Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
this volume by Schmidhuber). This idea is subsumed under our own definition of
creativity. When a new pattern is encountered or generated, this requires of an ob-
server either: no change, the new pattern fits neatly into their existing frameworks;
or in the case where the new pattern does not fit, the addition of a new framework
that does account for the pattern. In the latter case, the need for an additional frame-
work indicates that the pattern was creative from the perspective of the observer.
13.5.5 Degrees of Creativity
Following our definition it is not obvious how different people or their works may
be ranked by their creativity. An account of the degrees of creativity that is intrinsic
in our definition draws upon the probability that pre-existing frameworks could have
produced the patterns. A novel framework that can generate patterns that could not,
under any circumstances, have been generated prior to its introduction, is highly
creative. A novel framework that only replicates patterns generated by preexisting
frameworks is not at all creative. A novel framework that produces patterns that are
less likely to have been generated by preexisting frameworks is the more creative,
with the degree of creativity varying inversely with that probability of having been
generated by preexisting frameworks. Finally, the degree of creativity attributable to
objects is derivative from the degree of creativity shown by their generating frame-
work.
13.6 Examples: Creativity in Human Endeavour
Number Theory.
The introduction of zero, negative numbers and the imagi-
nary number
i
were all creative. With the introduction of these new frameworks,
novel patterns were produced, with some of their consequences still being explored.
These could not have been generated within the previously existing frameworks of
mathematics at all. For instance, positive integers are sufficient for counting objects
owned, but the introduction of negative numbers is necessary for the calculation of
objects owed. Imaginary numbers have permitted the creation of previously impos-
sible concepts, for instance, the quaternion.
Visual Arts.
Some Australian aboriginal visual artists draw or paint what is
known about the insides of a creature rather than its skin and fur. By introducing
this conceptual framework to visual art, patterns showing x-ray images are gener-
ated that are impossible within a framework focused on surfaces.
The step taken by the Impressionists away from realism in art in the 19th century
was also creative. They held that art should no longer be valued simply according
to its representation of the world as seen from the perspective of an ideal viewer. As
already discussed, breaking constraints is a common way of transforming a frame-
work in the way required for creativity.
