QUIET BRAINSTORMING
Susan Cain, in her book, Quiet (see 02/02/2014, post 34), lists the four rules applied to group brainstorming sessions. She then presents evidence that collective work of individuals done independently provides more creative solutions than come from similar numbers working in a group brainstorming session. Since the individuals use quiet reflection by themselves it hardly merits a term, individual brainstorming. But I have used the term individual brainstorming or solitary brainstorming in my past thinking about the topic.
Nine months ago (05/02/2013) my third post listed mental manipulations that might help one do solitary brainstorming. Creative solutions may come best in quiet situations because the left brain and right brain can work more effectively. Before you can optimize a thought in a group situation another's contribution may derail the thought. We can't truly work at a high level on all things when we are multi-tasking. One line of evidence is the rise in automobile accidents when the drivers talk, text, eat, read or listen. Beginning teen-age drivers have progressively higher accident rates as more peers ride with them.
One of the biggest reason's noted by Cain for group brainstorming not being as effective as expected is the conscious or subconscious fear of criticism of one's contribution, even though criticism is against the brain-storming rules.
As noted above, coordination of left and right brain hemispheres may be made more difficult in a group setting. But quiet brainstorming doesn't work in a vacuum, or more accurately, with a paucity of knowledge, experience, and ideas. Some of the best stimulation of that type can come from interaction with peers, either at meetings of those with like interests, or reading what they have to say. Meetings may have a benefit not found in brainstorming, of questions, comments, and clarification if needed.
CREATIVITY ASSISTS
Try to be creative, but be relaxed about it.
Question things, but don't be disagreeable.
Broaden your perspective or widen your interests, solutions are often by analogy to a principle of some other topic.
Humor in your life may make it easier for you to make unlikely mental connections.
If you prime your mind to think about something when you sleep, keep a notepad and pencil handy to make a note if it wakes you up; it will make it easier to get back to sleep.
Believe in causality, expect answers or causes for everything of concern.
Don't forget adequate quality rest, nutrition, exercise, and contact with others.
THE INTROVERSION THING
Yesterday I was reading comments readers of Cain's book left online at the Barnes and Noble Nook Store. The comments were very positive in general from both introverts and extroverts. One very critical one seemed to be a result of professional jealousy. But the sense of relief many expressed at finding a positive view of their introversion seemed counterbalanced by a view that they were trapped, but now comfortably, in their introversion. I do not think they are trapped, as you can see from the conclusion of my blog posted on 2/2/2014.
Joseph G. Engemann February 18, 2014
Showing posts with label QUIET. Show all posts
Showing posts with label QUIET. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Sunday, February 2, 2014
SCIENCE: QUIET AND CREATIVITY
QUIET - the book
Cain, Susan. 2012, 2013. Quiet, the Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking. Broadway Books. New York. 352 pp. Just read this book at the end of January 2014. Very worth reading. Today (February 2, 2014) I was reviewing in my mind some of the things from it I wanted to blog about (evolutioninsights.blogspot.com) and, as I was thinking about how creativity is enhanced by left-brain/right-brain cooperation and how creativity seems to be associated with introversion and right brain activity, the following seemed evident.
INTROVERT-EXTROVERT-AMBIVERT RATIO
Cain discusses probable causes of introvert/extrovert personality types and sees both hereditary and environmental factors as causes, including one known gene, as having some influence. I see that a simple explanation of chance expression of left brain versus right brain dominance could be a major factor. Once both hemispheres are more equally integrated into brain activity, one might be more of an ambivert. Until that point is reached the ratio early in life would be close to 1:1.
