創意在創新的研究中必不可少。是次研討會上，嚴教授將會評論不同領域中學者提出的創意理論。從中，大家會發現創意其實涉及到兩個關鍵的要素 –原創性和重要性。嚴教授也會就著數件極富創意的研究工作跟大家進行討論。這些都是科學和工程 (尤其是圖像技術)領域中透過大量研究所得出的成果，其中有些甚至已取得諾貝爾獎的殊榮，並對工業界和我們日常生活產生了很重大的影響。值得一提的是，創意工作不時會涉及學習不同範疇的知识，有需要嘗試不為人所熟悉的方法，也要具備不怕失敗與挫折的心態，憑著堅持才能達到目標。

Creativity is essential in innovative research. In this seminar, I shall review the theories on creativity developed by scholars in different fields. It will be shown that creativity involves two critical elements, originality and significance. A number of highly creative works will be discussed. They were carried out by researchers in science and engineering especially in imaging technology, and some of them have led to the award of Nobel Prizes and generated major impacts on industry and even our daily life. In many cases, creative work might involve learning from different fields, trying unpopular methods, not being afraid of resistance and setbacks, and persistence in achieving one’s goals.