EEL 4515 – Digital Communications Course Project #1 Electrical & Computer Engineering

Course Project #1: Lifelong Learning in Electrical and Computer Engineering

Versailles Simmons / SSN: 8403
EEL 4515 – Digital Communications Course Project #1 Electrical & Computer Engineering

In the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, continued learning is essential in the
natural progression of society. Recently, President Barack Obama spoke at his state of the union address
and emphasized the importance of advancing our technology and looking to discover new methods and
technology to reduce our dependency on nonrenewable resources and become a nation of respect and
competition as America once was. It seems the motivation has diminished in America to be the first and
the best at accomplishing new technology and setting the standards for the future. In a context such as the
one stated above, continued learning becomes very important in the status and well being of a nation and
its citizens.

Learning follows the theory given by Bloom’s Taxonomy and by basic theories described in general
psychology classes. Bloom’s Taxonomy is divided into three different learning domains: cognitive,
affective, and psychomotor. For educational learning, the domain to focus on would be the cognitive
portion which eludes to a person’s mental skills or knowledge. The cognitive portion of Bloom’s
taxonomy involves knowledge and the development of intellectual skills.

The cognitive domain of Bloom’s Taxonomy can be partitioned into 6 subdivisions: knowledge,
comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. Knowledge is the ability to recall data or
information such as reciting definitions, equations, or policies. Comprehension is the ability to understand
the meaning, interpolation, and interpretation of instructions and problems. Application is the ability to
use a concept in a new situation or unprompted use of an abstraction. Analysis is the ability to separate
material or concepts into component parts so that its organization structure may be understood. Synthesis
is the ability to build a structure or pattern from diverse elements. Evaluation is the ability to make
judgments about the value of ideas or materials. According to the theory, each subdivision leads into the
next suggesting one must be able to master the knowledge subdivision before heading onto the
comprehension subdivision and etc.

From the realm of psychology, classical conditioning describes the human function for learning by
describing several thoroughly tested theories. It is apparent that one cannot measure or directly observe
learning because learning is an internal process. Therefore individuals that study learning concentrate on
the performance and behavior an organism displays to track their learning process.

In the late nineteenth century, Ivan Pavlov studied his work which won him the Nobel Prize in 1904,
focusing on digestion of dogs. Pavlov began putting food powder in the canine’s mouth which caused the
dogs to salivate. Over time Pavlov noticed the dogs would began to salivate at the sight of the powder or
simply at the sight of the lab assistant who delivered the food to the dogs. Due to the observations Pavlov
associated with the dogs, classical conditioning is a process that describes a phenomenon of learning.
EEL 4515 – Digital Communications Course Project #1 Electrical & Computer Engineering

In the process of classical conditioning a neutral stimulus is paired with a stimulus that elicits an
unconditioned response. After the process of conditioning, the neutral stimulus applied alone causes a
new conditioned response similar to the original unconditioned response. Summarizing the process in
steps: 1) Start with two stimuli (neutral stimulus and the unconditioned stimulus) which elicits the
unconditioned response. 2) Repeatedly present the conditioned (neutral) stimulus and the unconditioned
stimulus together. 3) In conclusion, when presenting the conditioned response, it should now elicit a
conditioned response.

Combining Bloom’s Taxonomy and classical conditioning, the two theories of learning produce a
consistent method for learning and retaining information and new concepts. Once being able to grasp a
concept and apply that knowledge to other systems where it could advance the existing process, continued
learning can become useful in many different aspects. Eluding back to President Barack Obama’s speech,
if we could learn and apply new knowledge to motor vehicles for the future, we can lessen our
dependency on fossil fuels and shape the auto industry across the world, leading our nation in a positive
direction.

The definition of learning has been identified by Bloom’s taxonomy and classical conditioning, yet to
reach the level of understanding that continued learning has, one must be able to apply those same ideas
into their own environment. The process of learning is a product of our physical environment and the
perception of that environment, therefore when our environment changes something is new to be learned.
With the enormous amount of new products and different processes that occur and are produced, there are
plenty of things we can learn from testing and applying general information about these systems or
materials. Simple questions such as, how would another material act in place of one material? Or can we
produce a product at a higher rate without sacrificing quality, waste, and functionality? Answering the
unknowns can solidify our understanding of products, processes, and materials, allowing for a prediction
of how a model will behave due to certain components.

In order to implement continued learning a person must implement the process of learning where they
interact with the environment, their personal lives. This starts with a person being able to set certain
values and principles in order to stay course and not fall into distractions that can interfere with their path
to continued learning. Depending on the circumstances, those set disciplines will orient a person through
their prioritizing of their lives and their life processes. There must be time allocated toward collecting
information and reflecting on information gathered from the previous week. Amongst that, time allocated
towards repeated practice of life and life processes to aid in the comprehension of learning.

