 Let us move on to the next topic. How can I generate ideas? So this is linked closely to the word creativity that we use often. So we will look at this issue of creativity in some detail. So here are some quotations. The quotation shown below, imagination is more important than knowledge. Who made this statement? Again pointing towards creativity. Imagination is creativity. Reason can answer questions but imagination has to ask them. In research it is very important to ask good questions. It is not sufficient to solve problems which others have framed. It is important to ask good questions. This is also a part of creativity. Let us look at difference between intelligence and creativity. Now here when you use words like intelligence and creativity, of course, they depend on your definition. Now somebody may say I include creativity in intelligence. Then what I am discussing will not apply. So I am using words as they are understood by many. And as they have been used even by people who have done research in psychology in early days. So here are two examples. One person Marilyn Wosawant scored an intelligent quotient of 228 highest ever on a particular intelligence test. See there are very many intelligent tests. So a particular test was applied to many people to see what kind of results it throws up and what achievements the people have made. So they have got intelligence scores, IQ scores for a large number of people by using the test. And they have also tried to study what these people have done in their life. What was their professional achievement and so on. So this person, Marilyn Wosawant, those scored 228 on the IQ test. Person was merely a question and answer columnist for Parade Magazine. This was the professional achievement as a person. On the other hand, Richard Feynman scored only 122 on the same test. Which is less than many run-of-the-mill physicists but is a Nobel Prize winner and recognized as the last American genius. So this is trying to point out that creativity and intelligence are not the same. Okay? So we need to understand intelligence and creativity each of these two terms properly. Intelligence and creativity are not the same things. Intelligence in a domain means the ability to function at a high level in the domain but creativity involves asking new questions and altering the domain. This is the difference. Let us read this again intelligence in a domain means the ability to function at a high level in that domain. So what does it mean? It means, let us say we are teaching various courses to students and then we are setting questions based on whatever we have done in the class. Sometimes the question can be difficult also and then you assign great point average to students based on this particular system of evaluation. In a rough way we can say we are testing intelligence whoever gets high marks is a person who is functioning at a high level in that domain in the particular subject. This is the meaning of functioning at a high level in that domain, ability to function at a high level but creativity involves asking new questions and altering the domain. What would creativity mean? Creativity would imply if a student has asked some question and the result of pursuing answer to that question that subject itself has got changed or a new area has got added to the subject then that is an act of creativity. So research involves creativity. If you see people who have made impact they have changed the world. That is what is the meaning. They have changed the world so you alter the situation as a result of your thinking process. So if you solve problems efficiently you may not alter the situation you may not alter the area. Though you are able to function at a high domain and such people are definitely required there is no doubt about it but we are trying to understand the difference between intelligence and creativity. One can be highly intelligent but rigid, non-creative or lacking in the kind of single-minded passion that drives creators. Now let us define creativity much more clearly so one definition of creativity as given in psychology this has been the statements arrived at after doing some research it is the ability to look at the same thing as everyone else and think something different. So this is one definition of creativity it is the ability to look at the same thing as everyone else and think something different. Another definition it is the ability to take a fresh look at familiar objects and situations enriched by past experience but not constrained by it. So whenever you try to look at a situation or a problem definitely you will make attempts to solve it based on your past what you have been taught and so on. So you cannot avoid it but you should not be limited by it. That is the important thing. So you may use that as a starting point but you will not end there. That is the meaning of this so ability to take a fresh look at familiar objects and situations enriched by past experience but not constrained by it. Now let us illustrate these definitions with examples. Let us take creativity in expression see creativity is there in different areas creativity is not restricted to only mathematics or science it is in literature it is in day to day life. The important thing to understand if you want to be creative is that it is there in day to day life. You have to have a taste for it and note this creativity and if you do that then creativity will develop in you also. So here are some expressions of creativity supposing person wants to express warmth so this is a statement made by one of the American diplomats who was in India when he was leaving this place after many years. So he said during his farewell speech during the coming winter our vivid memories of India will warm us as we face the snows he comes from a place which is very cold. So this is one way of expressing warmth so you see if you see the words here all these words are very familiar there is no bombastic language it is a way you connect the various things together. Humor often humor is an example of creativity. So there is some person who did a lot of research on capitalism and communism so then people asked him so what is the gist of what you have learnt after all your research. So he said this is what I learnt capitalism is exploitation of man by man communism is exactly its opposite. So what is the opposite of exploitation of man by man it is exploitation of man by man. So in his research at least he felt ultimately there is no difference I mean whether you agree with this or not is a different question but this is his conclusion his put is important this creativity. Disgust this is one example last century there was lot of