Elite quizzers are renowned for their extraordinary memories – but how do they acquire and retain such vast swathes of general knowledge? Philip Fine and Kathryn Friedlander explore their latest findings on quizzing expertise.
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Investigating model making as a hobby – please complete our survey!

Model making is enjoyed by people of all ages and from all over the world. It has a little something for everyone, ranging from well-known hobbies such as Lego to less popular but equally just as exciting hobbies such as ice sculpting and balloon modelling. But why do people make models, and how do they choose which hobby?
Our MSc student Kieron Kow is investigating this area, asking:
- What are the similarities and differences between Lego and a hobby such as clay sculpting?
- What do these similarities and differences tell us about the types of people who may choose one model making hobby over another?
- And are there more general aspects of a person’s cognitive or other that makes them more likely to pick up and enjoy any model making hobby?

If you are interested in this research, whether you make models or not, please do complete our survey: https://bit.ly/4cJxnj2. Anyone aged 18 or over can take part, it should take you between 15 to 20 minutes, and is completely anonymous. Help us further our understanding of model making as a hobby by taking part. Thank you!
Image credits:
- Lego banner – Ypiyush22, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Lego kit – https://www.flickr.com/photos/mr_t_in_dc/4765644259
- Sand castle – https://pxhere.com/en/photo/610233
Let’s Be Creative: What’s new in creativity research?
Philip Fine tells us about a newly published eBook looking at novel ways of researching creativity.

Though creativity has many definitions, it essentially describes behaviours which lead to novel and meaningful products and outcomes. We can observe creativity in all domains of human behaviour, thought and experience, including creative cognition and problem-solving (divergent thinking and insight), artistic performance (music, dance) and creative design and production (art, design, fashion).
News from UK Creativity 2018
This year’s UK Creativity 2018 conference took place on 22 May 2018 at Canterbury Christ Church University. Our guest blogger Giacomo Fini gives a round-up of the event.
It’s a month now since the Canterbury conference ended, but we are all still benefiting from the fresh perspectives it has brought to our understanding of creativity. With a huge range of topics featured in talks and posters, this was a truly interdisciplinary and international conference. Continue reading