P.S. I personally like Don Draper's approach to the creative process (defending his team's work ethic to firm partner Lane Pryce): They don't work ... until they do.

There is an Enlightenment version of personality -- prior to the inception of psychoanalysis -- that allows for the wrangling of self with self in Locke and Hume (especially the latter's famously provocative chapter "On Personality." If you don't like the theological mysticism of the genii or the radical individualsim of genius (congrats, Jad et al.!) or even neuroscience, you can allow for the instability of the instability of self in changing contexts. Here's to conversing with the self!

Returning to Comment #1: What a delightful misappropriation (I had it in my head it was Einstein, not Edison) of the perspiration/inspiration quote. They are on the same trajectory of the Protestant work ethic -- Edison and Ford -- no? (And therefore of course Einstein didn't say it.)

I started writing very young, and always felt as if the story, and the people in the stories, were fully formed and existed on some plane outside of myself. So, of course, I loved this segment. From what I have read, a lot of writers feel that way - probably more of them than not. I am also fairly scientific, and am forever questioning mysticism, but part of me continues to wonder if there isn't something behind the curtain. Maybe it is just conformation bias, but I prefer to hold out hope that there may be a little magic in the world.

The reference to writing of the Frost "The Road Not Taken" is actually about "Stopping by Woods..."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stopping_by_Woods_on_a_Snowy_Evening

@HunterJE The show IS about science. Science is an exploration of truth. While I do believe that the forces discussed in this segment weren't real, science is about the exploration of truth, and therefore addressing the possibility that something is real, truthful and what not. However, having written stories for school projects, I can see how one could be convinced that this is real and how it could work, though i also think it's wrong. I think the notion should be treated like how Sherry explains in the "Talking to Machines" episode: "Knowing it was a machine, but using it as an occasion to breathe life into it in order to get their feelings out." However, in this situation you have "Knowing it's not real, but using it as an occasion to breathe truth into it in order to get the words out." That way, a writer can live between the two worlds and the two thoughts.

@HunterJE: Kindly let the artsy folks have their moment.

To me, the subconscious mind is a deep pool full of every experience a person has ever had. Ideas from nowhere happen when something decent surfaces. Of course, it doesn't stay surfaced long. :( Oh, well.

Hi,
I liked this segment on creativity. I am a theatre designer and when I was a kid, my father made up stories about my younger brother . . . he had 2 fellows that lived in his head-Aldo and Louie. Aldo was a smoker and Italian and a bit of a messy housekeeper and Louie, the room mate was French, rather quiet but very different than Aldo. Now this arrangement was in some ways a bargain with my younger brother, an encouragement to take a bath. But it launched many stories about Aldo and Louie. For me, they became part of my creative conversation. I deal with the visual aspect of a theatre piece--and since Aldo and Louie don't speak English and I don't speak either French or Italian or very little--I am forever trying to figure out what they think this play is all about visually. So I understand perfectly what Elizabeth Gilbert is talking about--and by the way, I listened to her reading her book on my way to work for many days--and enjoyed it immensely.

More Tom Waits, please!!!!!

And, I disagree with @HunterJE 's comment about mysticism. Gilbert may believe in muses and fairies, but I think this episode is about psychology and behavior modification techniques. Who cares whether you use metaphors or believe in fairies; the effect upon your chemical/emotional responses is the result of the process of the ritual, independent of whether or not the transubstantiation actually occurred.
:)

Woah woah woah, what was that music at the end? Right when he says "I can get with the muses." That sounded really cool. I want that.

This was great, inspiring, and brought me a lot of clarity, I see her perspective and its resonates well with me, for I had a similar experience to hers that left me elated until I fell off and into depression, but I had heard a TED talk by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi on something similar called flow, and his explanation of it was great, it was like the ideas from DIY Universe, This one, and What does Technology Want gave birth to his TEDtalks

Never ceases to amaze me how many people think that the rest of us care about their opinions. Great show Jad and Robert, keep giving us the tools to form our own opinions :)

I thought this episode was great and I really enjoyed Gilbert's discussion on the muse. Strange how people take Jad Robert's views so personally. Part of their job as radio announcers is to play differing opinions off each others. That's one of the reasons why Radiolab is so exceptional. Jad and Robert's characters are like foils to each other, sometimes Jad plays the one in awe and sometimes Robert does.
Another great episode!

I take exception to the negative comments on this episode. I was fascinated and inspired by this episode (especially Elizabeth Gilbert) as I am with almost every episode of this show.

I haven't been a part of the whole "Eat, Pray, Love" phenom, though I did hear it mentioned a few times at the yoga studio. However, I am more inclined to read it after hearing Elizabeth Gilbert talk about inspiration in a very literate way.

please, no more Elizabeth Gilbert

I understand that Robert Krulwich is a necessary stand-in for all those who pout when evidence undermines their sense of self-importance. He is tolerable because I can usually count on Jad Abumrad to articulate how one might live without illusions without becoming disillusioned. Jad's humility and healthy sense of wonder (or "awe") make him the voice of maturity. But between the segment with Elizabeth Gilbert (whose success is of the Joel Osteen and Rick Warren variety, in that she has zero literary talent but plenty of pandering talent) and the "Universe Knows My Name" short, it feels like Radiolab is faltering. However, this is weighted against 8+ seasons of awesome (yes, Krulwich... "Awesome") engaging, thrilling and informative science content.

the song was "picture in a frame" from mule variations.

Anyone know which Tom Waits song that was from the "stuck in traffic" anecdote?

That book was eat, pray, crap.

@werdnwerd

This one?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYIfiQlfaas

Really loved the part with Elizabeth Gilbert talking about Tom Waits.

Wow, really thought this was a show about science, not wishy-washy mysticism.

What was the piano song that played while Oliver Sacks was talking about the task of writing his book becoming something joyful?

Elizabeth Gilbert says that the quote that genius is 1% inspiration 99% perspiration" comes for Henry Ford however I'm almost 99% (pun intended) sure that it came from Thomas Edison.