discussion among philosophers on matter and mind are the two different or are they same and so on. So one student of philosophy he summed up after he went through different courses and he was asked so what do you feel at the end of all this you know education in philosophy he said what is mind does not matter and what is matter never mind right that is the feeling I get after all listening to all these debates it is so confusing. So just so discussed here is another example of creative piece I am trying to give you day to day examples I am not trying to give you a very high examples of you know height in creativity in literature and so on with a specific reason to tell you that creativity exist in day to day life and this is what we need to see if you want to develop creativity in you and you should appreciate creativity in various things that will help you to do good research in your own area. So someone uses used only two words roses and thorns to distinguish between several attitudes in life optimistic roses life is full of roses pessimistic life is full of thorns life is both roses and thorns stoic how does it matter roses or thorns you mean roses for you and roses for me so let good things happen to you and to me selfish roses for me and thorns for you all the good things for me and the bad things for you sadistic thorns for you and your blood for me then love roses for you and your smile for me and finally divine roses for you and your thorns for me now you can see he has just used two words roses and thorns all of us have seen roses and thorns right but this person has thought differently it is his ability to see the same thing as everyone else but think something different but he thought that you can use these two words and you know distinguish between the various attitudes in life another definition of creativity in a context of science and engineering as a creative product is a new and useful definition it is a new and useful so usefulness is a very important part of creativity this we should understand as researchers so for example a random tapping of a piano by monkey it generates a new pattern which is not necessarily melodious and so cannot be regarded as creative so you should not think randomly doing something and somehow getting something new is creativity that is not what creativity is ok that may be one component of creativity that you know you are trying to see various combinations and alternatives but all combinations are not necessarily creative this is very very important usefulness is a very important creative so this is important in the context of judging someone else's research or your own research so research is new fine but is it useful only then it is creative so creativity in Indian classical music you know you understand what is the creativity element in classical music what is the difference between someone singing a song which has already been sung nicely and singing a raga in classical music so a person who sings raga in classical music is a creative person why because he is using the same notes as prescribed for singing that raga but the combination of the notes can be different and some combination of notes can be more melodious than other combination the notes may be the same but their combination ok that is the creativity so that is why people say classical music is creative whereas light music where you sing someone else's song and you are singing it that does not involve creativity you may sing it well you may sing it melodiously so definitely you have a talent but that is not creative talent though the singer himself may not be a creative person to that extent so creativity can exist in social relationships even in planning one's life apart from art and science so in fact this is one interesting example that I want to quote in our department once there was a student his name was Ma Shivayana this was the name now I wonder what is the meaning of this name because they have never come across this name so we asked the student so what is the meaning of your name so he said sir the story is like this my father is a very ardent devotee of Shiva and he got a dream after marriage that he will have exactly 5 sons and he wanted to name all the 5 sons after the name of Shiva so he took the word Na Ma Shivaya you know it has 5 letters if you go by the Indian method of writing Na Ma Shivaya and then he named all his sons by simply you write these 5 letters in a circular fashion and then you generate 5 names out of it so the first son was named Na Ma Shivaya the second son you start with Ma first and end with Na so it becomes Ma Shivayana so this fellow was the second son the third one Na Ma Shik you start with Shik so Shivaya Na Ma that was the third son and the fourth fellow is Vaya Na Ma Shik because you start with Va and then end with Shik and the final fellow so Na Ma Shivaya, Yana Ma Shivaya the fifth son was named Yana Ma Shivaya so this is how he named all his 5 sons so whenever he utters the name repeatedly he will always be saying Na Ma Shivaya if you repeatedly utter this you will get this thing chanting of Na Ma Shivaya so whatever it is the point is there is creativity in many things it depends on us whether we can see it in fact I asked the student what is your father so he said my father is a poor farmer that is what he was so creativity can be there in anyone it can be there in anyone it is just that so what is important as we have said some strong drive motivation should be there in this case a strong devotion feeling of devotion is the motivation so some strong drive should be there something that drives you very strongly to do something this drive is the basic element for creativity so let us look at the creative process people have studied how ideas generate or how ideas are generated so you must have come across this statement ideas strike by chance but only to a prepared mind this is a very profound statement ideas strike by chance so definitely there is an element of chance you cannot predict when the idea will strike and what idea will strike you but it strikes only to a prepared mind so there is an element of uncertainty and certainty is that unless your mind is prepared it is sure that you will not get ideas we will see shortly what is the meaning of preparing the mind so now let us look at the stages so normally studies have shown that there are broadly 4 stages in which an idea is generated so first stage is called preparation when you try to understand the problem the situation and so on and understand the components of the problem then you start thinking about it then comes incubation so incubation is a period where subconsciously you are thinking about the problem even when