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Creativity for Geeks

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Creativity for Engineers and Scientists

Most writing on creativity is aimed at artists, writers, or musicians. It's harder to find discussions of creativity in science and engineering. This page lists some short essays on creativity for those of us better known for the accomplishments of the left side of our brains.

Creativity

Don't try to be God, try to be Shakespeare
Don't try to create from nothing. It's frustrating and ultimately impossible. Build on something.
Three quotes on originality
Quotes from C. S. Lewis, Larry Wall, and Paul Graham.
Obscuring complexity
How to give the impression of solving a problem without making things any better.
Selective use of technology
How David Souter and Donald Knuth live unusual lives, picking and choosing which contemporary technologies they will use and which they will forgo.
Six quotes on going deep
Quotes from Richard Feynman, G. K. Chesterton and others about how uninteresting subjects can become fascinating when you dig into them deeply.
Task switching
We're not as good at task switching as we think.
Rethinking interruptions
Interruptions are not created equal. Some interruptions derail creativity while others do not. How to regain context after an interruption.
Conceptual integrity
How to maintain conceptual integrity when many people work on a project.
Simple legacy
We often value our most complex work, but our smaller and simpler achievements are more often what others value.
Sometimes it's right under your nose
Sometimes we look so hard for something that we don't see it right in front of us.
Getting to the bottom of things
Why deep thought, getting to the bottom of things, is incompatible with following new, staying on top of things.
Quantity and quality
In the long run, you'll be remembered for the quality of your work, not the quantity.

Simplicity and Complexity

Three quotes on simplicity
Quotes on simplicity from Michael Dell, Albert Einstein, and Tom Peters.
Perlis on complexity
Quote from Alan Perlis on complexity.
A little simplicity goes a long way
Sometimes making a task just a little simpler can make a huge difference.
The simplest thing that might work
Applying the mantra of Extreme Programming: first try the simplest thing that might work.
Beauty
A thing is beautiful if it displays complexity and unity.

Innovation

Definitions
Innovation is about the change of practice in a community. Innovation is not what innovators do, it's what customers adopt.
Curing scurvy
A lesson on innovation from the adoption of limes to prevent scurvy in sailors.
Rate of innovation
Five factors that influence the rate of adoption of an innovation.
Innovation in statistics
John Tukey on what makes a statistical method a valuable innovation.
The fibula and the safety pin
Comments on some things Seth Godin wrote about innovation.

by

JohnDCook

For more about me, see my home page or my blog, The Endeavour. more »

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