From ScienceDaily:
How does our brain form creative and original ideas?
If you have never been a writing coach, you will never know how often people ask that question, whether screaming in the night or crying on an editor’s shoulder.
Have we found the answer via neuroscience?
The researchers hypothesized that for a creative idea to be produced, the brain must activate a number of different — and perhaps even contradictory — networks. In the first part of the research, respondents were give half a minute to come up with a new, original and unexpected idea for the use of different objects. Answers which were provided infrequently received a high score for originality, while those given frequently received a low score. In the second part, respondents were asked to give, within half a minute, their best characteristic (and accepted) description of the objects. During the tests, all subjects were scanned using an FMRI device to examine their brain activity while providing the answer.
The researchers found increased brain activity in an “associative” region among participants whose originality was high. This region, which includes the anterior medial brain areas, mainly works in the background when a person is not concentrating, similar to daydreaming.
But the researchers found that this region did not operate alone when an original answer was given. For the answer to be original, an additional region worked in collaboration with the associative region — the administrative control region. A more “conservative” region related to social norms and rules. The researchers also found that the stronger the connection, i.e., the better these regions work together in parallel — the greater the level of originality of the answer.
That’s called a writer.
“On the one hand, there is surely a need for a region that tosses out innovative ideas, but on the other hand there is also the need for one that will know to evaluate how applicable and reasonable these ideas are. More.
That’s called an editor.
We’re behind schedule? That’s called a deadline.
Glad we straightened it all out for you.
See also: Neuroscience tried wholly embracing naturalism, but then the brain got away
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