"Disorientation begets creative thinking." Benedict Carey

For many non-traditional students, returning to school can be rather disorienting. You're the odd duck. You may think you don't fit in. Something's not quite right. It may be one of the best things that could happen to your intellect.

In his article for The New York Times, "How Nonsense Sharpens the Intellect," Benedict Carey examines how being confronted with the absurd often forces the mind to look for familiar patterns. In the process, we sometimes find the unexpected. We notice new things we wouldn't otherwise have paid attention to.

Soren Kierkegaard talked about the "sensation of the absurd," Carey points out. Freud wrote about the uncanny, and Carroll about "gyres and gimbles in the wabe."

"Brain-imaging studies of people evaluating anomalies, or working out unsettling dilemmas, show that activity in an area called the anterior cingulate cortex spikes significantly," Carey reports.

So the next time you're feeling the odd duck, employ the feeling! It's a gift. Look around. See new patterns. Expand your mind.