<p>Given the importance of human creativity, one would think it should have a high priority among our concerns. But if we look at the reality, we see a different picture. Basic scientific reasearch is minimized in favor of immediate practical applications. The arts are increasinly seen as dispensable luxuries. Yet as competition heats up around the globe, exactly the opposite strategy is needed. - Adapted from Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Creativity: Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention</p>
<p>Assignment: Is creativity needed more than ever in the world today? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.</p>
<p>(Paragraph) I most certainly support the position, "Creativity [is] needed more than ever in the world today." The examples of Thomas Edison's "tough" creative research to invent the incandescent light bulb and Alfred Nobel's observation and creative application to develop dynamite verify the idea. Even in the sciences, creativity is neede to make that leap of logic to come up with the wholly new and revolutionary concepts. The two created doing the "basic scientific research," and the "applications" for their inventions became all the more important in the years to come.
(Paragraph)Edison's inspiration came from his hard work, demonstrating that "creativity" is essential in such inventiveness. The scientist labored over testing 10 thousand materials to perfect his electric incandescent light bulb, even using his own hair at one point. Creativity and inspiration were essential for him to determine even what next to test. He was guided to create cheap electrical light that would replace the expensive and impractical whale oil lamps, but his immediate concerns were "how" to create his new product. He later stated, after the successful invention, "Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration." The process of genius is har work and creativity, rather than a concern for "immediate practical applications." He created because it was in him to do so as an inspiration.
(Paragraph)Nobel's inspiration came in an accidental observation, showing that creative applications lead to success. The inventor, in the process of trying to stabilize the volatile nitroglycerin, oberved that the liquid high explosive combined with a silica gel to dryness, a stable and transportable form. His genious was in his eye for observation. What anyone else might just witness and pass off as unimportant, he saw and understood and acted. The invention of dynamite would later have many practical applications in mining, civil engineering and, ominously, in warfare later. He did benefit monetarily from the invention, enormously so, but his creativity in invention, after scientific application, leg the way. His creative invention was so successful that he led the industry in continual development of new high explosives and in detonators, so much so that copy-cats often stole his ideas by spying on his research. The spying "copy-cats" were concerned with immediacy and profit, but Nobel was genuine. He succeeded because he was always able to create one more development after another.
(Paragraph)As can be seen above, Edison's inventive diligence and Nobel's creative observation won the day. Only creativity can produce the paradigm-shift level of change. They created, then from the inspiration of their genius.</p>
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<p>6 / 5 / 4 / 3 / 2 / 1 / 0</p>
<p>Thank you for evaluating</p>