Introduction to Creativity and Innovation for Engineers

✍ Scribed by Stuart Walesh

• Publisher: Pearson
• Year: 2016
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 369
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

For courses in creativity and innovation for engineers.

 

Emphasizing the Importance of Innovation and Creativity for Engineers

This first edition of Introduction to Creativity and Innovation for Engineerswas primarily designed for engineering students interested in acquiring knowledge, skills, and attitudes (KSA) that will help them be more creative and innovative. While intended primarily for engineering students, the widely applicable principles, ideas, tools, and methods introduced will also be useful for practicing engineers and as well as members of other disciplines.

 

The text argues for a “whole-brain” approach to the study of engineering, using neuroscience as a foundation. While the left brain (logical and analytic) is essential to the study of engineering, the author believes that engineering students and practitioners will be more successful if they learn to also engage in more right brain processing (intuitive and emotional). Similarly, they should draw on knowledge of conscious and subconscious thinking and view the brain as a muscle that can be continuously strengthened.

 

Building on that “Neuroscience 101” foundation, the text prepares future and current engineers to work smarter—either as individuals or within teams and organizations—by generating and developing new ideas. The nine chapter structure uses clear objectives, many examples, and numerous exercises to explicate its methods, ultimately enabling students and practitioners to realize that they’re already capable of creative - innovative thinking. They only need to apply the 20 methods described in the book to unlock their brain’s natural capabilities and then produce creative-innovative results for their benefit and for the benefit of others.

