How to develop creative thinking exercises. How easy and simple it is to develop creative thinking for anyone. Morning starts in the evening
“Creativity is a creative orientation that is innately characteristic of everyone, but lost by the majority under the influence of the established system of upbringing, education and social practice.”
© American psychologist Abraham Maslow
We have already published an article. Now we offer you practical exercises, which will help to make your mind more flexible and sharp, develop creative abilities and contribute to the improvement of creative thinking.
So, 5 exercises:
2 random words
Take any book or dictionary. Choose 2 words at random: open any page and poke your finger without looking. And now try to find something in common between these two words, compare them, compare, analyze, look for relationships. You can come up with incredible, even crazy story that links these two concepts. Exercise and train your brain.
He said: “Creativity is just making connections between things. When creative people ask how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn't actually do anything, they just noticed. This becomes clear to them over time. They were able to connect different pieces of their experience and synthesize something new. This is because they have experienced and seen more than others, or because they think about it more.”
Follies of an architect
How do you feel about taking on the role of an architect and designing a house? You do not know how to draw or remembered with horror school lessons drawing and sopromat at the university? It's okay, the ability to draw and draw is the tenth thing here. The main thing is the process. Well, do you agree? Great, then let's go.
First, write down 10 nouns on a sheet, any. Tangerine, glass, meadow, water, tomato - whatever comes to mind. These 10 words are 10 mandatory conditions the client for whom you are designing a house. For example, "tangerine" - make the walls of the house orange color, “water” - let there be a fountain or a pond in front of the house, “tomato” - put red fish into the pond or hang red curtains in the house, etc. Let your imagination run wild. Draw and imagine what it would look like in real life.
Associations (5+5)
Take a look at the room you are in right now. What subject caught your eye? Mine is for a chocolate bar that lies on the table. Now take a piece of paper with a pen and write down 5 adjectives that best fit the subject you have chosen. For example, dark chocolate, delicious chocolate, Belgian chocolate, natural chocolate, loose chocolate (imported, domestic, favorite, white, milk, hot, bar chocolate and many other options come to mind).
Have you written? And now the most interesting thing - write 5 more adjectives that absolutely do not fit. It is noticeably more difficult to make: glass chocolate, plush chocolate, summer chocolate, mystery chocolate, roasted chocolate. o_O That's what came to my mind. Dig into your feelings and perceptions and find the right definitions. Put in a little more effort, and everything will turn out, the main thing is not to leave the task unfulfilled. Sit and meditate.
Hour of Silence
Do not be afraid, take water in your mouth and you will not have to be silent. As you understand from the title of the exercise, this task will take you one hour, but at the same time you should not break away from your business and your usual daily routine. At this hour, answer people only general questions, using "yes" and "no". Be as natural as possible so that no one suspects anything strange. Others should not get the impression that you are out of your mind, sick or getting up in the morning on the wrong foot. Try it and believe me, you will fall in love.
The main thing here is to believe in yourself, and cast all doubts away. We take a sheet of paper and draw these crosses: 6 in height and 9 in length:

Now tune in to the creative wave, take a deep breath and slowly exhale. We take a pen and start turning the crosses into pictures and small sketches, for example, like this:

Finished? And now look at what happened and choose the most successful ones, there will certainly be such ones.
The original task may look different, for example, like this:

Or like this:

P.S.
Generate thoughts, do not stop there. The more you train your brain, develop your imagination and creativity, the more interesting ideas and decisions will come to you.
Be creative!
“Creativity is not a craft where you have to justify your salary; it is a trade where your salary justifies you. And a career as a creator is as ephemeral as a career as a TV director.” © film "99 francs"
Sometimes being creative in your personal or professional life is like a breath of fresh air. But unfortunately, not all people are able to think creatively. Many original ideas are rarely visited. How to develop creativity? And is it possible?
Everyone is endowed with creativity, we are born with it. This is the ability of our brain that can be awakened.
Change habitual thinking to unconventional
We often live and think in automatic mode. So it's more convenient? We hesitate to leave our comfort zone and look at things from a creative point of view.
After all, a chair is needed to sit. But who said that only for this? Non-standard thinking plays an important role in the development of creativity. Try to break stereotypes. Improvise!
Curiosity is not a vice
There is no creativity without curiosity. This quality helps the birth of new experiences, ideas and research.
Write down ideas
Keep a notebook handy at all times to write down any thoughts that arise. Much is not remembered. But you can always go back to what you wrote and use the idea at the right time. Never throw, born ideas with the thought: "This is stupid!". Any thought has the right to exist.
Find your source of inspiration
It can be a picture, a song, a book, a poem, a film. The world offers ideas that you can use as the basis for creating your ideas. Just don't confuse inspiration with plagiarism.
Obstacles are your motivation
Do not confuse "difficult" and "impossible". If you want to learn creativity, then eliminate the word "impossible". Yes, it can be hard and difficult. When faced with an obstacle, focus on solving the problem. Overcoming discomfort and negative feelings become a good source of inspiration.
The vast majority of inventions created to improve comfort are created by those who wanted to overcome inconvenience.
Create great ideas yourself
It's so easy to enter the desired phrase in the search engine and expect with confidence how a list of answers to the question will appear. Yes, such inspiration from others is valuable. But if you want to develop creative thinking, then try to come up with ideas on your own.
