Chapter Summary

The human mind uses the long-term memory, the short-term memory, and a controller in the internal environment in problem solving.

Knowledge can be considered composed of chunks of information that are general, domain-specific, or procedural in content.

The short-term memory is a small (seven chunks, features, or parameters) and fast (0.1 second) processor. Its properties determine how we solve problems. We use the external environment to augment the size of the short-term memory.

The long-term memory is the permanent storage facility in the brain. It is slow to remember, it is fast to recall (sometimes), and it never gets full.

Creative designers are people of average intelligence; they are visualizers, hard workers, constructive nonconformists with knowledge about the problem domain. Creativity takes hard work and can be aided by a good environment, practice, and design procedures.

Because of the size and complexity of most products, design work is usually accomplished by teams rather than by individuals.

Working in teams requires attention to every team member's problem-solving style (including yours)—introverted or extroverted, fact- or possibility-oriented, objective or subjective, decisive or flexible.

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