CREATIVITY
I agree with her arguments that introversion is associated with the careful thought leading to creative results. But I have personally made the transition from right brain dominance and introversion to either extroversion or, more likely, ambivert status. I still find quiet time pleasant and useful for thinking. My discovery of my transition was a few dozen years ago as I was reflecting about left-brain/right brain matters and the need for me to use more graphic material in lectures to accommodate those students who were right-brain dominant. I became aware that I was thinking in words that I was hearing in my mind. At that time I could not visualize a picture of anything in my mind, the same mind that in the mid 1960's I could visualize strategy for a three dimensional tick-tac-toe game that some faculty were playing on Western Michigan University's new IBM 1620 computer. I had lost my first game with it, but, after a night's interrupted sleep pondering it, I won the next game. I had changed.
HEMISPHERIC DOMINANCE AND CAREERS
I spent some time considering a research project enlisting honors college students in a longitudinal study of hemispheric dominance. A math professor friend noted the mathematicians had been discussing left-brain dominance as characteristic of their profession. But he was right-brained and taught an area of math more visually oriented, I think geometry. I wanted to have students check the ratio in various academic disciplines, both in faculty and undergraduate majors. In particular, follow-up on students from their freshman year to later years would show whether they should be counseled out of a field or left to make the transition to suitable hemispheric activity.
I did not pursue the project, perhaps because I was an INTP personality type, and/or I didn't have the disposition to deal with the ambiguities involved in getting approval from the university's human subjects review board as needed for projects when people are the subject. But from personal experience, I knew that I changed.
My understanding of the evolutionary origin of hemispheric dominance in humans came with my being called upon to teach introductory zoology about the end of the 1970's. After 20 years teaching invertebrate type classes I wanted to know the reason the left brain controls the right side of the body and the right brain controls the left side of the body. To shorten the story, it wasn't in the books, but it became apparent that it was the most economical way to integrate vision into a unitary binocular vision for us. The role of association neurons connecting left and right neurons controlling structures of invertebrates contributed to the answer. I gave a presentation at the state academy on the topic but did not publish the story. The enormous demands of brain space for good vision selected for a large visual cortex. But the area for nervous control of the physical body do not demand much space for transmission of motor impulses. So rather than having massive crossing over from both visual hemispheres, the partial crossing over of visual and complete crossing over for motor nerve enervation was achieved through natural selection. As other portions of the brain enlarged along with the visual cortex, the portions allocated to thought did not have right and left functions so opposite sides of those regions could specialize as we see in humans.
CONCLUSION
Both personality types may have creativity in their future as they optimize hemispheric use with a balance appropriate to the business at hand. I might never have reached this understanding if my nine-year old verbal brother had not belabored his tongue-tied little five-year old brother with the maxim that if you couldn't express your idea you didn't know it. I was not literally tongue-tied, but I clearly understood concepts I could not find words to express. My transition from introversion to what I am today is a long story, I will spare you the details.
My understanding of hemispheric dominance and creativity long ago was why I argued study of biology was exceptionally important in a liberal arts education. Laboratory and field study of organisms exercised the right brain and explaining and describing exercised the left brain; cooperatively using both sides enhanced the result. Actually, any subject that has physical aspects and written and verbal aspects should have similar value.
Perhaps the link between left-brain with math, music, and speech skills, versus the right-brain with visual, graphic, and mechanical skills starts early in life. It may never be known if more right-brained children developed after television began to replace radio. But there are good reasons to think both physical and mental health are enhanced by adequate diverse physical exercise. Where do smell and aromatherapy fit in? We are complex creatures in a complex world; I will leave it at that.
Joseph G. Engemann February 2, 2014
Cain, Susan. 2012, 2013. Quiet, the Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking. Broadway Books. New York. 352 pp. Just read this book at the end of January 2014. Very worth reading. Today (February 2, 2014) I was reviewing in my mind some of the things from it I wanted to blog about (evolutioninsights.blogspot.com) and, as I was thinking about how creativity is enhanced by left-brain/right-brain cooperation and how creativity seems to be associated with introversion and right brain activity, the following seemed evident.
