The Aha! Moment: A Scientist's Take on Creativity

Now retired, David Jones continues to publish challenging articles, mostly for Chemistry World. He has worked in academia, industry, and television. A constant stimulus for his creativity was his weekly Daedalus column, probably the longest-running joke in science. Daedalus was the court jester in the Palace of Science; he appeared in New Scientist, Nature, and the Guardian newspaper. Each week Daedalus took some well-known bit of science and pushed it to a clever and often preposterous extreme-which sometimes came true. Daedalus frequently leaks into The Aha! Moment.

The Aha! Moment is not bogged down with scientific detail and tech talk; in fact, it asks a multitude of absurd questions meant to promote innovative and logical brainstorming. Jones gives dozens of examples from his own body of work... While his examples dominate more than half of the book, they are intriguing and stimulating, acting as a means to promote creativity in fellow scientists and artists. -- Aimee Jodoin Foreword Reviews 2011 A top pick not to be limited to science holdings, this will reach many a general-interest reader with its fascinating, readable and lively insights. Midwest Book Review 2012 David Jones sees himself as the court jester of science and, as with jesters of old, he is allowed to say things that other mortals might think but dare not speak... Most of the book is an eclectic blend of Jones the chemist and Daedalus the mad scientist and together they make entertaining reading. You'd be mad not to buy it -- John Emsley Chemistry World 2012 A practical blueprint to bolster one's own creative process, a treasure map to innovative insights. -- Bob Grant The Scientist 2012 A fascinating insight into one man's never-ending search for ideas. -- Jessica Griggs New Scientist 2012