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"Creativity is a nebulous, murky topic that fascinates me endlessly - how does it work? What habits to creative people do that makes them so successful at creativity? I've reflected on my own creative habits, but decided I'd look at the habits that others consider important to their creativity. I picked a handful of creatives, almost at random - there are so many that picking the best would be impossible, so I just picked some that I admire, who came to mind when I thought of the word "creative". This was going to be a list of their creative habits … but in reviewing their lists, and my own habits, I found one that stood out. And it stands out if you review the habits and quotes from great creative people in history. It's the Most Important Habit when it comes to creativity. After you read the No. 1 habit, please scroll down and read the No. 2 habit - they might seem contradictory but in my experience, you can't really hit your creative stride until you find a way to balance both habits. The No. 1 Creativity Habit In a word: solitude."

"Charles Babbage is cited as the father of modern computing - although perhaps "uncle" would be more accurate, since his designs never actually saw completion and computing is based on totally different principles. But his idea of a "difference engine," a hand-cranked device that could solve mathematical problems, is essentially the first instance of a computer in human history. numbersUnfortunately, the device, designed to tackle the huge amount of calculation involved in tracking the British navy, was never completed. After 10 years of tinkering, the project was aborted and the prototype melted down. But Babbage's plans and a few pieces of the Difference Engine remained, and just recently someone decided they'd finish what he started. Now there is a complete and working Difference Engine at the Computer History Museum down in Mountain View. It was put together by Doron Swade, a former curator at London's Science Museum, and a team he assembled over the last two decades. There is another working Difference Engine being kept at that museum, and this one will only remain in Mountain View for a year before it heads out to Seattle to enter a "private collection." I'm guessing Ballmer's (actually, Nathan Myhrvold, former MS CTO. Close, though). So go see it while you can, startup guys! There's more info at NPR, where you can, as always, have it narrated to you. I love that. I'm going to make some coffee and listen to it again. Update: A commenter at NPR notes that the Harvard Mark I was a functioning difference engine, but relied on electricity rather than clockwork. It was completed in 1944."

beer package in a dead animal (not a real dead animal that's cruel) stylin, someone needs to make a beer cooler sleeve that looks like this and I'm in for six, the more realistic looking the better - keep the girls off the patio

"Timeline paintings Ward Shelley paints these wonderfully intricate timelines of different things...his life, Frank Zappa's career, and the history of the avant garde. Ward Shelley"

The dangerous problem of cars accelerating without a driver's input has put Toyota in the headlines - and brought the giant carmaker's executives to congressional hearings. But unintended acceleration has been a problem across the auto industry, according to an NPR analysis of consumer complaints to federal regulators. The NPR News investigation finds that other automakers have had high rates of complaints in some model years, including Volkswagen, Volvo and Honda - in some cases resolving the apparent problems through evolving technology and recalls. The analysis covers about 15,000 complaints filed over the past decade, covering cars back to the 1990 model year. The complaints were filed with the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, which regulates auto safety.

Grand Khan Guyuk In a letter dated 1246 from Grand Khan Guyuk, pictured, to Pope Innocent IV, Genghis Khan's grandson demands that the Pontiff travel to central Asia in person Vatican Archives Although scholars have had access to the secret archives since 1881, they remain closed to the general public The Holy See's archives contain scrolls, parchments and leather-bound volumes with correspondence dating back more than 1,000 years.

"Crayola's Law: "The number of colors doubles every 28 years" Crayons Big1 Love it - Crayola's Law: "The number of colors doubles every 28 years" via Waxy."