Social media – and even the internet ‒ is a relatively new phenomenon in popular culture and sociology. It grows and changes with every new user, upload and wildfire trend. That’s why it’s fascinating to see young people’s interests and voices so heavily represented. On no other platform as powerful as this are the youngest…
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We often see that envisioning and planning for the future is made difficult by it being removed from our day-to-day lives. At iOi we challenge ourselves to look for ways to access imagination and come up with creative solutions, particularly where the next generation is concerned. This thought-provoking article from Claire Elise Thompson at Grist explores…
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The idea of creativity being ‘educated out’ or just losing that spark of imagination as we age is common. We’d certainly support nurturing it in children in every way possible, but there’s debate on how this develops as we get older. Some studies actually show a boost and peak between our 20s and 40s. What…
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Now for the final instalment in our series looking at this BBC programme – it’s ‘The Rocket‘. With each invention humanity tell its story and adds a new string to its bow; and rockets virtually represent an entirely new dimension. In some ways they’re the ultimate symbol of freethinking. We want to know what lies…
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Next in our journey through the BBC series Revolutions is The Car. As presenter Jim Al-Khalili says, this could be the most divisive invention on the list. While we might not support the pollution, cost, danger and lives lost, we can’t deny the capability that motor transport has brought us. This machine symbolises our insatiable…
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Next up in our exploration of this BBC series is ‘Robots‘. It’s the revolution on everyone’s minds, and believed to be a somewhat inevitable part of our future. However, perhaps more so than with any of the other inventions we’ve learned about, robots’ long history might surprise you. Since ancient times humans have been fascinated…
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Continuing in our series about Revolutions, a BBC programme exploring humanity’s game-changing inventions, is the telescope. It might not seem as ubiquitous or life changing as some of the discoveries, but there’s more to this one than meets the eye… The telescope gave us what might be the greatest discovery of all – the universe…
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At the Institute of Imagination (iOi), we are often asked what the difference is between imagination and creativity. We answer by referencing our Institute of Imagination champion Sir Ken Robinson’s definition: creativity is the application of imagination. Is There A Difference Between Imagination And Creativity? Through imagination we can step outside of our current context, revisit…
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Last week we brought you the first part of Revolutions: Ideas that Changed the World. The BBC series looks at six inventions that upturned and forever-changed civilisations’ ability to navigate the world. This week’s episode considers perhaps one of the most pertinent examples of this phenomenon. It’s the “device that defines our age” – the…
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Starting with the first episode, ‘Planes’, we’re taking a look at this fascinating TV series, a co-production between BBC Four and PBS. What we found most interesting about Revolutions was how it frames the stories around humanity’s journey to the discoveries – it shows that our technological advances are much more deep rooted than we…
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