Author of science article: Stephanie Pappas
Date of publication: September 1, 2015 Analysis by: Jessica Vela |
Why Creative Geniuses Are Often Neurotic is a science article related to the field of psychology and neuroscience. The article written by Stephanie Pappas talks about some of the greatest minds that have impacted the world and how most of these geniuses that have helped to innovate the present world have also been found to have had neuroticism. Neuroticism is a long period of stress and depression that leads to negative thinking that occurs in a person when their daily life becomes emotionally or physically exhausting. During an analysis of the lives of different innovators, results concluded that most creative geniuses are linked to neuroticism.
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A great mind, Isaac Newton, formulated laws of gravity and created mathematical theories. During his lifetime, he was filled with terms of depression and had once suffered a mental breakdown. Another great mind, Charles Darwin, known for the theory of evolution, struggled with nausea distress in response to severe stress; psychologists now think that he had a panic disorder. Frank Whittle, the inventor of the jet engine had also suffered from a nervous breakdown during his life. These are examples of some geniuses among others, all sharing a connection between creativity and neuroticism. Studies found that artists and creative people score higher in tests of neuroticism than other people that are not related in creative fields. Adam Perkins, who is involved in neurobiology, conducted a study that shows that neurotic people show a high level of activation in an area of the brain called the prefrontal cortex (this area is involved with feeling threat in the environment), even when they are in a resting environment. This means that these people feel threat internally, which means it's all in their heads, even if they are in a suitable environment they still feel as if they are under threat. Neurotic people are creating problems in their head that don’t exist and if they do exist, they are over thinking them which creates stress for themselves. On the bright side of being neurotic, Perkins states that dwelling thoughts of neurotics are also linked to planning and problem-solving skills which they are more likely to have than a careless person who lives their life in the moment. The article involving neuroscience and psychology that has recently been published has surprised many.
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The reason that the article was picked is due to the interesting fact of relationship between the creative minds of many geniuses and the neuroticism that they suffered. In relation to this, I have a personal experience and opinion that sparked my interest in this particular article. I have considered myself to be a responsible high achieving person. During middle school, I completed homework without difficulty, but every time there was a big project assigned over a period of a month or so, I would often feel pressured and a little stressed during that time period. Even though the project would end with a good grade, I was always worried about not having enough time to complete it and work on it, I didn’t want to end up doing most of it a day before it was due. I always managed my time and developed a plan to have enough time to make the project, but still I was worried that there would not be enough time, that I might be procrastinating. I was creating stress for myself over problems that were truly just in my head. This would occur every time a long-term project was given until Freshman year of high school, where all of my homework was spent on long term projects, now I am able to handle them without stress. Still, on the other hand, other of my classmates would procrastinate on projects, but they never seemed to worry about, probably because in reality they didn’t care about their grade as much. This article drew my attention because I could relate to it.
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The article is important to the world of today because it is a new discovery that deals with the way most creative people behave in society. The article informs about the mental living conditions of famous scientists that many people look up to, who were evidently far more stressed than any other commonfolk. Inclusively, it can also help research find a way to help a lot of people who suffer from neuroticism by finding a way to help their state of mind change so that levels of anxiety decrease, since levels of anxiety have increased in many teenagers around the world as years progress. The article’s importance can be a step for further research of the psychology and neurology of human nature.
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Work Cited
Pappas, Stephanie. “Why Creative Geniuses Are Often Neurotic.” LiveScience. TechMedia Network, Jan. 2015. Web. 12 Sep. 2015. <http://www.livescience.com/52051-why-creative-geniuses-are-neurotic.html>
Pappas, Stephanie. “Why Creative Geniuses Are Often Neurotic.” LiveScience. TechMedia Network, Jan. 2015. Web. 12 Sep. 2015. <http://www.livescience.com/52051-why-creative-geniuses-are-neurotic.html>