If the muse doesn't come...
If for a long time sensible thoughts do not climb into your head, take a break. Take a shower, drink coffee or take a walk. Sometimes the most creative ideas come to mind at unexpected times.
How to develop creativity - exercises
Let's start training. But first:
- believe in yourself;
- Stop beating yourself up! Creativity is not secret weapon chosen ones, but the ability available to everyone. One has only to want;
- list 10 qualities or skills of yours (right now 🙂) that will be useful to you in creating creative ideas. For example, resourcefulness, self-confidence, logical thinking, desire for development, and so on. Write whatever comes to mind.
Encourage your imagination and stop being self-critical.
Exercise 1
You have two groups of words. Your task is to connect the words from these columns. Remember, there is no such thing as bad associations 🙂
| juice | |
| woman | building roof |
| company | baby day |
| ladybug | Cup of tea |
| newborn | detective |
For example, a woman is like a detective - you never know what will happen next.
Exercise 2
Pick any fairy tale from your childhood and look at it differently by asking the question “why?”. For example, the fairy tale "Three Little Pigs". Why did the piglets live in separate houses? Why was every house built from different material? Why did the wolf want to destroy the piglets' houses? And so on... The purpose of the exercise is to break out of the hackneyed schemes and go beyond the standard thinking.
Exercise 3
Answer the questions that begin with the words "What would happen if ...". The exercise develops spontaneous creativity. Think of a development of the following sentences.
What would happen if...
… people walked on the ceiling?
… the butterflies were the size of a cow?
… was the water ice?
… didn’t plants grow on the ground?
Exercise 4
Take a blank sheet of paper and draw several small crosses at the same distance from each other. The task is to create something from each cross. It can be a symbol, an animal, an object, a person, and so on. Drawings should not be repeated among themselves. 
Exercise 5
Come up with a word. For starters, it’s suitable, one in which less letters, for example, sleep. Now imagine that this is an abbreviation for which you need to come up with a transcript. Let these transcripts seem strange and ridiculous. But the more you practice, the better your ingenuity and creativity develops.
Interesting facts about creative thinking
1. Blue and green color encourages creative ideas, while red encourages attention to detail.
2. Physical exercise improves the ability to think creatively.
3. The level of background noise affects creative thinking. Silence is useful for intensive problem solving. And for the birth of creative ideas, a noise level of about 70 decibels is suitable (for example, as in a cafe).
4. Dim lighting helps a person feel more free and relaxed, which means that no internal blocks interfere with the creative flow.
5. Travel improves creative thinking.
10 books for developing creativity
2. Edward de Bono - "Six Thinking Hats"
3. Austin Kleon - Steal Like an Artist
4. Natalie Ratkowski - “Profession - illustrator. Learning to think creatively
5. Hugh MacLeod - "Ignore Everyone, or How to Be Creative"
6. Marina Moskvina - "Learn to see"
7. Julia Cameron - “The way of the artist. Your creative workshop
8. Yana Frank - "Muse, where are your wings?"
9. Scott Belsky - “The embodiment of ideas. How to bridge the gap between vision and reality
10. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - “Creativity. Flow and psychology of discoveries and inventions”
Creative thinking cartoon
A funny pig that has creative ideas to achieve a cherished goal. The main thing is not to give up, even if it seems that there is no way out. 🙂
Jan 29 2016
Out-of-the-box thinking is largely in demand in the field of information. Development creative thinking in adults it is useful in such professions as:
- professions in the field of advertising and management;
- professions of a psychologist (conducting psychoanalysis);
- professions of a designer, artist;
- writing profession;
- in other creative professions.
It sometimes seems to people that those who excel in creative professions come from another world. Where do their great ideas come from? There is nothing unusual about this, they see the same reality as everyone else, but at the same time they see it in a completely different way.
They do not adjust to reality, but try to adjust reality itself to fit their ideas. It is difficult for an adult to see something unusual in an ordinary thing, when a small child in the shadow of a branch can see the silhouette of a bird. This is because in childhood everyone sees the world without restrictions, he is given all the creative potential to know the world. But as he grows older, he loses this ability. At school we are taught the principles of general logic.
So how can we develop our creative thinking, which has been lost over the years?
First of all, we recall that creative thinking is associated with the right hemisphere of the brain. Where our emotions originate is intuition. In childhood, the child's right hemisphere is first more developed, while in most adults it is the left, logically abstract. How to develop creative thinking in adults?
The first thing that is required to develop brilliant ideas is a psychological attitude.
The usual gray environment dulls the perception and causes a dull mood. To make it always good, start seeing the world as if you are seeing everything for the first time. Think about the fact that you are an alien and have never been in this city, on this planet before. Hang a colorful picture in the area where you are working on ideas. It will help you focus and stimulate your perception and think more positively.
Organize the process of training the development of creative thinking on Wikium according to an individual program
A wise man once said: "The happy beggar sleeps on the doorstep of the poor rich man." At the same time, many are trying to understand what is the meaning of life? We can say that any creative activity that gives you a sense of self-satisfaction can become your meaning. Physiologically, the feeling of happiness is associated with chemical reaction brain and the release of endorphins. This neurohormone is involved in the formation of positive perception and reinforcement of success. Any activity, even house cleaning, for example, can bring pleasure, if at the same time you experience positive emotions.