you are doing other things so it is like background music you are maybe doing several activities but in the back what is playing is the problem and its components then comes a time when there is illumination illumination is a time when you think I think I got the solution that feeling when it comes I think I got the solution or aha feeling it is also called the aha feeling now when you get illumination an intuition strikes you which says that you have got the solution but the detail solution is not yet in your mind but you feel that you have got the solution I think I have the solution so that is why there is a final stage which is also important and that is the exposition so in this period of exposition what you have to do is you set out to write the solution in full detail in all the steps logically connecting all aspects so preparation incubation illumination and exposition the important thing is this incubation unless you give a period of incubation ideas will not strike you so one has to concentrate on a problem for some time or for sufficient amount of time and then one should just leave the problem to work in your mind in the background so many times people have got ideas after a nice sleep for example ok so in their dream people say that they have got ideas in their dream people have said they have got ideas after they have got they have had a very nice meal so it has been found that by and large ideas strike after or during a period of relaxation after intense concentration ok by and large I mean they have studied for example great musicians, great scientists and so on and ask them at what point did the ideas strike you so they strike during a period of relaxation after intense concentration so when you are concentrating you may not get the solution please understand this but without you will not get a solution but during the period of concentration you may not get it so you should concentrate right but and you should not get frustrated you know things have not happened and then leave it and then it will keep working in your mind and then during relaxation when you are relaxed suddenly the idea will strike you ok so this gives you some hint on how you should work in your research let us look at requirements for creativity above average intelligence is sufficient example Charles Darwin the great scientist was virtually enumerate so you should not think that you should be very highly proficient in mathematics to be creative this is not necessary strong motivation this we have emphasized several times right strong motivation is very very important so something should be there which you may call it an irrational desire which you need not explain if somebody asks why do you have a strong feeling of devotion right you cannot explain it it is there you may explain it in some different ways but it is only a way of rationalization it is just there in you then hard work discipline organization and then open and flexible mind so this open and flexible mind what does it mean let us see in some detail so according to psychologists they have given definitions for each of these things which you know we use often so what is the idea in defining this to make things at least as precise as possible so that a word is not used too vaguely so open mind a psychologist says is receptive to alternate points of view regardless of the present level of commitment to a belief this is a meaning of an open mind it is receptive to alternate points of view regardless of the present level of commitment to a belief you may believe in something very strongly some approach but that doesn't preclude you from listening to people talking about other methods of doing things another definition an open mind acknowledges areas of common ground with those who hold alternate beliefs and allows dialogue with someone with opposing views without attacking the proponent of those views so there is a statement the quote nothing dies faster than a new idea in a closed mind so when ideas are being generated whether the ideas will actually result in something whether they will flower and develop into something useful and new it all depends on whether your mind is open or not what is a flexible mind a flexible mind is capable of leaping sideways upwards and downwards around a problem before reaching a solution this again has to do with exploring alternatives so when a problem when you are faced with a problem you should explore several alternate methods of approaching the problem in our research also we should not get stuck with one approach so you have a problem try to first at least arrive at different possible methods which may give you the solution and then you pursue a particular approach up to some point and see if it gives you solution doesn't give then you go to the next approach but right in the beginning think of different ways of doing the same thing and only then take up a particular method and approach and pursue that so what are the characteristics of an open and flexible mind some more points it has keen observation it has a wide information base this is very very important when you say a wide information base it means you have to read a lot okay cannot be restricted to your own area a habit of analyzing other creative works there is a meaning of this supposing you are interested in music then what are you doing you know there are several different composers who compose music so you look at one composer see how he or she composes another different composer then try to compare this person uses these instruments in composition that person uses this kind of an instrument this person uses singers in high octave whereas that person uses the bass quality of the works this is what is meant by comparison of the creative works so you can do a similar thing in your own area people may be proposing several new devices try to see advantages and disadvantages of various devices okay people may be proposing various techniques supposing you are doing simulation people nowadays do a lot of simulation there may be several ways of simulating the same thing one may use Monte Carlo technique of simulation one may use a different method of simulation so many times people are not aware of the different methods they simply are they know that some tool is available in which on which a senior has worked you use the same tool right that is what people do this is what is meant by saying that you must be aware of various approaches okay but you may pursue one approach that does not matter right but you must be aware of different approaches and finally ability to criticize and judge the worth of one's own ideas it is supposed to be an important characteristic of an open flexible mind