2nd Edition

The Creative Mind Myths and Mechanisms

By Margaret A. Boden Copyright 2004
    360 Pages
    by Routledge

    358 Pages
    by Routledge

    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.

    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

    Biography

    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).

    '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