About this Course
A wondrously romantic belief is that brilliant thinkers magically produce brilliant ideas: Einstein jostles his hair and relativity falls out. We can enjoy these fanciful visions of leaps of genius, but we should not be fooled into believing that they’re reality. Brilliant innovators are brilliant because they practice habits of thinking that inevitably carry them step by step to works of genius. No magic and no leaps are involved. Professor Starbird will discuss how practices of effective thinking and creativity can be taught and learned through puzzles and mathematics. Anyone who practices these habits of mind will inevitably create new insights, new ideas, and new solutions.
What You'll Learn
- Engage in thinking about mathematical ideas
- Apply effective strategies of thinking to approach questions in your lives with insight and innovation
- Think more effectively and imaginatively throughout your lives
Instructors
Michael Starbird
University Distinguished Teaching Professor of Mathematics