How our tastes influence our creativity

Creativity

Abstract representation of creativity. CREDITParis Brain Institute.

What drives us to develop new ideas rather than settling for standard methods and processes? What triggers the desire to innovate at the risk of sacrificing time, energy, and reputation for a resounding failure? Creativity is based on complex mechanisms that we are only beginning to understand and in which motivation plays a central role. But pursuing a goal is not enough to explain why we favor some ideas over others and whether that choice benefits the success of our actions.

Creativity can be defined as the ability to produce original and relevant ideas in a given context, to solve a problem or improve a situation. It is a key skill for adapting to change or provoking it, explains Alizée Lopez-Persema researcher in cognitive neuroscience. Our team is interested in the cognitive mechanisms that enable creative ideas to be produced, hoping to learn how to use them wisely.”

Researchers currently agree that the creative process consists of two successive phases: generating new ideas and evaluating their potential. But they have yet to learn how this evaluation is carried out and what leads us to retain some ideas rather than others. “We need to value our ideas to select the best ones, says Lopez-Persem. However, there is no indication that this operation corresponds to a rational and objective evaluation in which we try to inhibit our cognitive biases from making the best possible choice. We, therefore, wanted to know how this value is assigned and whether it depends on individual characteristics.

Objectifying the inner movement of the blossoming of ideas

Modeling the creative process as a sequence of operations involving distinct brain networks does not correspond to a popular conception of creativity, which is usually represented as a momentum that seizes, transports, and surpasses us. On the contrary, Emmanuelle Volle’s team believes that creativity has three fundamental dimensions that can be modeled using mathematical tools: exploration, which is based on personal knowledge and makes it possible to imagine possible options; evaluation, which consists of gauging the qualities of an idea; and selection, which allows us to choose the concept that will be verbalized.

To understand the reciprocal relationships between these three dimensions, the researchers reproduced them in a computational model – which they compared with the actual behavior of individuals recruited for the study. Via Paris Brain Institute’s PRISME platform, 71 participants were invited to take free association tests, which consist of matching words in the most audacious way possible. They were then asked to rate how much they liked these associations of ideas and whether they seemed relevant and original.

Our results indicate that the subjective evaluation of ideas plays an important role in creativity, says Emmanuelle Volle, a neurologist. We observed a relationship between the speed of production of new ideas and participants’ level of appreciation of these ideas. In other words, the more you like the idea you are about to formulate, the faster you come up with it. Imagine, for example, a cook who intends to make a sauce: the more the combination of flavors seduces him in his mind, the faster he will throw himself on the ingredients! Our other discovery is that this assessment combines two subjective criteria: originality and relevance.”

What individual preferences promote creativity?

The team shows that the importance of these two criteria varies between individuals. “It all depends on their experience, personality, and probably their environment, adds the researcher. Some favor the originality of an idea over its relevance; for others, it’s the other way around. However, preferring either originality or relevance has a role in creative thinking: we have shown that individuals inclined to original ideas suggest more inventive concepts.”

Finally, the team’s model predicted the speed and quality of participants’ creative proposals based on their preferences measured in an independent task. These results highlight the mechanical nature of the creative impulse. They also point to the possibility, in the long term, of precisely describing the mechanisms of creativity at the neurocomputational level and correlating them to their neural substrate… challenging the stereotype that creative thinking is a mysterious process over which we have no control at all.

In the future, we want to define different creativity profiles related to people’s fields of activity. Do you have different creative preferences if you are an architect, software engineer, illustrator, or technician? adds Alizée Lopez-Persem. Which environments foster creativity, and which ones inhibit it? Could we modify or re-educate our creative profile through cognitive exercises to match personal ambitions or needs? All these questions remain open, but we firmly intend to answer them.”

Donnee Spencer’s Medical Awareness Butterflies – Which one do you want a copy of?




Donnee's Medical  Awareness Butterflies

Donnee’s Medical Awareness Butterflies

Over the last few years Donnee Spencer has produced these amazing awareness butterflies.

As you can see so far she has covered psoriasis, multiple sclerosis, COPD, strokes, Crohns, cancer, autism, fibromyalgia, diabetes and cerebral palsy among others.

The purpose of this blog is three fold.  Firstly simply to showcase Donnee’s brilliant work.

Secondly we are hoping she will be able to send us individual  copies which we can share with our readers on separate posts.   Please use the comments box to let us know which ones you might like posted first.

Finally if you would like Donnee to consider other causes to produce these wonderful images for –  please let us know in the comments box and we will share with her.

Many thanks in advance and many thanks Donnee!




Posthumous conception: The public weigh in on post mortem sperm and egg retrieval




Posthumous conception

Posthumous conception




Twenty years after the Court of Appeal passed an historic judgement allowing widow Diane Blood to be inseminated with her dead husband’s sperm, the debate continues with the majority of Brits now in favour of post mortem sperm and egg retrieval

On 6th February 1997, widow Diane Blood won the legal right to use her dead husband’s sperm in an historic Court of Appeal ruling.

On 11th December 1998, Blood gave birth to her first son, and in July 2002, she had her second son, again using her dead husband’s frozen sperm.

In February 2003, Blood claimed another victory when she won the legal battle to have her late husband legally recognised as the father of her children.

Posthumous conception –the process of conceiving using someone’s egg, sperm or embryo after they have died, has gained popularity over the years but has always remained a contentious issue.

