:

1. One of these tools is developed by Thomson Reuters; it is called “Essential Science Indicator”. Some universities have access to this website. If your college has provided you access to this website then you utilize it. It tells you about the most cited papers in each field, the new areas or branches that have been developing in that field. It also identifies the influential individuals, institutions, papers, publications, and countries in that field.

1. You can also use “Google Trends” in order to find out if the popularity or interest in a topic is increasing or decreasing, you can also use this tool to compare various topics with each other and see which one is more popular. Google Trends also provides “regional interest” index; this piece of information shows which topic is hot or popular in which country. Another piece of information provided by Google Trends is “related searches” which provides queries similar to yours and the name of the authors who are active in the topic you have searched.

There are other websites and tools such as Social Mention, Springer, Google Ads, and BroadReader which provide more sophisticated information regarding the queries such as their popularity, various bars and charts which demonstrate the trends in different time spans, the most recent articles that have been downloaded and their related tags ad etc. You can find a more detailed discussion of these tools in the following mind map:

http://tcfex.com/research-tools-box-ale-ebrahim/

As you work with these tools and manipulate them you begin to understand how they work and which one is best for your field of study. But keep one thing in mind, try to use only one of them and master utilizing it. These tools can save you an enormous amount of research time and effort and open new doors in your life. Do not underestimate their value and start using them.

And, one more thing for professional researchers:

Well, here is a food for thought: what we discussed above was the conventional approaches to gap spotting and generating topics and research questions. However, there always other and new ways of approaching research questions. For instance, Alvesson and Sandberg state that although gap spotting is the prevalent way of constructing research questions, these “established ways of generating research questions rarely express more ambitious and systematic attempts to challenge the assumptions underlying existing theories” (Alvesson & Sandberg, 2011). Thus, they propose an alternative method:

Our aim in this study is to integrate the positive and the negative research agenda by developing and proposing problematization as a methodology for identifying and challenging assumptions that underlie existing theories and, based on that, generating research questions that lead to the development of more interesting and influential theories within management studies (Alvesson & Sandberg, 2011).

They have developed a typology of the type of assumptions that can be problematized in the existing theories and proposed a set of methodological principles to approach the problematization concept. Although appealing, the problematization method can be a bit risky, since it may involve challenging existing paradigms and their underpinning ontological and epistemological assumptions. In fact, Alvesson and Sandberg too mention that “challenging assumptions is often risky, since it means questioning existing power relations in a scientific field, which may result in upsetting colleagues, reviewers, and editors and, thus, may reduce the chances of having an article published” (Alvesson & Sandberg, 2011).

So if you dare, there can always be new ways of approaching research questions, although the method proposed by Alvesson and Sandberg may not, for obvious reasons(!), be suitable for young researchers at all and as all university professors tell their students, “don’t try to take on too ambitious projects at first”.

References

Alvesson, M., & Sandberg, J. (2011). GENERATING RESEARCH QUESTIONS THROUGH PROBLEMATIZATION. Academy of Management Review. doi:10.5465/AMR.2011.59330882

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140912150946-275561203-6-very-useful-approaches-to-identify-research-gaps-and-generate-research-questions/