An adult is inclined to set himself various mental restrictions. The thought that you will not be able to solve a difficult problem that you have taken on for the first time leads to a negative attitude and obviously dooms you to failure.
It must be remembered that everything is possible in the world and it is unlimited, and only your perception can be limited. To some extent, a brilliant idea will require you to renounce everything known, from intellectual prohibitions. If, nevertheless, the task could not be solved, one should not use a bad experience as a generalization of the thought “I can never do this”.
Try to work on your ideas in the same place. There is a connection of sensations, emotions with a certain situation, which sets you up for productive mental work. In the future, this environment and even a certain time of day will stimulate your creative process without any effort.
In order for the mind to start working creatively, it must be trained to work in different directions. The following exercises will help you develop creative thinking.
Exercise "Find another use for the subject." Take, for example, a common stool item and try to think of something else to do with it. You can turn it upside down and use it as a Christmas tree stand. You can use its smooth surface as a table. This method can also be applied to words. Take any word and come up with a non-standard phrase or metaphor with it. Present the meaning figuratively, then collapse and replace with a symbol. Try to find this symbol in the outlines of some object.
Exercise "Story with a limited number of words" . The more you limit the real space for yourself, the more it stimulates the development of all kinds of thoughts, how these words can be applied (as in a critical situation, when subconscious resources are connected). Do not be afraid to express thoughts with fantastic ideas, you should not limit yourself to only real meanings.
These are exercises that will help you develop creativity.
Exercise "Combining the incongruous" . Try to associate words with opposite meaning. For example, hot ice, hard cotton, dark day. Such a game of association contributes to the restructuring of the mind in a different way.
Exercise "Words in reverse" . On the way to work or school, when you see the names of shops and cafes, try to read these and other names backwards. For example, a pharmacy is “aketpa”. Then try, in this way, to read not only the names, but also phrases and phrases.
Exercise "First denouement" . Another wonderful exercise contributes to the restructuring in a non-standard way. Try to start reading the book not from the beginning, but from the middle or end. Thus, the denouement will be the first in meaning, and the preface will be the last.
Studying of foreign language . The best gymnastics for the mind is learning a foreign language. If you already know some foreign language then take teach a second. Try to ensure that languages do not have a similar structure (eg German, Chinese). As you study a foreign language, you will gradually begin to see structures mother tongue. This will allow you to perceive events and objects in a more multifaceted way, from the position of perception of another language. Such erudition in relation to “definitions and their relationships” contributes quite strongly to the development of non-standard thinking.
Exercise "Rephrase it" . When thinking about a particular task or idea, try to express thoughts about it indirectly, using free associations. Try to rephrase your thoughts, retell in other words.
Get yourself a notebook in which you will write down all the unexpected ideas that come to mind. Try to save every idea, even if at first glance it seems quite stupid.
Expand your horizons. If you learned some unfamiliar word in a conversation or from a book, do not be lazy to look up the meaning of the word in the dictionary. If this word is taken from a historical context, find out what it meant in those days, and with what time period it is associated, what events contributed to its occurrence. Study, for example, such words and phrases as "primus", "red October".
A PHOTO GettyImages
1. Limit your choices
Research shows that limiting choice can stimulate creativity. If we deliberately close some of the opportunities for ourselves, we can better focus on the rest.
2. Don't wait for inspiration
Many who consider themselves creative people people do not try to create anything for a long time, declaring that they are waiting for a spark of inspiration. It is important to remember that the spark often flashes already in the process of work. Athletes do not wait for inspiration to start training after a break. They just go and start training. It is important to have patience and not worry about whether the result will be good.
3. Focus not on the result, but on the ways to achieve it
Imagine that you are lost and instead of following the turns on the road, you only think about your destination. Of course, you won't get far. Often we are too caught up in thinking about the “masterpiece” we are about to create, without even thinking about what exactly needs to be done for this.
4. Distance yourself from the creative project
We have more creative solutions in our minds for tasks that we perceive to be distant in space or time. The greater the imaginary distance, the more we switch from concrete to abstract thinking, which helps to discover unexpected relationships between seemingly unrelated ideas.
5. Work in a coffee shop
Studies have shown that the level of background noise in a coffee shop (about 70 decibels) promotes creativity. Medium (but not low) noise levels increase the complexity of information processing, which activates abstract thinking and enhances creative productivity. Too loud noise, on the contrary, interferes.
6. Get Intense Exercise
Physical activity helps hidden (in the unconscious) ideas to emerge. Scientists are still investigating which type of exercise best promotes creativity, but Einstein is known to have come up with the theory of relativity while riding a bicycle.
7. Do your daily chores with the other hand
If we use the other hand, we activate both hemispheres of the brain and spur creativity. An active exchange of information between the hemispheres leads to the fact that both emotions and thoughts become clearer and more understandable.
8. Start at the end of the story
Novelist Roxana Robinson says she tried writing short stories by first coming up with an ending. This helped her overcome creative crises.
9. Appreciate random thoughts
The pictures or ideas that pop into your head from time to time often seem meaningless, but they can be the foundation of a creative breakthrough. It is useful to always have a notepad or voice recorder with you.
