Creativity lies at the heart of our humanity. Throughout history, the creative spirit has enhanced our lives. Arts, theatre, acting, comedy, story telling and the everyday proccess of getting things done.

Try this exercise:
We speak of the visionary quality of creative people. They can look at the same thing as everyone else but see something different. An industrial designer looked at the clamshell and thought “lighting fixture.” A Fashion designer looked at the Eiffel Tower and thought “new hat.” A chemist looked at a failed glue experiment and thought of sticky not pads, leading to the invention of ‘Post-it Notes.” Creative people connect unrelated parts into a clever whole.

Exercise: Bionics is a field of engineering in which ideas from natural systems are “borrowed” and adapted for human uses. Listed below are some examples of this. See if you can match each specimen with its subsequent engineering application.

Specimen
1. Elm tree seeds:
2. Fly:
3. Salmon:
4. Burdock burr:
5. Moth:
6. Snake:
7. Bamboo stalk:
8. Beehive:
9. Bee eyes:
10. Seals:

Engineering Application
A. Device for detecting poisonous mine gases
B. Infrared photography
C. Improved windmill design; helicopters; improved ski design.
D. Fiberglass-reinforced plastics
E. Improved hydrophone design
F. Reliable celestial compass
G. Device for detecting pollutants in water
H. Vertical take-off aircraft
I. Basis for a commercial fastener
J. Stronger and lighter pooltables

Think you got them all?
Enter your answers in the comment section at the bottom of the page or Email me with your answers. Either way stop by next week for a update on "Becoming a Creative Thinker" and we will post the correct answers and have another intreresting exercise.

See you next week!