✦ Table of Contents

Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
Contents
Preface
The Need for a Whole-Brain Approach in Engineering
Going Up to the Next Level
Organization and Content
Using this Text in a First-Year Exploring Engineering Course
Fitting Creativity and Innovation into an Already Full Academic Program
Neuroscience and Teaching Effectiveness
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgments for the Global Edition
About the Author
1 Why Should You Learn More About Creativity and Innovation?
1.1 Purpose of This Text
1.2 Achieving Your Desired Success and Significance
1.3 Creativity and Innovation Defined and Illustrated
1.3.1 Definitions
1.3.2 Examples
1.4 Why Engineers Should Study Creativity and Innovation and Why Now
1.4.1 The Grand Challenges for Engineering
1.4.2 After the Knowledge Age: The Conceptual Age?
1.4.3 After the Knowledge Age: The Opportunity Age?
1.4.4 After the Knowledge Age: The Wicked Problems Age?
1.4.5 Stewardship with Aspiring Engineers and Their Gifts
1.4.6 The Satisfaction of Doing What Has Not Been Done
1.4.7 Closing Thoughts About Studying Creativity and Innovation
1.5 Engineering and Creativity: The Historic and Linguistic Connections
1.5.1 The Historic Connection between Engineering and Creativity/Innovation
1.5.2 The Linguistic Connection between Engineering and Creativity
1.6 Introduction to Examples of Creativity and Innovation
Cited Sources
Exercises
2 The Brain: A Primer
2.1 Introduction to Your Brain
2.2 Some Thoughts for Rational Engineers
2.3 Brain Features
2.3.1 Overview
2.3.2 Triune Brain Model
2.3.3 Neurons
2.4 Brain Functions
2.4.1 Overview
2.4.2 Vision Dominates
2.5 Brain and Mind
2.6 Hemispheres and Symmetry
2.7 Asymmetrical Capabilities: An Exceptional Exception
2.7.1 Leftand Right-Hemisphere Capabilities
2.7.2 Practical Applications of Hemisphere Knowledge
2.8 Neuroplasticity: A Muscle—Not a Machine
2.8.1 The Evolving Brain
2.8.2 Significance
2.9 Conscious and Subconscious Thinking
2.9.1 Cortex and Subcortex
2.9.2 Workings of the Conscious and Subconscious Minds: Overview
2.9.3 Comparing the Conscious and Subconscious Minds
2.10 Habits
2.10.1 Dominance of Habits in Our Lives
2.10.2 Habits: Good and Bad
2.10.3 Cue-Routine-Result Process
2.10.4 Opportunities Offered by Habit Change
2.10.5 Method for Changing Habits
2.10.6 Necessary Number of Cycles
2.10.7 There Must Be an Easier Way
2.10.8 The Long View
2.11 Taking Multitasking to Task
2.11.1 Costs of Multitasking
2.11.2 The Valued Kind of Multitasking
2.11.3 The Interruption Rationale
2.11.4 Benefits of Not Multitasking
2.11.5 Moving Away from Multitasking
2.12 Negativity Bias
2.12.1 Origin
2.12.2 Our Unfortunate Inheritance
2.12.3 Negative Consequences of the Negativity Bias
2.12.4 Offsetting Negativity Bias
2.13 Leftand Right-Handedness
2.13.1 How Handedness Affects Behavior
2.13.2 Advantages of Being Left-Handed
2.13.3 Advantages of Being Right-Handed
2.13.4 Closing Thoughts about Handedness
2.14 Gender and the Brain
2.14.1 Caveats
2.14.2 Brain Structure
2.14.3 Brain Chemistry: Neurotransmitters and Hormones
2.14.4 Pathology
2.14.5 Nature Versus Nurture
2.14.6 Examples: How Differences in Female and Male Brains May Influence Behavior
2.14.7 Application of Gender and the Brain Knowledge
2.15 How Do We Know What We Know?
2.15.1 Split-Brain Studies
2.15.2 Studies Over Time of Large Groups of Similar People
2.15.3 Brain-Imaging Techniques
2.16 Care and Feeding of Your Brain
2.16.1 Exercise
2.16.2 Diet
2.16.3 Mental Stimulation
2.16.4 Care and Feeding of Your Brain: The Essentials
2.17 The Rest of the Story
2.18 Looking Ahead to Chapters 3, 4, and 7
Cited Sources
Exercises
3 Prelude to Wholebrain Methods
3.1 The More Ideas, the Better
3.2 The Toolbox
3.2.1 Many Methods
3.2.2 Just Tools
3.2.3 Breaking Barriers
3.2.4 Free to Be Foolish
3.2.5 Using Multiple Methods
3.3 A Two-Chapter Approach
3.4 Avoiding the Einstellung Effect Trap
3.5 How Do We Know the Methods Work?
3.6 Hoping for Fortuitous Errors and Accidents
3.6.1 Cardiac Pacemaker
3.6.2 Vulcanization
3.6.3 Photosynthesis
3.6.4 Microwave Oven
3.6.5 Penicillin
3.6.6 Errors and Accidents: Learning Opportunities
3.7 Caveats
3.8 Facilitation
3.8.1 What is Facilitation?
3.8.2 Who is the Facilitator?
3.8.3 How Does the Facilitator Prepare to Facilitate?
3.8.4 What Does the Facilitator Do During the Session?
3.8.5 What Does the Facilitator Do After the Session?
3.9 Format Used to Present Each Method