10. Know Less, Guess More
Today we are surrounded by information on all sides. It is useful to put aside your phone, laptop, tablet for a while and let your mind wander where it pleases. Do not peep answers to emerging questions on the Internet. Cut off from the usual sources of information, your brain can come up with something very unusual.
The constant pursuit of efficiency and the setting of clear goals can hinder the emergence of creative ideas. Try, walking along the street about your business, stop every minute and carefully look at everything that surrounds you. Unexpected sounds or sights can give a fresh perspective and help activate the thoughts hidden deep within.
A PHOTO GettyImages
12. Laugh out loud
Laughter stimulates activity in the prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex, areas associated with creativity. It also uplifts the mood, which helps creative activity. You don't have to look for something hilariously funny, the physical act of laughter itself is beneficial.
13. Do something mindfully
Meditation is a sure way to clear your mind, focus your attention, and be in the present moment. It stimulates thinking (the brain visualizes the problem and offers several different solutions), which helps to solve creative problems.
14. ... or unknowingly
Faced with difficult problem, we usually begin to think hard about the decision. Sometimes this creates a lot of unnecessary noise in the head, which only increases our dissatisfaction without giving clear solutions. A break can be just as beneficial as taking a short break during exercise. When you return to your problem, new ideas may come up. You can, for example, take cards and play solitaire - this activity occupies the brain, but does not require extreme concentration.
Read more "14 Surprising Ways To Boost Creativity", dailygood.org
Exercises for the development of creative thinking,
Memory, quick wit and intelligence
This book contains many of the latest tests that will help you develop your intelligence. A wide variety of puzzles and tests cover such areas of intelligence as creative thinking, logical thinking, ingenuity and memory. Here you will find hints, as well as answers to tasks.
Introduction
A bit about the human brain
Creative thinking
Memory Puzzle Wits
Intelligence testing
Hints
Introduction
The brain is the most important and valuable human organ. With the help of the brain, the perception of the surrounding world is carried out; the brain stores memories; the brain shapes our speech, skills, thoughts, feelings, and at the same time, it is this part of our body that we probably tend to neglect the most.
This intricate plexus of nerves and nerve endings, an organ that has arisen over hundreds of years of evolution, somehow manages to control all the systems of our body, at the same time processing a powerful flow new information and acquiring new skills.
Many people take their brain for granted. They sincerely believe that mental capacity are given from birth and that nothing can be done to improve them. This book aims to demonstrate clearly that this is not the case and that your mental potential can be greatly increased and your brain used to its full potential.
Gymnasts, for example, hone their skills by constant training. We give exercises for the mind, by performing which, you can train your brain in the same way as muscles are trained.
We did not intend to write a textbook on the structure of the brain and how it works, but sometimes it is very important to understand how the brain works. Therefore, we devoted several pages to its device in the second chapter.
"A little about the human brain". In the rest of the book you will find a large number of entertaining tasks and exercises on all major areas of mental activity: creative thinking, memory, logical thinking, quick wits and intelligence. The exercises are selected and presented in such a way that the classes bring you pleasure.
By exploring new areas, by being interested in the unknown, by self-education, one can expand
horizons of your mind. We hope that this book will be a kind of starting point on this path.
Creative thinking
The concept of "creative thinking" covers the thought processes that lead to solutions, the creation of unusual and original ideas, generalizations, theories, as well as artistic forms.
For many of us, creativity remains undeveloped throughout our lives; we cannot know what exactly we are capable of until we try our hand. We all have creativity
(right) hemisphere of the brain, and therefore, we are all capable of creativity. Of course, someone is born with the makings of a great composer, someone is an artist, and someone is an athlete. Yes, young Mozart
started writing music when he was four years old. But Anna Marie Robertson (1860-1961), also called Granny Moses, was an American self-taught artist who spent most of her life as a farmer's wife. Only when she was already over seventy did she suddenly begin to paint rural landscapes for her own pleasure. By the time she was eighty years old, her first solo exhibition opened at the Saint-Étienne Gallery in New York, and a career as an artist opened up before her. In this case, the old adage “you never know what you are capable of until you try” turned out to be more true than ever.
Educators and teachers are faced with the task of discovering and supporting Creative skills in all young people. However, this is not always possible. Often in this age of narrow specialization, one talent of a person is directed towards a certain professional activity, and all the other hidden talents of youth fade without being developed. However, each of us, through new leisure activities or new hobbies, can use the potential of our brain, which is often used very little.
Many of us are well enough "equipped" to realize this potential: after all, our brain has received and processed a huge amount of information during our lifetime. In music, for example, there is improvisation - the art of creating a work directly in the process of its performance. To learn how to improvise, a musician must first master the basics of the style in which he is going to play. Having mastered the generally accepted norms of style, the musician, as it were, accumulates
head a library of actionable chord progressions and melodies, which become the starting point for improvisation. These reserves of memory connect his music with cultural heritage, but he always has the opportunity for spontaneous creativity.
CREATIVE THINKING TEST
1. Study this series of figures, find a pattern and continue this series in accordance with the found pattern. You have 30 minutes to complete ten tasks.
For example:
Answer:
Explanation: Four circles and two squares are divided into four parts. The black sector in each shape moves one segment clockwise.