In several situations, people encounter obstacles that can be overcome with learned knowledge from
previous results or acquired skill. This idea trails from classical conditioning and compels the repetitive
practice of a skill. Relating to the professional field, for a person to improve on their weaknesses or lack
of skill by continually encountering activity with it, will surely provide a sense of growth in that area.
EEL 4515 – Digital Communications Course Project #1 Electrical & Computer Engineering

Upon improvement of those weaknesses or development of those certain skills, one will be able to apply
themselves to several other opportunities that they could now qualify for, allowing an alley for
promotions or moves into more desirable positions.

To have an ideal skill to acquire, system to upgrade, or element to learn about, a person must have the
initiative to become involved with those crafts. A big part of learning is being exposed to the element of
that in which you are learning from. Attendance to forums geared towards the presentation of new
information that may be applicable to certain areas is always a good way to be exposed to the latest
information regarding a field. Taking the initiative to find resources for the information a person seeks,
helps set-up the foundation needed to allow a flow of new information to continuously stream and update.

Having a focus and foundation provides purpose and place for application of ideas. It is up to the person
and their organizational skills to manage information or data collected regarding a certain topic. The
collection of information is essential to learning, providing an experimental control and a measure of
efficiency for the system or product. Once one is able to incorporate a process that can collect data or
information regularly, they can then be able to analyze the information to a point where a proper
conclusion can be made from actions or values set.

With the continuous stream of information, there must be a comparison between previous data collected
and recent data collected. This comparison is used to show any changing trends in processes or materials
and if there were any changes, the explanation for those changes. What is to be “learned” from those
changes will allow for future planning and prioritizing to achieve different more up-to-date information
with new results. To be able to conclude by providing organized findings and evidence backing any
conclusions made, takes mental involvement and commitment to thinking non-bias. Using that state of
mind, continue to break down data collected until someone can fully grasp an understanding of the system
or product and how it may be applied to somewhere else to create an advance in technology.

There is a growing competitive edge that should acquired and motivated professionals to exercise
continued learning. One reason is advances in technology, as processes and products change and the new
replaces the obsolete, there are new trades and skills to be learned in order to comply with that day and
age’s standards. If a job interview came down to two people in the same field, the one that is more up-to-
speed in skill and experience is more likely to occupy the vacated position. It would only make sense that
there are no need for masters of the old products and processes when there are new standards. There is no
use for an old school programmer that is an agent of MS Dos to apply that knowledge to today’s
operating systems. With the more we know about computers today and the advances of operational
capacity from its chips, to stay current in your field creates a place for security by the end of the day.

Probably the most important part besides managing information is reflecting upon what was learned from
the product or process and having the humility to change course if necessary to continue to advance for
EEL 4515 – Digital Communications Course Project #1 Electrical & Computer Engineering

continued learning. Some individuals can become stubborn and not allow reality, rather good or bad, to
convince them that things need to be changed or replaced. Situations as such can become distractions in
group settings, prolonging the advances of the team as a whole. A time for reevaluation of sorts allows
the individual to remain on course and aware of their position regarding continued learning. It would
seem that there is no finish line or point at which a person could conclude that they have maintained
continued learning but an ever-ending lifestyle and continuation that is boundless.

Someone is awarded a job position where they are working on a project focused upon technology this
person has never been exposed to. In a position as such, a person would want to start out by planning and
scheduling their commitment to find additional resources to gather pertinent information from. Resources
such as articles and publications, forum tech talks, experts in the field of that topic, and some field
practice of their own to familiarize themselves with the basic knowledge of what they did not once know.
The more exposure the better chance of the person picking up the information and applying its properties
and laws. For example, a person learning Spanish would benefit from living in a country that has Spanish
as its native language. In that setting, the person is forced to practice speaking the language and apply
rules of the language to communicate. Key for anything regarding learning new material is exposure to it
and as much exposure as possible.

With the large amount of information being generated daily, one cannot master all of the skills and trades
related to that information. At the same time, a person may apply the principles and knowledge of one
field directly to another field to produce new information that may not have been known. Advances as
such express a need for innovation.

Innovation is essential to applying information sustained through continued learning to obtain a marginal
benefit. Innovate is the action to introduce something new or to make changes in anything established.
Companies such as 3M Company, headquartered in Saint Paul, Minnesota, have built their product
development around the idea of innovation. Accomplished through an engineering environment that could
merge several ideas into a working system, then optimizing that system by characterizing and examining
its areas for improvement in design, material, or process. The idea of innovation can lead to surprise
findings, feeding into continued learning to increase the likeliness of discovering something big. New
discoveries provide results and those results are what get employees promoted within their respectable
fields.

Continued learning therefore expands over a wide range of topics in which its use would benefit not only
the individual but the community or group as a whole. That is why continued learning is implemented in
corporate along with research and developmental settings in which group participation is promoted to
create new findings. Whatever the information may be, implementing continued learning will surely have
a person on top of their skills and knowledge.
EEL 4515 – Digital Communications Course Project #1 Electrical & Computer Engineering

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