In case you’ve not seen it, the final report from the National Science Foundation’s Innovation and Discovery Workshop can be downloaded here: http://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=nsf0725

It brings together multiple disciplines, such as sociology, psychology, cognitive science, and engineering. What I found particularly rewarding was the report’s recommendations on the different areas of collaboration between various disciplines.

The report also gives us something to think about, on what creativity/innovation means in different contexts. An extract from the report reads:

“Creativity involves the introduction of new variables, significant leaps, and novel connections. A subset of creativity, innovation, involves the creation of a new idea but also involves its implementation, adoption, and transfer. Innovation and discovery transform insight and technology into novel products, processes, and services that create value for stakeholders and society. Innovations and discoveries are the tangible outcomes. Creativity is needed to produce these outcomes. Innovation and discovery processes should be formal processes that harness creativity to those ends.

From a product perspective, creativity usually reflects aspects of novelty and/or utility of the products. From a process perspective, creativity involves the social, cognitive, and/or physical processes situated in individual, team, and organization contexts that repeatably produce innovative products. Creative outcomes can occur through serendipity, but it is the creative processes that regularly produce creative outcomes.”