• Question: How do you come up with all these great inventions?

    Asked by kacis to Duncan, Grant, Julie, Nik, Rachel on 11 Mar 2013.
    • Photo: Grant Campbell

      Grant Campbell answered on 11 Mar 2013:

      I’m not sure any of the scientists in the food zone would claim to have come up with many great inventions! But in general, invention arises in response to need, and by looking at things in a different way. Because food systems are very complicated, they can force you to think in novel ways in order to solve a particular problem. In your to stimulate your thinking, so that you have a greater chance of coming up with a great idea, it’s good to get input from a wide range of things – reading, talking with other people, playing. Also, when you discover something new (which is what science is about), as well as asking “Why did that happen?”, it’s good to be in the habit of asking “What could I use that new knowledge for?” That potentially turns you from a scientist into an inventor.

    • Photo: Julie Bland

      Julie Bland answered on 11 Mar 2013:

      Like Duncan said wouldn’t talk about invention but in my case it is more new ideas on how to do things better ( new methodology) like making more cheese with less milk! To do this I think you need to be curious, critical and creative.
      Curious so you get interested in the subject enough to become an expert (or close to it 😉 and also about other subject which can help understand better the first subject.
      Critical so you realize what need to be done and why.
      Creative so you find the new way of doing it better!
      Finally I also think you need to be patient and hard working because in science not only do you need to come up with the new idea you also need to prove it is correct! So you will have to create an experiment which will prove your point and repeat it many times to show it is not only because of luck it worked.

      Creative so

    • Photo: Rachel Edwards-Stuart

      Rachel Edwards-Stuart answered on 11 Mar 2013:

      I am quite lucky on the creative side because I get to work with chefs, Chefs, unlike most scientists, are quite creative. They always come up with the craziest of ideas (like when my boss asked me to recreate Willi Wonka’s gobstopper) and I help them try and make it a reality! Together we have come up with the strangest ideas!

    • Photo: Duncan Gaskin

      Duncan Gaskin answered on 16 Mar 2013:

      I lot of the inventions I come up with are new ways to do things that I or the people I work with need to do. There are lots of ways to come up with these new ideas, I talk to people about the problem and that can suddenly make you think of a clever way of solving the problem, or simply sleeping on an idea can let your sub-conscience work over night. I just need to invent something that lets me remember all the good ideas I have!

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