The Science of Insight
The New Yorker ran a great piece on the neuro-science of insight, which helps us see how we come to a place of mental inspiration.
In a nutshell, insight happens when ideas cross the hemispheres, and are acted upon in both halves of the brain. As the article explains,
Once the brain is sufficiently focused on the problem, the cortex needs to relax, to seek out the more remote association in the right hemisphere that will provide the insight. As Kounios sees it, the insight process is an act of cognitive deliberation transformed by accidental, serendipitous connections.
What’s the nuance?
Working longer hours and leaving fun and exercise out of the equation really does reduce creativity, which makes it that much easier to get out for a bike ride, like, now.
