While we’re on the subject of avoiding premature convergence on a solution, it’s also worth mentioning Ryan Watkins’ “Performance by Design” (see http://www.amazon.com/Performance-Design-Systematic-Development-Technologies-ebook/dp/B004GNFHKU/), which expressly tackles this problem. And to take this a step further–to the consideration of professional ethics as a set of measurable design constraints rather than the exclusive province of abstract philosophy (or, at the opposite extreme, legalisms & compliance)–I suggest my wife’s OWN book, “Ethics by Design” (see http://www.amazon.com/Ethics-Design-Performance-Responsible-Accountability/dp/1599962012/).

Design Thinking is the center of the Venn diagram of all design-related disciplines.

It’s the common set of competencies that make for good design in any environment. And the reason it’s the flavor of the month is because, over the last decade or so–thanks to an Internet that doesn’t care what profession you’re in when you do a search–a lot of people who thought THEIR field was the only one who did Design have discovered there are these whole other circles in that diagram that have techniques, tools, and theories to offer that could also apply in THEIRS, with maybe just a little adaptation. And they’ve pulled those circles closer in to the center, creating more overlap.

Drawing on my wife’s work, I would say that Design Thinking as a domain of its own (as opposed to everyone who was practicing a version of it already IN their own domain) probably traces to Universal Design–the idea that if you designed physical spaces for accessibility (by the handicapped), you would end up with physical spaces that were better designed FOR ALL (see http://www.ncsu.edu/ncsu/design/cud/index.htm). David Rose, in turn, brought this into OUR domain with Universal Design FOR LEARNING (see http://www.udlcenter.org/), which basically made the same point regarding LEARNING spaces. From there, we’ve seen research symposia like that hosted by AECT a couple years back, where design experts from multiple fields convened to discuss how THEIR fields’ design knowledge could be applied to education (see http://aect.site-ym.com/?page=DesignEdTech). And we’re only getting started.

Miguel, I have to echo your sentiments, if not merely for the fact that I wrote a book specifically on designing elearning simulations (engaginglearning.com :).

This concept applies to the efficient simulations of today. Every real or imaginary variables can be programmed into a simulation. Even a simple simulation created for eLearning can promote interaction and produce engaging output. One of the things I admire about Simon is his dedication and aptitude to break concepts down to the core.
Simon, H. (1996). Understanding the Natural and the Artificial Worlds. In The sciences of the artificial (3rd ed.). Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press.