3.10 Summary
Cited Sources
Exercises
4 Basic Whole-Brain Methods
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Ask-Ask-Ask
4.2.1 Reluctance to Ask Questions: Three Reasons
4.2.2 Five Powers of Questions
4.2.3 Four Question-Asking Techniques
4.2.4 Examples from Marketing of Professional Services
4.2.5 Additional Thoughts about Asking Questions
4.2.6 Neuroscience Basis
4.2.7 Positive and Negative Features
4.3 Borrowing Brilliance
4.3.1 Six Steps
4.3.2 Examples of Borrowing Brilliance
4.3.3 Ten Supporting Principles
4.3.4 Examples of “Accidental” Creativity
4.3.5 A Hypothetical Example
4.3.6 Neuroscience Basis
4.3.7 Positive and Negative Features
4.4 Brainstorming
4.4.1 Seven Steps of Brainstorming
4.4.2 Multivoting
4.4.3 Electronic Brainstorming
4.4.4 Neuroscience Basis
4.4.5 Positive and Negative Features
4.5 Fishbone Diagramming
4.5.1 Description and an Example
4.5.2 Neuroscience Basis
4.5.3 Positive and Negative Features
4.6 Medici Effect
4.6.1 Back to the Renaissance
4.6.2 Types of Diversity
4.6.3 Personality Profiles
4.6.4 The Novice Effect
4.6.5 Four Steps for Successful Team Development
4.6.6 Avoiding the Cloning/Sameness Approach
4.6.7 Examples
4.6.8 Neuroscience Basis
4.6.9 Positive and Negative Features
4.7 Mind Mapping
4.7.1 A Team Mind Map in Action
4.7.2 An Individual’s Mind Map in Action
4.7.3 More Examples
4.7.4 Why is Mind Mapping Effective?
4.7.5 Uses of a Completed Mind Map
4.7.6 Neuroscience Basis
4.7.7 Positive and Negative Features
4.8 Ohno Circle
4.8.1 Description
4.8.2 Examples
4.8.3 Neuroscience Basis
4.8.4 Positive and Negative Features
4.9 Stream of Consciousness Writing
4.9.1 Individual Application
4.9.2 Group Application
4.9.3 Neuroscience Basis
4.9.4 Positive and Negative Features
4.10 Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats
4.10.1 Description
4.10.2 Examples
4.10.3 Neuroscience Basis
4.10.4 Positive and Negative Features
4.11 Taking a Break
4.11.1 Description
4.11.2 Example: Bar Code
4.11.3 Example: Student Work
4.11.4 Neuroscience Basis
4.11.5 Positive and Negative Features
4.12 What If?
4.12.1 Description
4.12.2 Example: Taco Bell Restaurant
4.12.3 Example: Street Storage of Storm Water
4.12.4 Example: Combining Features While Retaining Functions
4.12.5 Example: The Panama Canal
4.12.6 Stc: Another Way to Think about What If
4.12.7 Neuroscience Basis
4.12.8 Positive and Negative Features
4.13 Concluding Thoughts About Basic Whole-Brain Methods
Cited Sources
Exercises
5 Overcoming Obstacles to Creativity and Innovation
5.1 Obstacles to Stop You or Roadblocks to Be Removed?
5.1.1 External Obstacles
5.1.2 Obstacles from within You
5.2 Fear of Failure
5.2.1 Concern with Public Safety, Health, Welfare, and Costs
5.2.2 Remedies
5.3 Belief that Creativity and Innovation Are Natural and Not Learned
5.3.1 Nurture: The Primary Determinant of a Person’s Creative/Innovative Ability
5.3.2 Remedies
5.4 Negative Results of the Left-Brain Emphasis in Formal Education
5.4.1 Engineering Education
5.4.2 You May Be an Exception
5.4.3 Caveat
5.4.4 Remedies
5.5 Reluctance to Change
5.5.1 Why We Resist Change
5.5.2 Change Resistance in the Political Environment
5.5.3 Remedies
5.6 Loss of Billable Time and Other Organizational Impediments
5.6.1 Business Realities
5.6.2 Remedies
5.7 Misconceptions About Artists
5.7.1 Free the Artist Within
5.7.2 Remedies
5.8 Complacency
5.8.1 The Success Trap
5.8.2 Remedies
5.9 Points to Ponder
5.10 Twenty Questions
Cited Sources
Exercises
6 Characteristics of Creative and Innovative Individuals
6.1 Introduction to Characteristics
6.2 Empathetic
6.2.1 Q Drum Meets a Major Need
6.2.2 Additional Examples of Empathy-Driven Creativity and Innovation
6.3 Studious
6.3.1 Always a Student
6.3.2 Leonardo da Vinci: Exemplar of Studiousness
6.3.3 Philo Farnsworth: Crop Rows and Television
6.3.4 Arthur Morgan: Twentieth-Century Renaissance Engineer
6.3.5 Jack S. Kilby: Simplification and ahe Integrated Circuit
6.4 Passionate
6.4.1 Joseph Strauss: Golden Gate Bridge
6.4.2 Hermann Von Helmholtz: Conservation of Energy Principle
6.5 Introverted
6.6 Experimentalist
6.6.1 From Car Wash to Weed Eater
6.6.2 From Sandpaper to Masking Tape
6.6.3 From Bird Beak to High-Speed Train
6.6.4 From No Theory for Flow Through Porous Media to a Widely Used One
6.7 Collaborative
6.7.1 Birth of the Personal Computer System
6.7.2 Other Collaboration Examples
6.7.3 Additional Thoughts about Trust
6.8 Persistent
6.8.1 Baby Incubator for Developing Countries