This task will test your imagination and dominant brain hemisphere.
2. Take matches and nine coins. From matches, lay four pens for piglets on the table. coins
Your piglets. Arrange the piglets in the pens so that each has odd number piglets.
3. This is a task of imagination. There is such a game: some incomprehensible situation is told to the players, and you need to find out from the host what is happening. You can ask questions to which the facilitator answers "yes", "no" or, in extreme cases, "no answer".
We present several such mysterious situations. Use your imagination and find explanations for how situations like this could happen. At the end of the book you will find our explanation options. However, our answers do not have to match yours. The more answers you can come up with for each situation, the better.
(one). London. A man sits in a restaurant and reads a newspaper he has just bought. In chapter latest news it reads: "On a liner cruising the Caribbean, one of the passengers fell overboard and died." He immediately realizes that a murder has taken place.
(2). A dead man lies next to the cactus. A piece of paper is pinned to the cactus.
(3). A man is driving in a car on an empty road. Suddenly, the car loses control and crashes into a lamppost. At the noise of the accident, people immediately come running and find the driver lying dead on the steering wheel with a crossbow arrow in his back.
(four). A man lies in bed in a hotel room. He cannot sleep. He picks up the phone, dials the number without saying anything, hangs up and immediately falls asleep.
(5). A man is walking along the road, and a pebble has fallen into his sandal; he stops and, leaning against a post, tries to shake it out. His head is lowered down. Suddenly another person
rushes to him, pushes him with all his strength, and breaks his arm.
4. A rebus is a way to encrypt a word in the form of a picture. Rebus - latin word, literally means "through objects." You can encrypt a word or a whole phrase as a picture.
Here are four sample puzzles. To solve such riddles, you can not do without creative thinking.
1. Bear (i.e. Honey in E d)
2. Wrong behavior (venidepoe is an anagram of the word "behavior")
3. Bone
4. Short vowel (say. - short form from vowel)
In this task, we do not set you time limits. Our goal is to test creative thinking. If you can't solve some puzzles, come back to them later and look at them again with a fresh look. Very often, the answer comes by itself, because your brain subconsciously continues to work on the task, even when you are busy with something else.
5. Here you must give an interpretation of the figures below. The more surprising your explanation, the better. Suggest this game to your friends. You can make the most incredible assumptions - they will be the most creative. For example, the first thing that comes to mind when looking at drawing number one is a tiled roof. Or...? Turn on your imagination and see what comes of it (20 drawings).
6. The next task is based on a test for abstract thinking. The subject is asked to come up with a way to use some household item in a completely new, unknown capacity.
In ten minutes, come up with twelve new ways to use your comb.
Strictly observe the time limits, otherwise your score may be considered invalid.
1 ....................
2...................
3....................
4..................
5....................
6....................
7....................
8....................
9....................
10...................
11....................
12...................
7. We encounter symmetrical patterns every day, both in nature and in everyday life - they can be seen on wallpaper or on tiles.
For our experiment, we created a symmetrical pattern based on hexagons.
Take a close look at it and fill in the gaps in it so as to restore our pattern.
8. Call on the imagination to help and complete each next drawing so that something recognizable comes out.
You have twenty minutes to complete this task.
9. One farmer has 11 trees growing on his land (T). He has 22 cows, and he needs to divide his land into 11 separate pens so that 2 cows are placed in each and so that they have one tree to protect from the sun. How can he subdivide his land using as few fences as possible, so that there is only one tree in each paddock?
10. Make four cuts of the same length and divide this figure into 9 parts so that later you can add 4 identical squares from them.
This is a rather difficult task - a hint is given on page 106.
11. We bring to your attention famous paradox, the main purpose of which is to stimulate creative thinking and learn to reason philosophically. So let's say I retire next week and I'm supposed to be presented with a gift on that occasion. But I do not know what day of the week it will be given to me, and this is the surprise. I only know that I should be given a gift, but I do not know on which day this will happen: on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday or Friday.
It is worth thinking about this: can this gift even be given to me, provided that it should be a surprise? I know that they won't give it to me on Friday. Friday is the last day you can give this gift. Therefore, there will be no surprise then. So, the gift can be handed to me on Thursday. But then Thursday becomes the last day when they can surprise me, therefore, on this day the gift will not be a surprise for me, and therefore, it will not be presented to me that day. If you think logically in the same way further, then no day of the week, including Monday, is suitable. And then it remains to come to the conclusion that the gift will never be given to me. Are there any other ways to solve this paradox?
At first, when we read this paradox, the arguments seem strange to say the least. However, like all paradoxes, it is designed to mislead, and the more you think about it, the more difficult it is to maintain clarity of thought.
12. These puzzles are designed to test the level of creative thinking in tasks where you need to correctly cut an object and put the pieces together to make another geometric figure. With each task, the level of difficulty increases.
(one). Cut out a hexagon from cardboard and cut it as shown in the picture. Fold the resulting parts so that you get a square.
(2). Cut the star and fold the resulting parts into a hexagon.
(3). Make two more cuts the same length as before, to make five pieces. From the resulting parts, make an equilateral triangle.
(four). Cut the square into five pieces so that you can fold the octagon. (On the page
106 we give a hint for this problem.)
(5). Cut the cross into five pieces and make a square out of them.