New research has now revealed an interesting insight into what appears to be a wider acceptance of posthumous conception across both genders.

A Slater and Gordon research study of over 2,000 Brits revealed that three quarters of us are in favour of a widow being allowed to use her husband’s sperm to posthumously start a family and similarly, two thirds of Brits believe a widower should be allowed to use their wife’s eggs posthumously.




Amongst those who are of the opinion that both a widow and a widower should not be allowed to use their husband’s sperm or wife’s egg posthumously, the main reasoning was that the arrangement would impact the child who would grow up not knowing their deceased father or mother.

Outside the wider debate on whether or not posthumous conception should be allowed for a widow or widower, how many Brits are actually discussing the issue inside their homes with their partners?

Interestingly, men were found more vocal about the issue than women with one in six (16%) saying they have discussed the posthumous use of their sperm with their spouse and an additional 35 per cent saying they will do so in the future. In comparison, only 12 per cent of women have discussed posthumous use of their eggs with their partners.

Despite holding back on the topic, over half (59%) of women said they would be willing of their partner using their eggs after death. Amongst the men, 70 per cent would be willing of their partner using their sperm after death with only one in seven being firmly against it.

Both genders were also found to be in favour of using their partners’ sperms and eggs posthumously –exactly half of the women in the UK said they would want to use their partners sperm.

Find out more about the first-ever Universal Health Coverage Day


Universal Health Coverage Day

Universal Health Coverage Day

A new global coalition of more than 500 leading health and development organizations worldwide is urging governments to accelerate reforms that ensure everyone, everywhere, can access quality health services without being forced into poverty. The coalition was launched today, on the first-ever Universal Health Coverage Day, to stress the importance of universal access to health services for saving lives, ending extreme poverty, building resilience against the health effects of climate change and ending deadly epidemics such as Ebola.

Universal Health Coverage Day marks the two-year anniversary of a United Nations resolution, unanimously passed on 12 December 2012, which endorsed universal health coverage as a pillar of sustainable development and global security. Despite progress in combatting global killers such as HIV/AIDS and vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles, tetanus and diphtheria, the global gap between those who can access needed health services without fear of financial hardship and those who cannot is widening. Each year, 100 million people fall into poverty because they or a family member becomes seriously ill and they have to pay for care out of their own pockets. Around one billion people worldwide can’t even access the health care they need, paving the way for disease outbreaks to become catastrophic epidemics.

“The need for equitable access to quality health care has never been greater, and there is unprecedented demand for universal health coverage around the world,” said Michael Myers, Managing Director of The Rockefeller Foundation, which is spearheading Universal Health Coverage Day. “Universal health coverage is an idea whose time has come – because health for all saves lives, strengthens nations and is achievable and affordable for every country.”


For much of the 20th century, universal health coverage was limited to a few high-income countries, but in the past two decades, a number of lower- and middle-income countries have successfully embraced reforms to make quality health care universally available. Countries as diverse as Brazil, Ghana, Mexico, Rwanda, Turkey and Thailand have made tremendous progress toward universal health coverage in recent years. Today, the two most populous countries, India and China, are pursuing universal health coverage, and more than 80 countries have asked the World Health Organization for implementation assistance.

“Putting people’s health needs ahead of their ability to pay stems poverty and stimulates growth,” said Dr. Tim Evans, Senior Director for the Health, Nutrition and Population Global Practice at the World Bank Group. “Universal health coverage is an essential ingredient to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity within a generation.”

The 500+ organizations participating in the first-ever Universal Health Coverage Day coalition represent a diverse cross-section of global health and development issues, including infectious diseases, maternal and child health, non-communicable diseases and palliative care. Across these issues, knowledge and technologies exist to save and improve lives in significant numbers, but the impact of these tools is severely hampered by lack of equitable access to quality health services.

“Ebola is only the most recent example of why universal health coverage is the most powerful concept in public health,” said Dr. Marie-Paule Kieny, Assistant Director-General for Health Systems and Innovation at the World Health Organization. “Investing in strong, equitable health systems is the only way to truly protect and improve lives, particularly in the face of emerging threats like the global rise of non-communicable diseases and increasingly severe natural disasters.”

Events in 25 Countries Mark First-Ever Universal Health Coverage Day

Organizations around the world are calling on policymakers to prioritize universal health coverage, and are hosting events on 12 December to catalyze action, including:

  • New York, USA: High-level event on Ebola and resilience, organized by the Permanent Missions of France, Japan, Germany and Senegal to the United Nations, in collaboration with The Rockefeller Foundation and the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health.
  • London, UK: Expert panel at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine on creating resilient, equitable health systems, organized in partnership with The Rockefeller Foundation and Action for Global Health.
  • New Delhi, India: High-level event on universal health coverage implementation in both India and the global context, convened by the Public Health Foundation of India, Oxfam India and the World Health Organization Country Office for India.

GERD Awareness Week 2014 – Some tips for dealing with the holiday season if you have GERD.


Tips for dealing with GERD this holiday season

Tips for dealing with GERD this holiday season

This week sees the 16th commemoration of GERD Awareness Week. This year, as usual, it coincides with Thanksgiving week. Not surprising when you consider the food and drink flow in abundance this week!

Gastroesophageal reflux disease, better known as GERD, is a very common condition.  You can check out a few commonly asked questions about GERD.

The Digestive Health Alliance have produced a fantastic selection of awareness raising materials which we have used above.  Please drop round to their site and check out their other great stuff!