Creative vs. Computational Thinking

When surprise becomes a rational necessity

A public talk by Prof. Giovanni Corazza in the Creativity and Innovation Lecture Series organized by the Webster Center for Creativity and Innovation (WCCI) (24 May 2018)

 

The human species is running fast towards what can be identified as the Post-Information Society, in which anthropomorphic as well as non-anthropomorphic forms of artificial intelligence will be pervasive, with dramatic impact on both the job market and the educational system. It is therefore essential that we pose today both ultimate and proximal questions about the future of our species and its role in future cyber-physical collaborations. While there is a current tendency to believe that the correct answer for the educational system is the introduction of computational thinking as a subject for all, we maintain that this set of skills will not be sufficient, and indeed not the most important one. Our well-being from both psychological and social points of view, as well as the preservation of our specific role in the economy, will depend on the development of the specifically human traits and abilities related to what we identify as organic creativity, which includes our capacity to use unexpected elements in our cognitive processes: surprise will have to become a rational necessity!

 

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