<p><strong>Background</strong> : I was recently reminded of an abandoned project of mine that is related to railways and "green energy," so I started doing some Internet searches to see if there are any similar projects in the world. To my surprise, the project was already carried out by another institution. Even more surprising was that the project was done almost at the same time that I had the idea.</p>

<p>My question is:</p>

<p><strong>Does having the same education/environment for a population make the same invention inevitable and predictable at some moment among that population?</strong></p>

<p>If yes, no wonder why there is so much claims for the same invention at the same time that may come from different places across the world.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-13T09:45:22.043Z
With 6 billion people it is hardly coincidence that two people sometimes think of the same concept. That's why intellectual property needs to be protected in a patenting system.
AliceD
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-13T10:12:02.337Z
@Chris Stronks,OK but from a statistical point of view, 6 billion people means also that we have more probability for ideas collision !
jihed gasmi
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-13T10:17:53.037Z
If you mean 'the same ideas' with 'collision' then yes, that's exactly my point. Statistically, people will likely get the same idea because we are living on the same planet with the same restrictions and demands (e.g. limited energy)
AliceD
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-13T10:33:01.813Z
@Chris Stronks,so it's no more "hardly coincidence" ?
jihed gasmi
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-13T10:33:35.760Z
I don't have scientific proof, but I dare to say - yes
AliceD
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-13T14:28:57.893Z
I made some major revisions to try and avoid having the question closed. I tried to keep the spirit of the question, but make it more answerable from an empirical perspective.
Josh
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-13T14:38:24.873Z
Well edited @Josh--although I'm still not sure it's an empirical question.  How would one test it?
Krysta
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-05-06T23:01:57.487Z
This reminds me of the concept of multiple discoveries, which I recall from one of my undergraduate psychology courses: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiple_discovery    I think someone could write an effective answer about the theories behind why multiple discoveries exist, which may include the impact of the environment.
user30295
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-05-06T23:40:52.227Z
I think this question is too broad as stated, mostly because "creative ideas" is too vague a term.  I think you should restrict your question in light of the [multiple discovery wikipedia article](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiple_discovery). If you want some fun reading, I like [this post](https://rjlipton.wordpress.com/2011/03/19/busses-come-in-threes-why-do-proofs-come-in-twos/) on multiple discoveries (of proofs; something that is much less vague) in mathematics. Also, this question might be a better fit on [history.SE](http://history.stackexchange.com/).
Artem Kaznatcheev
<social-psychology><creativity><ideation>
How strongly are creative ideas influenced by our environment?
jihed gasmi
# How strongly are creative ideas influenced by our environment?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-01-13)

**Background** : I was recently reminded of an abandoned project of mine that is related to railways and "green energy," so I started doing some Internet searches to see if there are any similar projects in the world. To my surprise, the project was already carried out by another institution. Even more surprising was that the project was done almost at the same time that I had the idea.

My question is:

**Does having the same education/environment for a population make the same invention inevitable and predictable at some moment among that population?**

If yes, no wonder why there is so much claims for the same invention at the same time that may come from different places across the world.

**Tags:** social-psychology, creativity, ideation

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: With 6 billion people it is hardly coincidence that two people sometimes think of the same concept. That's why intellectual property needs to be protected in a patenting system.  
> **username_0**: @Chris Stronks,OK but from a statistical point of view, 6 billion people means also that we have more probability for ideas collision !  
> **username_1**: If you mean 'the same ideas' with 'collision' then yes, that's exactly my point. Statistically, people will likely get the same idea because we are living on the same planet with the same restrictions and demands (e.g. limited energy)  
> **username_0**: @Chris Stronks,so it's no more "hardly coincidence" ?  
> **username_1**: I don't have scientific proof, but I dare to say - yes  
> **username_2**: I made some major revisions to try and avoid having the question closed. I tried to keep the spirit of the question, but make it more answerable from an empirical perspective.  
> **username_3**: Well edited @username_2--although I'm still not sure it's an empirical question.  How would one test it?  
> **username_4**: This reminds me of the concept of multiple discoveries, which I recall from one of my undergraduate psychology courses: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiple_discovery    I think someone could write an effective answer about the theories behind why multiple discoveries exist, which may include the impact of the environment.  
> **username_5**: I think this question is too broad as stated, mostly because "creative ideas" is too vague a term.  I think you should restrict your question in light of the [multiple discovery wikipedia article](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiple_discovery). If you want some fun reading, I like [this post](https://rjlipton.wordpress.com/2011/03/19/busses-come-in-threes-why-do-proofs-come-in-twos/) on multiple discoveries (of proofs; something that is much less vague) in mathematics. Also, this question might be a better fit on [history.SE](http://history.stackexchange.com/).  

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## 0 answers

