An unsatisfying theory of original thinking

An original idea is an idea you have produced that cannot be traced back to something you acquired, either through reading or conversation.

This definition creates two problems for us. Firstly, when you read lots of good books, you acquire lots of good ideas. Some or most of those ideas will be better than the ones you can come up with. Before learning about Newton's second law, you were free to conjure up any crazy theory about the relationship between force, mass and acceleration. But since acquiring Newton's idea, the train has left the station. It's highly unlikely you'll produce something better than Newton on that specific topic.