There is growing evidence of the importance of imagination in supporting wellbeing. Although perhaps often overlooked, imagination can have an incredible impact on our general happiness. Imagination helps us to escape the day-to-day, to have fun, to envision future possibilities and to explore different perspectives. It is a crucial aspect of goal setting, meaning that…
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This may seem like a natural step for the infamous coloured blocks, and its regularity is in fact what belies its genius. Braille bricks are compatible with existing ones, feature numbers and symbols for people of all sight levels and will be given free to certain institutions. It’s this lack of distinction from mainstream toys…
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This is a great piece from Forbes about the importance of creativity in science. Not just in having ideas and thinking about a problem differently, but in the way we communicate. It’s an example of STEAM learning; of weaving arts into our understanding of science through stories. Stories are as old as humanity itself; they’re…
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“BIM Incubator brings together participants from disparate fields of knowledge to think collaboratively about blackness and black culture in relation to architecture”. We love the idea of “scrambling” this architectural, technical acronym to provoke thought and self-expression in new ways as part of Black Imagination Matters. On a humid, grey morning at Princeton in a…
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A couple of weeks ago we looked at how sci-fi can be a positive way to understand social issues such as climate change. Here, NPR continues this thought by tracing how we get from today’s world to that future. It’s inspiring to see the growing support for imagination and creative thinking being applied in this…
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This research into how creativity and ‘distant thinking‘ feed each other is fascinating. We focus a lot on the benefits of imagination for solving problems and navigating our world in the present, but it’s exciting to think that it can help us tap into our future potential. The common human default mode is that we…
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Being curious is often framed, even in childhood, as being nosy or even a nuisance, with sayings and fables warning against it. But should we be questioning this suspicion; are we curing more than just impoliteness? Being curious – being interested, asking questions – is the foundation of our work at iOi and IM. It…
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Curiosity is an essential ingredient for imagining. The want and need to explore is what drives creative thinking. Reminding ourselves is essential to developing the skills in young people, which is why we’ve partnered with OKIDO to bring you a Lab Live on curiosity next month. Let’s discover the wonder of wondering. Why? “That’s the…
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We recently brought you news of a new text generator that’s causing a stir in the tech world because of the understandable caution around AI. However, it’s important to remember the potential, and more than that, fun, that innovation can bring. Here, Rhodri Davies of the Charities Aid Foundation plays with AI to prove that…
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Designated, organised cohousing is still marginal; it certainly isn’t how the majority of the western world lives. What’s interesting about this article from Curbed is the insight into why there is a reluctance to organise communities like this in certain cultures. Is there a fear that a shared and varied influence on a child’s upbringing…
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While tackling stress is important and has wide-reaching benefits, creative practice such as music could do so much more. Applying the creative skills gained to STEM subjects can unlock even greater learnings. It’s a test of the essential nature of the ‘A’ in STEAM. Playing and practising music brings a range of health and educational…
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