Memory
Memory is the ability of the brain to store information and retrieve it. It is thanks to this ability of our brain that we are able to think and learn.
Although the mechanisms of memory have not yet been fully explored, it is absolutely known that the more often we use memory, the better it works.
Psychologists distinguish four mechanisms of memory: recall, superficial recall, recognition, and relearning. The names of the first three mechanisms speak for themselves, and the fourth is that when you need to learn material that we have already encountered, the memorization process is easier than when we are dealing with a completely new one.
material.
Memory is divided into: immediate (sensory), short-term and long-term.
Sensory memory remembers every second events, such as noises or movements of other people, and captures it in the form of pictures. Much of what she remembers is of no interest and is quickly forgotten.
Short-term memory stores memories, for example, about where, when and with whom you need to meet in the near future, what needs to be done and by what time.
Long-term memory remembers things like phone numbers, people's names, addresses, summer plans, and memories from long past, such as childhood.
We don't know much about how the brain stores information. Some scientists
believe that memories are stored only in certain parts of the brain, others - that the entire brain is used to store memories. It is believed that for each type of memorization, short-term and long-term, there are own mechanisms and that if the information does not move from short-term memory to long-term, it will be irretrievably lost.
Different parts of the brain perform different memory functions. Animal studies suggest that the hippocampus and thalamus seem to be involved in motor memory, and the amygdala and thalamus in emotional memory.
Research has also shown that motor skills are "remembered" apart from intellectual ones.
When we see something or mentally imagine something, this memory is stored in our brain as a picture, like a negative, and it can be recalled again and again. So
All episodes of our life are “photographed”, although many of these “pictures” turn out to be unnecessary for us. Sometimes even the most insignificant events can leave a deep imprint in the memory and be recalled from memory in the blink of an eye.
However, all scientists, without exception, agree on one thing: although our memories cannot be corrected, memory itself can be improved: train it, learn more by heart, repeat what was once learned, re-learn what was forgotten. Exist special techniques mnemonic memorization, that is, memorization based on associations, and many other techniques.
The tests that we present to your attention are aimed not only at testing your memory, but also at developing it and learning to concentrate on the subject being studied.
MEMORY TEST
1. Take 20 seconds to look at these figures, wait 2 minutes, then turn to page 36 and answer the questions.
2. Take 20 seconds to look at these shapes, wait 3 minutes, then turn to page 36 and answer the questions.
3. You have two minutes to study these figures. Then immediately start answering the questions on page 36.
4. Thanks to this exercise, you will be able to check if you can memorize words in pairs using associations. You have 15 minutes to learn 12 pairs of words. Mentally connect these pairs of words with some associations. Then answer the questions on page 36.
CHEESE BRUSH APPLE PHONE
MINEFIELD COTTON
WOOD HANDCuffS
BUTTERFLY BRIEFCASE
WATER BOOK
MAIL BALL
FIELD SPIN YACHT CHAIR
VASE NEEDLE WINDmill SAND
BRICK ZEBRA
5. Study the shapes for 15 seconds, then immediately answer the questions on page 38.
6. Look at the drawing for 2 minutes and answer the questions on page 38.
7. You have 20 seconds at your disposal, during which you must consider this drawing; then answer the questions on page 39.
8. Try to memorize the following text in 60 seconds. Wait another 60 seconds without looking at the text and answer the questions on page 39.
In the prayer "Our Father" - 66 words. Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address has 286 words. The Declaration of Independence has 1,322 words, and the State Law for the Sale of Cabbage has 26,911 words.
Newspaper "National Review".
9. Take 90 seconds to look at and study this drawing. Wait 2 minutes and answer the questions
listed on page 40.
10. You have a minute to study this table with numbers; after one minute, answer the questions on page 40.
11. Here are 20 items from everyday life. Try to memorize as many items as possible in 3 minutes; then turn to page 40 and answer the questions.
12. Try to remember as many of these fifty words as you can. After 5 minutes, turn to page 41 and answer the questions.
ANIMAL BIRD FRUIT VEGETABLE COIN Llama Grape Rutabaga Ruble Walrus Finch Orange Beet Piastre Elephant Tit Pear Carrot Zloty Cow Weaver Plum Pea Brand Lynx Swallow Apple Cucumber Lyra
Puzzle
Puzzles are not only entertaining, but also useful; in addition, they perfectly develop thinking. The best puzzles are tasks that do not require special knowledge, that is, those that anyone can solve using not special formulas, but their own intellectual potential. Let's take this task:
You have written four letters and inscribed four envelopes for them. You put letters in envelopes at random. What is the percentage chance that only three letters ended up in their envelopes?
At first glance, the task seems very difficult, but this is only if we look for special formulas to solve it. But here they are not needed, and everyone can find the correct answer by simple logical thinking.
Answer: the probability that only three letters will end up in the right envelopes is zero. If three out of four letters ended up in their own envelopes, there is only one letter and one envelope for it, and therefore the right letter will also fall into this envelope.
Of course, there is a certain difference between problems and puzzles. The puzzle has an author and a solution that he knows. For example, if you ask what number is 35 less than itself multiplied by six, or, for example, ask someone to rearrange the letters in words
"slave" and "moon" and get the name of the city, it will be a puzzle.
