Femina problematis solvendis -- problem solving woman : a history of the creativity of women

This book explores the history of modern human creativity/innovation, highlighting examples of solutions to basic human’ needs that have been developed over time. The title – Femina Problematis Solvendis – is a play on the scientific classifications of humans (Homo habilis, Homo erectus, Homo sapiens), but with special focus on inventions pioneered by women ("femina") and is intended to suggest that a defining characteristic of modern humans is our fundamental ability to solve problems (i.e., problem-solving woman = Femina problematis solvendis), Written by David H. Cropley, an internationally recognised expert on creativity and innovation, it also builds on his previous book Homo Problematis Solvendis –Problem-solving Man, published in 2019.The book explores innovations over ten distinct "ages" of human history, beginning with "prehistory", and moving up to the present "information age". Each era is covered by a dedicated chapter that describes three key innovations that were either definitely invented by a woman or can be plausibly attributed to a female inventor. The book's focus on female inventors also serves to highlight some of the ways women have been treated in societies over time.David H. Cropley is an internationally recognised expert and author on creativity and innovation. His teaching interests focus on systems engineering and related concepts, while his research examines various aspects of creativity and innovation in the broader field of engineering. David is a regular keynote speaker and has appeared on the documentaries Redesign My Brain (ABC TV, 2013 and 2015) and Life at 9 (ABC TV, 2014), where he discussed creativity, innovation and problem solving. Preface 5 Acknowledgements 8 Contents 9 List of Figures 13 List of Tables 15 1 Introduction 16 1.1 Ten Ages of Innovation 20 2 Measuring Creativity 23 3 Prehistory (>2700 bce): Ancient Invention 27 3.1 The Wheel (c3500 bce) 28 3.1.1 What Was Invented? 28 3.1.2 Why Was the Wheel Invented? 30 3.1.3 How Creative Was the Wheel? 31 3.2 Shoes (c3400 bce) 32 3.2.1 What Was Invented? 33 3.2.2 Why Was the Shoe Invented? 34 3.2.3 How Creative Was the Shoe? 35 3.3 Soap (c2800 bce) 37 3.3.1 What Was Invented? 37 3.3.2 Why Was Soap Invented? 39 3.3.3 How Creative Was Soap? 40 4 The Classical Period (753 bce to 476 ce): Creative Civilisations 42 4.1 The Buckle (c700 bce) 43 4.1.1 What Was Invented? 44 4.1.2 Why Was the Buckle Invented? 45 4.1.3 How Creative Was the Buckle? 45 4.2 The Antikythera Mechanism (c150 bce) 47 4.2.1 What Was Invented? 48 4.2.2 Why Was the Antikythera Mechanism Invented? 50 4.2.3 How Creative Was the Antikythera Mechanism? 50 4.3 The Bain-Marie (0–300 ce) 52 4.3.1 What Was Invented? 53 4.3.2 Why Was the Bain-Marie Invented? 55 4.3.3 How Creative Was the Bain-Marie? 55 5 The Dark Ages (476–1453 ce): Medieval Creativity 58 5.1 The Quill Pen (c580 ce) 59 5.1.1 What Was Invented? 60 5.1.2 Why Was the Quill Pen Invented? 61 5.1.3 How Creative Was the Quill Pen? 62 5.2 Lingua Ignota (c1200) 63 5.2.1 What Was Invented? 64 5.2.2 Why Was Lingua Ignota Invented? 65 5.2.3 How Creative Was Lingua Ignota? 66 5.3 The Verge Escapement (c1300) 68 5.3.1 What Was Invented? 69 5.3.2 Why Was the Verge Escapement Invented? 70 5.3.3 How Creative Was the Verge Escapement? 71 6 The Renaissance (1300–1700): Reawakening Creativity 73 6.1 Feminism (1405) 74 6.1.1 What Was Invented? 75 6.1.2 Why Was Feminism Invented? 76 6.1.3 How Creative Was Feminism? 76 6.2 The Toothbrush (c1498) 78 6.2.1 What Was Invented? 78 6.2.2 Why Was the Toothbrush Invented? 80 6.2.3 How Creative Was the Toothbrush? 80 6.3 Palliative Medicine (c1570) 81 6.3.1 What Was Invented? 82 6.3.2 Why Was Palliative Medicine Invented? 84 6.3.3 How Creative Was Palliative Medicine? 84 7 The Age of Exploration (1490–1700): New Worlds and New Problems 87 7.1 Astronomical Tables (1650) 88 7.1.1 What Was Invented? 88 7.1.2 Why Were Astronomical Tables Invented? 91 7.1.3 How Creative Were Astronomical Tables? 91 7.2 The Two-Handed Internal Rotation (1690) 92 7.2.1 What Was Invented? 93 7.2.2 Why Was the Two-Handed Internal Rotation Invented? 94 7.2.3 How Creative Was the Two-Handed Internal Rotation? 95 7.3 The Corn Mill (1715) 97 7.3.1 What Was Invented? 97 7.3.2 Why Was the Corn Mill Invented? 98 7.3.3 How Creative was the Corn Mill? 100 8 The Age of Enlightenment (1685–1815): Commercialising Innovation 102 8.1 Silk Design (1740s) 103 8.1.1 What Was Invented? 103 8.1.2 Why Was Silk Design Invented? 105 8.1.3 How Creative Was Silk Design? 105 8.2 Coade Stone (1770) 107 8.2.1 What Was Invented? 108 8.2.2 Why Was Coade Stone Invented? 109 8.2.3 How Creative Was Coade Stone? 110 8.3 Straw Weaving (1809) 111 8.3.1 What Was Invented? 112 8.3.2 Why Was Straw Weaving Invented? 