Sunday, December 18, 2011

Where does a good idea come from?

We like to think of an idea as a light bulb that suddenly appears aglow in the dark corners of our mind. But brilliant ideas don’t just pop into view in a single flash of clarity; “eureka” moments are not spontaneous or isolated incidents. We should think of an idea as network with a timeline all its own; ideas grow and evolve because of how they are allowed to make connections with other ideas. That is where innovation comes from.



Tonight, at the close of a busy semester, I find myself thinking about just one thing: how do I get to the big idea? I have a feeling that there is something sort of epic in me, but I just keep wondering how will those ideas come shine?

I’ve been doing a bit of reading on this in the last week. And it seems to me that our grade school teachers were right about one thing, sharing is caring. I’m not sure I like sounding peppy or optimistic about “collaboration.” It was a lesson we heard repeated in our childhood, and I feel like an after-school television special to have a platform of ‘play nice with others.’ This blog entry isn’t about an original thought and the topic doesn’t make it feel young or hip. But regardless, the idea of collaboration as a source of innovation is an important cause.

We must all jump on board with the idea that working together leads to opportunity and embrace openness. New and evolving communication platforms are giving us the ability to work together in increasingly complex ways. Call me a techno-optimist, but why aren’t we more excited about these innovations of connectivity for the sake of solutions? Cognitive Surplus, an idea Clay Shirky has installed in me, is the idea that the world’s free time can now really be used as a global resource. If we accept that there is wisdom in the crowd, and that two or more people can produce an idea far superior to the individual, than why is there so much resistance to embracing openness of knowledge and research?

Connect rather than protect ideas: I am thinking that we all need matching t-shirts with this slogan. I know what it is like to hold a good hand of cards. I understand that scientists and research labs are resistant to showing their bag of tricks. When I find myself with a full house, my fingers tend to ache from my tight grasp; careful and aware of wandering eyes that might ruin my victory. But curing disease, saving our planet and digitizing human knowledge are not card games. I find it foolish that some are more concerned about intellectual property rights over humanity. These multi-faceted and significant problems can’t continue to suffer from hesitation and greed. I dream about about collisions—of ideas. In physics, a collision is the exchange of energy and momentum. I advocate for collisions of our philosophies and methodologies. The collision is where exciting innovation is born.

Big ideas need big spaces. I encourage you to become familiar and comfortable with the idea of open source, open data, open access, open software and open science. The fundamental ideas, as Dan Gezelter wrote, “Transparency in experimental methodology, observation, and collection of data; Public availability and reusability of scientific data; Public accessibility and transparency of scientific collaboration. Using web-based tools to facilitate scientific collaboration.” I believe strongly that we will continue to discover that sharing is in our own best self-interest.

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