The Adjacent Possible

After reading Steven Johnson's explanation of the adjacent possible in Where Good Ideas Come From, I felt as though anyone was capable of forming new, advanced concepts. Especially after the quote "all of us live inside our own private versions of the adjacent possible" (36), I felt that I didn't have to be a genius to invent and create something beneficial and complex for the world; I just needed the correct pieces found in a creative environment. On the other hand, the fact that some people are labeled as "ahead of their time," like Babbage, was very depressing. He was intelligent enough to skip steps of the adjacent possible process and created the plans for the Difference Engine and the Analytical Engine, ideas that will be built into real inventions in the future by other humans, but he didn't have the right parts. Sadly, he doesn't get the credit for the inventions. Everyone wants to make some kind of difference and impact before they pass away, and I found it interesting the Johnson was able to come up with similarities in the formation of fascinating ideas that created an impact in this world.