113 8.3.3 How Creative Was Straw Weaving? 114 9 The Romantic Period (1800–1900): Industrial Innovation 116 9.1 The Berkeley Horse (1828) 117 9.1.1 What Was Invented? 117 9.1.2 Why Was the Berkeley Horse Invented? 119 9.1.3 How Creative Was the Berkeley Horse? 119 9.2 The Computer Program (1840s) 121 9.2.1 What Was Invented? 121 9.2.2 Why Was the Computer Program Invented? 123 9.2.3 How Creative Was the Computer Program? 124 9.3 The Propeller (1869) 126 9.3.1 What Was Invented? 127 9.3.2 Why Was the Propeller Invented? 129 9.3.3 How Creative Was the Propeller? 129 9.4 The Life Raft (1880) 131 9.4.1 What Was Invented? 131 9.4.2 Why Was the Life Raft Invented? 132 9.4.3 How Creative Was the Life Raft? 132 10 The Modern Age (1880–1950): Bras, Bombs, and Bits 136 10.1 The Brassiere (1914) 137 10.1.1 What Was Invented? 138 10.1.2 Why Was the Brassiere Invented? 140 10.1.3 How Creative Was the Brassiere? 140 10.2 The Radio-Controlled Torpedo (1942) 142 10.2.1 What Was Invented? 142 10.2.2 Why Was the Radio-Controlled Torpedo Invented? 144 10.2.3 How Creative Was the Radio-Controlled Torpedo? 144 10.3 The Compiler (1952) 146 10.3.1 What Was Invented? 147 10.3.2 Why Was the Compiler Invented? 148 10.3.3 How Creative Was the Compiler? 149 11 The Space Age (1950–1981): The Rise of the Modern Creativity Era 151 11.1 Waterproof Diaper (c1949) 152 11.1.1 What Was Invented? 152 11.1.2 Why Was the Waterproof Diaper Invented? 155 11.1.3 How Creative Is the Waterproof Diaper? 155 11.2 Kevlar (1964) 157 11.2.1 What Was Invented? 157 11.2.2 Why Was Kevlar Invented? 159 11.2.3 How Creative Was Kevlar? 160 11.3 Scotchgard (1973) 161 11.3.1 What Was Invented? 162 11.3.2 Why Was Scotchgard Invented? 163 11.3.3 How Creative Was Scotchgard? 164 12 The Digital Age (1981–Present): Complexity and Creativity 167 12.1 The Laserphaco Probe (1981) 168 12.1.1 What Was Invented? 168 12.1.2 Why Was the Laserphaco Probe Invented? 169 12.1.3 How Creative Was the Laserphaco Probe? 171 12.2 Blissymbol Printer (1984) 172 12.2.1 What Was Invented? 173 12.2.2 Why Was the Blissymbol Printer Invented? 174 12.2.3 How Creative Was the Blissymbol Printer? 175 12.3 The Thermoelectric Flashlight (2013) 177 12.3.1 What Was Invented? 177 12.3.2 Why Was the Thermoelectric Flashlight Invented? 178 12.3.3 How Creative Was the Thermoelectric Flashlight? 179 13 The Innovation Scoreboard 182 Appendix A The Creative Solution Diagnosis Scale (CSDS) 189 Appendix B Tables of Creativity Scores 192 Bibliography 196 This book explores the history of modern human creativity/innovation, highlighting examples of solutions to basic human’ needs that have been developed over time. The title – Femina Problematis Solvendis – is a play on the scientific classifications of humans (Homo habilis, Homo erectus, Homo sapiens), but with special focus on inventions pioneered by women (“femina”) and is intended to suggest that a defining characteristic of modern humans is our fundamental ability to solve problems (i.e., problem-solving woman = Femina problematis solvendis), Written by David H. Cropley, an internationally recognised expert on creativity and innovation, it also builds on his previous book “Homo Problematis Solvendis –Problem-solving Man”, published in 2019. The book explores innovations over ten distinct “ages” of human history, beginning with “prehistory”, and moving up to the present “information age”. Each era is covered by a dedicated chapter that describes three key innovations that were either definitely invented by a woman or can be plausibly attributed to a female inventor. The book’s focus on female inventors also serves to highlight some of the ways women have been treated in societies over time. Front Matter ....Pages i-xvii Introduction (David H. Cropley)....Pages 1-7 Measuring Creativity (David H. Cropley)....Pages 9-12 Prehistory (>2700 bce): Ancient Invention (David H. Cropley)....Pages 13-27 The Classical Period (753 bce to 476 ce): Creative Civilisations (David H. Cropley)....Pages 29-44 The Dark Ages (476–1453 ce): Medieval Creativity (David H. Cropley)....Pages 45-59 The Renaissance (1300–1700): Reawakening Creativity (David H. Cropley)....Pages 61-74 The Age of Exploration (1490–1700): New Worlds and New Problems (David H. Cropley)....Pages 75-89 The Age of Enlightenment (1685–1815): Commercialising Innovation (David H. Cropley)....Pages 91-104 The Romantic Period (1800–1900): Industrial Innovation (David H. Cropley)....Pages 105-124 The Modern Age (1880–1950): Bras, Bombs, and Bits (David H. Cropley)....Pages 125-139 The Space Age (1950–1981): The Rise of the Modern Creativity Era (David H. Cropley)....Pages 141-156 The Digital Age (1981–Present): Complexity and Creativity (David H. Cropley)....Pages 157-171 The Innovation Scoreboard (David H. Cropley)....Pages 173-179 Back Matter ....Pages 181-189