original thought

Higher Ed: Synthesized Thought vs. Original Thought

Eureka – I’ve got it! You know that moment when you feel like you’ve come up with something completely original? Well, consider this: is it actually possible to come up with totally new thinking, given all the information that influences our thought? In this episode of KUT’s podcast “Higher Ed,” Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger and KUT’s Jennifer Stayton respond to a listener’s request to compare and contrast synthesized thinking and original thought. In a previous “Higher Ed” episode, Ed and Jennifer talked about creating new ideas. In this episode, Ed and Jennifer follow up with a more in-depth discussion, prompted by a listener who was curious about the intersection of education, creativity, original thought, and synthesized thought. Listen to hear Ed and Jennifer navigate that intersection and to get the solution to the puzzler about cigarette butts. It’s a little more complicated than it sounded at first!

This episode was recorded May 16, 2016.