6.8.2 Xerography
6.8.3 From Car Batteries to Home Batteries
6.8.4 Brooklyn Bridge: It Took a Family
6.8.5 Other Persistence Examples
6.9 Characteristics: Concluding Thoughts
Cited Sources
Exercises
7 Advanced Wholebrain Methods
7.1 Resuming Discussion of Whole-Brain Methods
7.1.1 The More Divergent the Ideas, the Better Their Convergence
7.1.2 Two-Chapter Approach
7.1.3 The Ideas of Just “Tools” and the Use of Multiple Methods
7.1.4 Final Thoughts Before Introducing More Whole-Brain Methods
7.2 Biomimicry
7.2.1 Description
7.2.2 Graduated Materials
7.2.3 Calatrava’s Nature-Inspired Designs
7.2.4 Floating Wetlands
7.2.5 More Biomimicry Examples
7.2.6 Neuroscience Basis
7.2.7 Positive and Negative Features
7.3 Challenges and Ideas Meetings
7.3.1 Challenges Meetings
7.3.2 Ideas Meetings
7.3.3 Keystone Habits
7.3.4 How You Might Use the Keystone Habit Idea
7.3.5 Neuroscience Basis
7.3.6 Positive and Negative Features
7.4 Freehand Drawing
7.4.1 Back to the Pencil
7.4.2 Drawing on The History of Drawing and Its Impact on Engineering
7.4.3 Benefits of Freehand Drawing
7.4.4 Benefit 1: Seeing—Not Just Looking
7.4.5 Benefit 2: Increased Awareness of the Right Brain’s Powerful Functions
7.4.6 Benefit 3: Enhanced Group Collaboration
7.4.7 Neuroscience Basis
7.4.8 Positive and Negative Features
7.5 Music
7.5.1 Description
7.5.2 Examples
7.5.3 Neuroscience Basis
7.5.4 Positive and Negative Features
7.6 Process Diagramming
7.6.1 Description and an Example
7.6.2 Neuroscience Basis
7.6.3 Positive and Negative Features
7.7 Six Thinking Caps
7.7.1 Reducing Confusion While Thinking
7.7.2 Why Caps?
7.7.3 Why Six Caps?
7.7.4 Why the Specific Colors?
7.7.5 Does It Work?
7.7.6 Group Use of the Method
7.7.7 Cap-Specific Advice
7.7.8 Key Points About the Six Thinking Caps Method
7.7.9 Neuroscience Basis
7.7.10 Positive and Negative Features
7.8 Supportive Culture and Physical Environment
7.8.1 Culture and Its Influence
7.8.2 Killing Creativity and Innovation
7.8.3 Benefits of a Supportive Culture and Physical Environment
7.8.4 Impact of Physical Environment
7.8.5 Examples of Mixing Up the Personnel
7.8.6 Three Elements of a Supportive Culture
7.8.7 The Employer Gathers the Cast and Sets the Stage
7.8.8 Suggested Leadership and Management Practices
7.8.9 Many Organizations Will Resist
7.8.10 Neuroscience Basis
7.8.11 Positive and Negative Features
7.9 Theory of Inventive Problem Solving (TRIZ)
7.9.1 Have Others Faced This Challenge?
7.9.2 The TRIZ Process: Conceptual
7.9.3 The TRIZ Process: Four Steps
7.9.4 Neuroscience Basis
7.9.5 Positive and Negative Features
7.10 Taking Time to Think
7.10.1 Why the Focus on Time?
7.10.2 Mindfulness
7.10.3 Writing as a Way of Taking Time to Think
7.10.4 Neuroscience Basis
7.10.5 Positive and Negative Features
7.11 Many More Whole-Brain Methods
7.12 Concluding Thoughts About Advanced Whole-Brain Methods
7.13 Revisiting Brain Basics
Cited Sources
Exercises
8 Creativity and Innovation Examples From Various Engineering Specialties
8.1 More Examples to Engage You
8.2 Aerospace Engineering: Landing a Rover on Mars
8.2.1 How They Did It
8.2.2 Lessons Learned
8.3 Agricultural Engineering: Precision Agriculture
8.3.1 Elements of Precision Agriculture
8.3.2 The Process: A Continuous Improvement Cycle
8.3.3 Lessons Learned
8.4 Biomedical (Electrical and Mechanical) Engineering: Bionics
8.4.1 Bionics: Taking Prosthetics to the Next Level
8.4.2 Bionics Examples
8.4.3 Lessons Learned
8.5 Chemical Engineering: Desalination
8.5.1 Introduction to Desalination
8.5.2 Osmosis
8.5.3 Reverse Osmosis
8.5.4 An Example: Tampa
8.5.5 Building on Positives to Meet Challenges
8.5.6 Lessons Learned
8.6 Transportation Engineering: Temporary Use of a Bridge
8.6.1 Options and The Solution
8.6.2 Lessons Learned
8.7 Water Resources Engineering: Multipurpose Storm Water Facility
8.7.1 Engineering Guidelines Set the Stage
8.7.2 Analysis and Recommendations
8.7.3 Design of the Major Detention Facility
8.7.4 Finance and Construction of the Facility
8.7.5 Offsetting the Public’s Short Memory
8.7.6 State Legislation
8.7.7 Lessons Learned
8.8 Concluding Thoughts: What Profession Does More for Humanity?
Cited Sources
Exercises
Moving On: The Next Move is Yours
9.1 The End of This Text
9.2 Reflecting on the Text’s Purpose and the Means Used to Achieve It
9.3 Implementation: The Other Part
9.4 My Hope for You
Exercises
Cited Sources
Appdix A: Abbreviations
Appendix B: Glossary
Index