Secrets of the Creative Brain

Fascinating account of a leading scientist's decades-long investigation into creative genius and mental illness. creative people are better at recognizing relationships, making associations and connections, and seeing things in an original way... creative people have shown stronger activations in their association cortices ... This pattern has held true for both the artists and the scientists, suggesting that similar brain processes may underlie a broad spectrum of creative expression... creative people work much harder than the average person-and usually that's because they love their work... when eureka moments occur, they tend to be precipitated by long periods of preparation and incubation, and to strike when the mind is relaxed. The arts and the sciences are seen as separate tracks, and students are encouraged to specialize in one or the other. If we wish to nurture creative students, this may be a serious error." - Secrets of the Creative Brain - The Atlantic