Stick to Creativity
(L) Earlier versions of Asimo and (R) Art Fry We hold our scientists in very high regard. For we believe that the work that they do is nearly magical. For instance, if we were to encounter a robot like ASIMO, most of us would be left awe-struck or would be marveling at the feats technology has achieved, than try and understand how it has come to be. We'll even convince ourselves that the maker of such inventions should be gifted in some special way.
Our search for light ended when science gave us lamps. Our belief that atoms are indivisible was shattered when they were further divided into particles. We are now at the cusp of discovering the Higg's Boson as scientists gather more and more evidence.
Does it naturally follow that we always end up with what we set out to search for? Is it necessary that we know our destination even at the outset of our journey? It might be tempting to say 'yes'. Spencer Silver and Art Fry, however, would agree to disagree. Silver completed his Ph.D in organic chemistry in 1966 and took a job with the company 3M, researching pressure-sensitive adhesives. Silver saw himself as a molecular architect, so much so that he was keen to make the distinction between glue and adhesives (glue is obtained by boiling down animal bones and making something that sticks once dried; adhesives rely on the structure of molecules for their tack and elasticity).
While experimenting, Silver once added more than the recommended amount of chemical reactant that causes the molecules to polymerise. As a result, the small particles that were produced dispersed in solvents instead of dissolving. Using this he was able to develop an adhesive that had high tack but low peel, making it reusable. Though he believed his adhesive was unique, he couldn't come up with a finished product. He therefore started giving seminars in the hope of sparking off an idea. It was in one such seminar that Art Fry, whose work involved building ideas into businesses, came across this interesting adhesive.
Fry, who used to sing in a church choir, had a practical problem. While singing, his bookmark would fall out, making him lose his place in the book. He realised that what he needed was a bookmark that would stick, but not so hard that it would damage the book. It is here that Silver's adhesive fitted in the scheme of things. A few experiments and the new product was ready. When tested inside the company, people liked it, but it still wasn't being used up fast. And then one day when Fry was working on a report, he cut out a piece of the bookmark, wrote a question and stuck it on the front. Only when his supervisor wrote his answer on the same paper and stuck it back on the front did it strike him: the product had to be used as a sticky note!
It was a single spark of creativity that led to the birth of Post-it Note in 1977. It is often such moments that sets the ball rolling in an entirely different direction. Creativity is neither passed on genetically, nor is it a supernatural power hard-wired into certain beings. It is like any other skill and anyone can learn or get better at it. Just keep your eyes open to ideas outside your field of interest as well. Who knows, you could be the next inventor!