Overview

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Creativity is important in nearly every facet of life. Advances in neuro-science, computing and psychology, along with developments in other domains and cross-disciplinary areas have resulted in ever increasing understanding of creativity. This module will explore some advanced approaches to creativity such as the use of analogy and metaphor, various thinking styles and the role of artificial intelligence. A framework called the creativity diamond is used to guide the selection of approach to creativity relevant to your project or activity. WHAT YOU WILL LEARN • Biomimicry and using insights from nature • Use of analogy and metaphor in creativity • A range of creative thinking and reasoning approaches • The use of AI to generate creative outcomes • Attributes of creativity and their assessment • Use of the creativity diamond SKILLS YOU WILL GAIN • Biomimicry • Use of analogy and metaphor in creativity • Accelerated proficiency in creative thinking styles • Use of some AI enabled platforms to generate outputs • Creativity assessment • Use of the creativity diamond in practice to aid in the selection of an approach to creativity relevant to your project or activity

Syllabus

Week 1

Inspiration for ideas can be leveraged from other domains such as nature. Biomimicry, also known as biomimetics, is the practice that uses insights from nature to inspire solutions. The aim in biomimicry is to produce solutions that are based on biological processes and strike a balance with nature. This week we will explore the principles of biomimicry, look at some case studies that are based on inspiration from nature, as well as applying some of the principles in examples.

Week 2

The use of analogy and metaphor in creative thinking is an advanced skill. An analogy concerns relation between one item or concept and another. The use of analogies can enable transfer of ideas from one domain to another and is used in tools such as smart little people and biomimicry. Metaphors involve describing something using terms that are not normally associated with standard definitions and can provide powerful provocations for creativity. This week we will look at both analogy and metaphor and their use in creativity.

Week 3

There are many thinking styles which can be helpful in creativity. We will focus on the principles as well as application of a variety of thinking approaches that can be used at both an individual level and in a group, under various professional and personal situations, allowing you to develop competency and accelerate proficiency in the use of some different thinking styles.

Week 4

Study of the ways that designers operate has provided important insights for creativity and innovation. The term design thinking has emerged as a way of accessing some of the approaches that designers use. Design thinking is promoted as a process that can help generate products, services and systems with the needs of users and principal stakeholders at the centre. Through processes including discovery, looking at the broader context, envisioning and questioning, experimentation, feedback and integration, design thinking provides an approach to provide solutions that actually address the user, and may even offer a solution for a broader set of people. This week we will explore some of the principal facets of design thinking, look at some case studies and explore insights from a couple of applications.

Week 5

Artificial intelligence (AI) is seemingly everywhere, in our gadgets, in the systems used for the web, in our cars and it’s in our homes and buildings too. We expect AI to become even more ubiquitous in the operation of smart cities, our homes and in content generation for music, film and writing. In essence, AI is a system, normally embodied in software, that makes autonomous decisions. Many developments in AI mimic aspects of human intelligence including learning, reasoning, problem solving, understanding language and perception of situations and environments. This week we will look at some of the fundamentals of AI, discuss some of the issues relevant to AI and creativity and explore some examples of the use of AI to generate outcomes.

Week 6

Over the three modules you have learned about some of the fundamentals of creativity along with several approaches to creativity and tools to augment innate creativity. This week we will look at the use of the creativity diamond in practice to aid in the selection of approach to creativity relevant to your project or activity.