Problems arise in the process of our life. They are not invented for their own sake, and, of course, they do not have solutions that are initially known to anyone. They don't have a correct answer, there are only many various solutions, some of which are better and others worse.
Some people like solving problems more, while others like puzzles. Problem solving has practical benefits for life; by solving puzzles, we train our brain, learn to think, and this may turn out to be useful in life when we really have to solve real problems.
In this section, we have placed 50 puzzles on different kinds of thinking; the most difficult of them
we have provided hints. At the end of the book are answers to all problems with detailed explanations.
Before you get started with the problems, take a look at the two puzzles that we offer as examples to show how you need to think in order to solve such problems.
Example 1
My wife usually leaves work at 4:30 pm, enters the store and catches the five-hour train that arrives in our town at exactly 5:30 pm. Every day I drive to the station by 5:30 pm to meet my wife. Last week, she was released 5 minutes earlier than usual, and decided to immediately go to the station without going to the store. Therefore, she managed to catch the train, which departed at 16.30, and at our station she was already at 17.00. I was not there yet, and she went home on foot. I picked her up from the house at the usual time, met her on the way, and we arrived home 12 minutes earlier than usual. Q: How long did my wife walk before I met her?
Answer: 24 minutes
Explanation: There are two easy ways to solve this problem.
1. My wife was at our station 30 minutes early. As a result, we saved 12 minutes. Thirty minus twelve gives us eighteen minutes. If we add half of the time saved by us - 6 minutes to 18 minutes, we get 24 minutes.
2. You can subtract half of the saved time, 6 minutes, from the total time difference, 30
minutes = 24 minutes.
However, even if you do not know these formulas, such a problem can be solved by simple logical thinking. I always leave home at the same time and we know that I leave before 17.30. Since we saved 12 minutes, this is the time I usually spend to get to the station from the place where I met my wife and back, because this is the distance I did not have to overcome. So it takes me 6 minutes to get from where I met my wife to the station and another 6 minutes to get back. So, I met my wife 6 minutes earlier than usual, that is, at 17.24. Therefore, she walked exactly 24 minutes from the station.
Example 2
The woman has two children. What is the probability that both children are boys?
Explanation: The simple formula for solving this problem is 50 x 50 = 2500, which is 25%. However, this formula can be derived independently, by logical reasoning. Let's draw a diagram like this:
Now multiply the numbers following the arrows where the boys are.
50 x 50 = 2500 or 25%.
If we want to know the probability that the children are a boy and a girl, we need to multiply the probability of those options where a boy and a girl are obtained. Since there are two such options, you need to multiply in both cases and add the results.
We hope that our examples are a good illustration of how to solve such problems, and that they will help you think in the right way. The main thing to remember is that sometimes there are several paths leading to the same correct answer.
Puzzle
1. In the given series of words, move one word so that the sequence is in alphabetical order.
Wits
Intelligence is the ability to think quickly and react instinctively to certain situations. All tasks in this chapter are for quick thinking, and it is very important to meet the allotted time, and you will not only have to think quickly, but also be able to keep your cool in conditions when time is limited.
Timed tests are usually used to test a person's ability to successfully solve a certain number of problems under time constraints. The opposite of such tests are tests of mental endurance, in which the complexity of tasks gradually increases, but the test subject is not limited in time.
The items on our test are not particularly difficult in themselves, but when they are given in aggregate and given only a certain amount of time to solve them, the brain needs to be able to adjust in order to develop mental flexibility and focus to the extent that will ensure a high final score.
INTELLIGENCE TESTS
1. You have 25 minutes to answer 10 questions, the difficulty of which will gradually increase.
(one). Which letter is two spaces below the letter to the left of the letter three spaces above Y?
(2). Which letter is above the letter to the right of the letter, which is two cells below that letter,
which is to the left of the letter M?
(3). Which letter is two cells to the left of the letter that is three cells above that letter
which is located immediately above the letter to the left of the letter I?
(four). What letter is in the second cell to the right of the letter that is exactly in the middle between the letters D and X?
(5). Which letter is two cells above the letter to the left of the letter three cells below the letter two cells to the right of the letter E?
(6). What letter is under the letter that is in the middle between the letter that is under the letter J and the letter that is above the Y?
(7). Which letter is three cells to the right of the letter located under the letter located two cells to the right of the letter that is two cells below the letter I?
(eight). Which letter is two cells above the letter to the right of the letter below the letter two cells to the left of the letter F?
(9). Which letter is two cells to the left of the letter that is under the letter that is two cells to the right of the letter that is in the middle between the letter to the left of the letter C and the letter that is two cells to the left of the letter H?
(ten). Which letter is two cells to the right of the letter that is three cells above the letter,
standing to the left of the letter that is above the letter, standing three cells to the left of the letter I?
2. In each line with numbers, skip the repeated numbers, and write the rest in reverse order. You have 6 minutes to complete this task.
For example: 4723869764 = 9832
a) 9482374827981
i) 98243159752168
j) 29374271824781
k) 1974384569172
d) 14631296847235
m) 861932825786243
e) 921638427952
m) 728361751692483
e) 746983471892
o) 6379132758462
g) 1524693521725
n) 9832176854721638
h) 743892176521387
3. In this task, you will have to find an extra figure in each sequence. You have 20 minutes to complete this task.
For example: (picture)
Figure C is redundant because it is the only figure with straight sides, and all other figures in the row have rounded sides.
