The Creative Mind: Myths and Mechanisms

by Margaret A. Boden

Overview

How is it possible to think new thoughts? What is creativity and can science explain it? And just how did Coleridge dream up the creatures of The Ancient Mariner?

When The Creative Mind: Myths and Mechanisms was first published, Margaret A. Boden's bold and provocative exploration of creativity broke new ground. Boden uses examples such as jazz improvisation, chess, story writing, physics, and the music of Mozart, together with computing models from the field of artificial intelligence to uncover the nature of human creativity in the arts.

The second edition of The Creative Mind has been updated to include recent developments in artificial intelligence, with a new preface, introduction and conclusion by the author. It is an essential work for anyone interested in the creativity of the human mind.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781134379576
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	02/24/2004
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	360
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Margaret A. Boden is Research Professor of Cognitive Science at Sussex University, where she founded the School of Cognitive and Computing Sciences in 1987 (now the Centre for Research in Cognitive Science).

Table of Contents

Preface to the Revised Edition Preface Acknowledgments In a Nutshell 1. The Mystery of Creativity 2. The Story So Far 3. Thinking the Impossible 4. Maps of the Mind 5. Concepts of Communication 6. Creative Connections 7. Unromantic Artists 8. Computer-Scientists 9. Chance, Chaos, Randomness, Unpredictability 10. Elite or Everyman? 11. Of Humans and Hoverflies 12. Epilogue References Bibliography Index

Editorial Reviews

Boden (philosophy and psychology, Univ. of Sussex, England) takes issue with Lady Lovelace's declaration that computers cannot be creative in the same way that humans can. She explores the field of computational psychology, which examines human creativity by analyzing computers that can mimic human creative efforts. According to Boden, understanding how computers process information and yield results resembling human creativity can reveal clues regarding how our own brains process information. This may help us to understand the creative process and increase our creative possibilities. Boden's book will appeal more to adults with a scientific bent, but it is also readable for humanities types interested in the subject.-- Lucy Patrick, Florida State Univ. Lib., Tallahassee

Library Journal

'Margaret Boden is compelling reading. In The Creative Mind, she brings her lucid intelligence to bear on demystifying creativity and manages to be highly informative without obscuring the great darkness of her subject.' - Jerome Brunner, Research Professor of Psychology, New York University

'If you've ever wondered whether computers are creative, read this thought provoking and timely book.' - Howard Gardner, author of Frames of Mind and Intelligence Reframed

'[Boden] is committed to thoughtfully analysing thought and is one of the world's best commentators on these matters.' - Douglas Hofstadter, Nature

'Margaret A. Boden, has been at the forefront of efforts to exorcise Cartesian superstition and establish that the brain is a wonderfully subtle machine.' - George Johnson, New York Times Book Review

'A demystifying, up-to-the-minute report, wide-ranging and accessible.' - Kirkus Reviews

Praise for the first edition: 'Enormously enjoyable ... More readable and more literate than the average new novel.' - Christina Hardyment, The Independent

'A model of how to popularise current research.' - Times Literary Supplement

'I think this text is refreshingly engaging and well written, with plenty of real-life examples to consolidate and extend learning.' - Anthony Curtis

'The style is just right - a chatty style to introduce novices to psychology... gives confidence that this is not going to be beyond them.' - Diana Dwyer, South Nottingham College

'A fascinating and well argued book, which I recommend to others without reservation: the list of references alone is worth the cover price.' - The Philosophers' Magazine

'Boden makes a persuasive case that a computational approach will help explain human creative processes ... written in clear and engaging style.' - Ken Gilhooly, The Psychologist

'Margaret A. Boden has been at the forefront of efforts to exorcise Cartesian superstition and establish that the brain is a wonderfully subtle machine.' - George Johnson, New York Times Book Review

'Boden makes a persuasive case that a computational approach will help explain human creative processes ... written in clear and engaging style.' - Ken Gilhooly, The Psychologist

'[Boden] is committed to thoughtfully analysing thought and is one of the world's best commentators on these matters.' - Douglas Hofstadter, Nature

From the Publisher