The Creativity Crisis
- Started
- Last post
- 52 Responses
- ukit0
Sorry guys I don't buy it...it's a story based on nothing. And of course hit the low hanging fruit (TV and video games) as the source of blame.
If only we were free from modern life we'd be so much more creative. Gimme a break. Ever watch TV from the 50s/ 60s like Nick at Nite or something? People were idiots back then:)
- ukit0
If this was true and the Chinese are ahead in creativity, why do they copy all our stuff?;)
- copying leads to innovation. Look at Sony, samsung, LG, HTC,JSK
- this is consumer/economics issue not creativity. look at who's in the top schools and top tech jobs...the chineseDodecahedron
- I'm just wondering where the examples of Chinese inventions/ innovations are...ukit
- Look at HTC phones.JSK
- I did...and then I got an iPhoneukit
- which is also made by the chinese.JSK
- Dont forget about the printing press.JSK
- LOLukit
- the chinese/japanese are the ones propelling all the developments in the big tech companies. Google too.Dodecahedron
- they get the jobsDodecahedron
- Like what? Work being done there doesn't = creativityukit
- just because apple is based in USA doesn't mean a thing. steve jobs ain't doing this by himselfDodecahedron
- FOR GOD SAKES IT STAYSJSK
- IT DOESN'T FUCKIN STAYukit
- There are no americans anyway, america is a pirate wharf of random immigrantsdrgz
- utopian0
America needs more of the following: blogs, web templates, clip art, stock photography, and iPhones to make a creative rebound!
- JSK0
creativity is not declining. It is more to do with proliferation of creativity as a profession.
the notion of how creativity is defined, it is not declining but rather becoming less isolated. as more it becomes more open, much like any process, the value of such becomes diluted.
- ukit0
The writer is actually the best example of their own thesis, with sentences like, "All around us are matters of national and international importance that are crying out for creative solutions, from saving the Gulf of Mexico to bringing peace to Afghanistan to delivering health care" or "The European Union designated 2009 as the European Year of Creativity and Innovation." lol
So the story moves from mentioning the results of a single study of 300k kids in a nation of 300 million to a sweeping generalization about how America is no longer creative. This how most journalism like this goes, take a few thinly sourced examples and use them to make some Big Important Point.
So late 80s, early 90s...that would be the same generation of kids that went on to create the dot com boom, all of it pretty much based in America? Isn't it just as likely the test itself is flawed, or that there are other factors they aren't accounting for?
- bored2death0
Can someone show me a generation that didn't think the next generation was hopeless?
- Miguex0
It’s too early to determine conclusively why U.S. creativity scores are declining. One likely culprit is the number of hours kids now spend in front of the TV and playing videogames rather than engaging in creative activities. Another is the lack of creativity development in our schools. In effect, it’s left to the luck of the draw who becomes creative: there’s no concerted effort to nurture the creativity of all children.
I can relate to this, I just gave up tv and videogames, I no longer own a tv or xbox, and in the last few days I started working on music again. Nothing too promising yet, but sometimes it was easier to sit down and watch tv or red dead redemption, just because it was there, now if I'm bored I start working on music or self initiated design projects, so far it feels good..
not sure for how long it will last though
- drgz0
America is dead
- xcarlx0
has any one here actually driven around this country (i mean outside of LA, NYC, San Fran, and a few other cities.). It has been a creativity desert for years and years.
abandoned down towns, strip malls, box stores and trailer parks/sub divisions with overweight people.
thats it.
- invigorate your creativity with WalMart® ! theres one near you!Thelonious_Funk
- sometimes there's brilliant shit where you least expect it....vaxorcist
- Miguex0
On a similar note:
- our ancient education systems are definitely a big part of the problemThelonious_Funk
- Nice, Miguex. Shakespeare had an English teacher! hahasvante
- Excellent lecture. Thanks for posting it.bort
- the guy is so entertaining to listen to also, amazing speakerMiguex
- I couldnt get started on this paper last night, I went and found this again to get started. Great talkIronmonkey
- jteore0
Left Brain People Are Boring
- svante0
Exceptionally well-written, all of it. Here's one:
“When you try to solve a problem, you begin by concentrating on obvious facts and familiar solutions, to see if the answer lies there. This is a mostly left-brain stage of attack. If the answer doesn’t come, the right and left hemispheres of the brain activate together. Neural networks on the right side scan remote memories that could be vaguely relevant. A wide range of distant information that is normally tuned out becomes available to the left hemisphere, which searches for unseen patterns, alternative meanings, and high-level abstractions.
Having glimpsed such a connection, the left brain must quickly lock in on it before it escapes. The attention system must radically reverse gears, going from defocused attention to extremely focused attention. In a flash, the brain pulls together these disparate shreds of thought and binds them into a new single idea that enters consciousness. This is the “aha!” moment of insight, often followed by a spark of pleasure as the brain recognizes the novelty of what it’s come up with.”
- graduate school hogwash is the reason american creativity is declining.... and yes, i went to MFA school...vaxorcist
- When I try to solve a problem I begin by thinking about why the problem needs solving.lukus_W
- MFA school huh?
is that a good school...lolmarychain - MFA School = mutha fuckin art schoolMelanie
- Paul
For the first time, research shows that American creativity is declining. What went wrong—and how we can fix it.