This rant is not a scientific accurate discussion. It is a peek into the nature of creativity and the meaning of infinity. Is human creativity infinite ??
“A Trip to Infinity” – the documentary
The documentary “A trip to infinity” is visually beautiful. The animations and explanations are really fun to watch, even if you’re familiar the concepts being discussed.
Interestingly, at one point, the scientists are asked : Do you think that human creativity is infinite..?
Well … can it be?
Does a group of scientists think that human creativity is infinite?
Here are some of the answers that these scientists gave when asked : ‘Is human creativity infinite ?’ :
- “I sort of recoil at that suggestion.”
- “I don’t know. God. I don’t know that we are infinite.”
- “… doesn’t seem to right to me. We seem to be very bounded. Bounded in our rationality. Bounded in our creativity.”
- “… even 1000 is too big for me to properly imagine.”
In summary, and this was surprising to me, not one was sure and confident with an unequivocal ‘Yes’.
I remember that while watching I thought to myself, does hesitation in answering this question indicate a lacking imaginativeness?
But First, what does it mean?
Before trying to elaborate, let’s look at the terms. Defining the problem can sometimes help when you’re trying to find a solution.
What does Infinity and Creativity mean?
Infinity (simplified, brutally): Watch the documentary if you have time, or read one of the books mentioned in the sources below. Still, to keep things simple, we can say that infinity is the boundless… Something larger than any number.
Creativity (without getting argumentative or too philosophical): is the ability to come up with (sometimes unexpected) solutions to problems and to generate original expressions / designs.
It helps here to keep in mind that there are different forms of infinity. The numbers (1,2,3,…) are infinite. The numbers (…,-3,-2,-1,0,1,2,3,…) are infinite too. So are the rational numbers between 1 and 2 (1,…., 1.0003, 1.0004, … , 1.5 , …. 1.98423, …. , 2). Many more.
So: Is Human Creativity Infinite ??
Start by taking a look inside your mind. Look at your imagination.
The amazing human mind can (easily) picture the simple infinity of the integers (the countable infinity). To picture this is an act of creativity with no bounds (just as infinity is simplified by imagining for any number x a greater number x+1,so is imagination infinitely creative by being able to draw these progressive images). Is the object that can grasp the infinite itself infinite?
The documentary at one point proves that a small circle and a large circle, both having an infinite number of dots constituting their periphery, have the same number of dots. Similarly we can think about the ideas that can be ‘created’ by the human mind.
Because creativity sometimes is about using ‘Approximate Thinking’ to expand knowledge, certain attributes like mental presence, openness to new experiences, and tolerance of ambiguity are important building blocks for creativity. This is only because true creativity is by nature something with infinite potential. I discuss some of these concepts in detail in the last chapters of “Fuzzy on the Dark Side: Approximate Thinking”, and link creativity to ‘Approximate Thinking’ as a skill that can solve an infinitely broad range of problems.
Step – 1 : Is problem-solving creativity Infinite?
Is there a limit to the problems that we can solve?
I might be mistaken here, but I can easily imagine an infinite (countable) number of problems that can be solved by applying some creative thinking. Think about solving mathematical problems of incrementally increasing complexity.
Granted that there is something subjective about calling something creative, everything being solved for the first time can be thought of as creative. It is novel and original. Aren’t there infinitely solvable-for-the-first-time problems you can imagine?
Step – 2 : Is expressive creativity infinite?
But things become even easier with the expressive creativity. We can imagine (I think) a great range of concepts, situations, objects, and thoughts. Are they infinite? I think so.
Here’s a rough proof:
Imagine a blue planet with two red dots –> You’ve just created it in your mind. Imagine two blue planets with two red dots –> You’ve just created those too. Imagine a blue planet with 4 green dots.. Is the number of things you can imagine in this manner finite?
Remember that the infinity here is simply about potential, because after all, we are talking about creativity and imagination: the realm of the mind.
Step – 3 : ‘Human Creativity’ VS ‘ A Human’s Creativity’
Keep in mind, though, that the question was about ‘Human Creativity’, and not a ‘Human’s Creativity’. Overall, and even though humans can be counted, the likelihood of human creativity being ‘unbounded’ and ‘with no upper limit’ (at least) seems to increase and become more evident when we add the infinite possible interactions that humans can have.
When we talk about ‘Human Creativity’ , we talk about a collective variable with many dimensions… it doesn’t mean every individual’s creativity is infinite. Plenty of robots out there. But if steps 1 and 2 make sense to you, step-3 should convince you that human creativity is infinite, because of the exponential growth of the number of interactions.
Finally: The amazing proximity of infinity !
Infinity is closer than we think !
The human mind, the human imagination, and human creativity are all capable of touching / picturing the infinite.
This is an amazing blessing, and quite exciting.
Games with Infinity: Zeno’s Race and Hilbert’s Hotel
One of the earliest mentions and discussions of infinity is Zeno’s paradox [see link below] arguing that Achille’s can’t beat a turtle that starts a race before him. He does this by infinitely breaking down time and space, and asserting that for every distance Achilles covers, the tortoise will advance too. (it is easy to see where the fault is once you’ve familiarized yourself with the concept of infinity).
The infinite hotel example, presented in this TED video, clarifies a few interesting points about infinity, and make it easier to understand.
“Is human creativity infinite” is not a very scientific question, mainly because creativity is not a clearly defined concept (let alone ‘human creativity’). It is, however, empowering to imagine that the infinite is within reach !