(9)
Rearrange these sequences of numbers in such a way that all even numbers in ascending order, and then all the odd ones in descending order. You have 4 minutes to complete this task.
For example: 76524 = 24675
5. This task should test your ability to operate with words and the ability to complete a table in the form of a crossword puzzle. You must place all the words in this crossword puzzle: 30 minutes are given for this task. Three words are already in place. (They stand in the crossword puzzle: horizontally 20 - DOL, 22 - BOW, vertically 18 - ERA.)
SPARK, STREAM, ONAGER, QUARK,
HELMET, OVAL, CROWN, WALL, GLASS, WAREHOUSE, COMPANY, METAL, ATHLETE, AVRAL, SALARY, MAVR, VALLEY, NITROGEN, ACRYLIC, DELIVATION, SHELL, CLOCK, LYRIC, ROLLER, SIDOR, LOCATION, SCOREBOARD, OTARA, OCEAN, FROST, ATOLL, FILE. SWAMP, JASPER, TEST,
6. This task is performed on time. It consists of 10 questions and is designed to test your ability to think logically and mentally. The questions themselves are not difficult, but in order to achieve good results, you need ingenuity and speed, because your time is limited. You have 15 minutes to complete ten tasks.
(one). Find two identical figures.
(2). If there are 90 liters of water in a full barrel, how many liters will remain in the barrel if we pour out 60%
all the water?
(3). The volume of the cube is 1 m x 1 m x 50 cm. How many such cubes will fit in a cube with a volume of 4mx3mx3m?
(four). What is the product of these numbers? 1U8*2/z
(2). The largest even number and the smallest cube;
(3). The smallest prime and the largest odd number;
(4). least square and the smallest even number;
(5). The largest even and largest prime numbers;
(6). The largest cube and the smallest prime number;
(7). The smallest square and the smallest cube;
(eight). The smallest odd and largest even numbers;
(9). The largest prime number and the largest square;
(ten). The largest odd number and the largest cube.
The shape of the letters is such that they always have a certain number of unfinished lines. For example:
B \u003d 0 P \u003d 1 Yu \u003d 2 E \u003d 3 X \u003d 4
Find the meaning of these expressions. You have 10 minutes for this task.
(one). N + P = ? (6). N:L=?
(2). K-M = ? (7).YxD=?
(3).V + D = ? (eight). E: Y = ?
(4).AxC = ? (9).FxO = ?
(5). H-B = ? (10).T-L = ?
9. Study this crossword puzzle and answer 10 questions. You have 10 minutes.
(one). How many letters H are in the crossword puzzle?
(2). How many words in the crossword puzzle with only one but repeated vowel?
(3). How many letters E are in the crossword puzzle?
(four). How many U's are there?
(5). How many six letter words are there?
(6). How many in the crossword geographical names?
(7). How many letters U are in the crossword puzzle?
(eight). How many 10 letter words are in the crossword puzzle?
(9). How many A's are there?
(ten). How many 5-letter words are in the crossword puzzle?
10. In front of you is a square in which seven words are arranged in the form of a “snail” twisted inside the square, and each next word begins with the same letter that the previous one began with. Each letter here has two coordinates. For example: the letter C is in the squares Al, E7 and G6. Carefully study the "snail" and answer the questions; You have 5 minutes to do this.
Write all the coordinates of the following 8 letters:
Intelligence testing
Intelligence is the ability to learn or understand, which is inherent in all people. Some people have it to a greater extent, others to a lesser extent, but in each person this ability remains practically unchanged throughout life. It is thanks to the intellect that we are able to act correctly and learn from our mistakes.
In psychology, intelligence is defined as the ability to perceive knowledge and use it in other, fundamentally new situations. In testing conditions, it is possible to determine how successfully a person adapts to unusual situations.
Any test in which we try to measure intelligence is an intelligence quotient test, or an IQ test. Such tests usually consist of blocks of progressively more difficult tasks, designed for the average level.
IQ stands for intelligence quotient. The coefficient, in turn, is the result of dividing one value by another. It is generally accepted that intelligence quotient is an inherited characteristic and that in adults it practically does not change with age. Up to about 13 years of age, intelligence develops rapidly, from 13 to 18 years there is a slight slowdown in the rate of development, and after 18 years no major changes are observed.
When measuring the IQ of a child, he is asked to take a standard test for intelligence, and for each age the level of performance of the test and the score will be different. If a 10-year-old child performs a task at the level of a 12-year-old child, his IQ is calculated as follows:
Intelligence testing
This method, however, is not applicable to adults: their IQ is estimated relative to the average score - one hundred percent. Their results are either above or below this norm, in accordance with a predetermined scoring system, and the distribution of IQ (among the population) appears on the graph as a fairly constant final curve (?).
Although IQ is a hereditary factor that does not change throughout life, IQ test pass rates can be improved. That is the goal we are pursuing in this and other similar books.
IQ tests are usually designed and administered with the assumption that test-takers know nothing about test methods in general and know very little about the methods on which questions in such tests are based. Therefore, if a person has an idea of what questions they can ask him, and if he knows how to approach the decision test tasks, his results will be much higher.