INTROVERT-EXTROVERT-AMBIVERT RATIO
Cain discusses probable causes of introvert/extrovert personality types and sees both hereditary and environmental factors as causes, including one known gene, as having some influence. I see that a simple explanation of chance expression of left brain versus right brain dominance could be a major factor. Once both hemispheres are more equally integrated into brain activity, one might be more of an ambivert. Until that point is reached the ratio early in life would be close to 1:1.
CREATIVITY
I agree with her arguments that introversion is associated with the careful thought leading to creative results. But I have personally made the transition from right brain dominance and introversion to either extroversion or, more likely, ambivert status. I still find quiet time pleasant and useful for thinking. My discovery of my transition was a few dozen years ago as I was reflecting about left-brain/right brain matters and the need for me to use more graphic material in lectures to accommodate those students who were right-brain dominant. I became aware that I was thinking in words that I was hearing in my mind. At that time I could not visualize a picture of anything in my mind, the same mind that in the mid 1960's I could visualize strategy for a three dimensional tick-tac-toe game that some faculty were playing on Western Michigan University's new IBM 1620 computer. I had lost my first game with it, but, after a night's interrupted sleep pondering it, I won the next game. I had changed.
HEMISPHERIC DOMINANCE AND CAREERS
I spent some time considering a research project enlisting honors college students in a longitudinal study of hemispheric dominance. A math professor friend noted the mathematicians had been discussing left-brain dominance as characteristic of their profession. But he was right-brained and taught an area of math more visually oriented, I think geometry. I wanted to have students check the ratio in various academic disciplines, both in faculty and undergraduate majors. In particular, follow-up on students from their freshman year to later years would show whether they should be counseled out of a field or left to make the transition to suitable hemispheric activity.
I did not pursue the project, perhaps because I was an INTP personality type, and/or I didn't have the disposition to deal with the ambiguities involved in getting approval from the university's human subjects review board as needed for projects when people are the subject. But from personal experience, I knew that I changed.
My understanding of the evolutionary origin of hemispheric dominance in humans came with my being called upon to teach introductory zoology about the end of the 1970's. After 20 years teaching invertebrate type classes I wanted to know the reason the left brain controls the right side of the body and the right brain controls the left side of the body. To shorten the story, it wasn't in the books, but it became apparent that it was the most economical way to integrate vision into a unitary binocular vision for us. The role of association neurons connecting left and right neurons controlling structures of invertebrates contributed to the answer. I gave a presentation at the state academy on the topic but did not publish the story. The enormous demands of brain space for good vision selected for a large visual cortex. But the area for nervous control of the physical body do not demand much space for transmission of motor impulses. So rather than having massive crossing over from both visual hemispheres, the partial crossing over of visual and complete crossing over for motor nerve enervation was achieved through natural selection. As other portions of the brain enlarged along with the visual cortex, the portions allocated to thought did not have right and left functions so opposite sides of those regions could specialize as we see in humans.
CONCLUSION
Both personality types may have creativity in their future as they optimize hemispheric use with a balance appropriate to the business at hand. I might never have reached this understanding if my nine-year old verbal brother had not belabored his tongue-tied little five-year old brother with the maxim that if you couldn't express your idea you didn't know it. I was not literally tongue-tied, but I clearly understood concepts I could not find words to express. My transition from introversion to what I am today is a long story, I will spare you the details.
My understanding of hemispheric dominance and creativity long ago was why I argued study of biology was exceptionally important in a liberal arts education. Laboratory and field study of organisms exercised the right brain and explaining and describing exercised the left brain; cooperatively using both sides enhanced the result. Actually, any subject that has physical aspects and written and verbal aspects should have similar value.
Perhaps the link between left-brain with math, music, and speech skills, versus the right-brain with visual, graphic, and mechanical skills starts early in life. It may never be known if more right-brained children developed after television began to replace radio. But there are good reasons to think both physical and mental health are enhanced by adequate diverse physical exercise. Where do smell and aromatherapy fit in? We are complex creatures in a complex world; I will leave it at that.
Joseph G. Engemann February 2, 2014
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