Sketchplanations - A weekly explanation in a sketch

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Explaining the world one sketch at a time

Physics Envy

Physics envy refers to the wish that a field of study would turn out to be as precise, as predictable, as repeatable, and as amenable to modeling and theory that replicates practice as physics is. As it turns out, most fields that involve people — such as economics and the social sciences — are rarely so tidy and orderly and neatly mathematically modeled. They are instead usually messy, uncertain, and filled with context, nuance, history and confounding factors such that making sense of them in broadly applicable ways is rather difficult. And while we do our best to quantify and identify effects, or cleanly isolate our cognitive biases or our quirks of behavioural psychology, rarely are they able to live up to the purest standards of physics. It's enough to turn one green with envy. It reminded me of the best laid plans of our Saturday sports coaches turning for their substitutes to execute their plans, only to find the players climbing trees in the adjacent field.…Physics envy refers to the wish that a field of study would turn out to be as precise, as predictable, as repeatable, and as amenable to modeling and theory that replicates practice as physics is. As it turns out, most fields that involve people — such as economics and the social sciences — are rarely so tidy and orderly and neatly mathematically modeled. They are instead usually messy, uncertain, and filled with context, nuance, history and confounding factors such that making sense of them in broadly applicable ways is rather difficult. And while we do our best to quantify and identify effects, or cleanly isolate our cognitive biases or our quirks of behavioural psychology, rarely are they able to live up to the purest standards of physics. It's enough to turn one green with envy. It reminded me of the best laid plans of our Saturday sports coaches turning for their substitutes to execute their plans, only to find the players climbing trees in the adjacent field.

13 Feb 2022

Features are like pets

When adding features to a software product it's easy to underestimate the overall time and cost they may take up. To keep the full impact in mind it can be helpful to think of Features As Pets. When I think of Features As Pets it helps me look past the initial cost of designing and developing a feature and consider its full lifecycle. For example: you're going to want to tell your users about it you'll want to check it's being used as intended you'll need to support it and check that it works in all different places and fix it when it breaks you may need to work hard to make sure it's compatible with new features you add you may have to return to the code and refactor it to improve performance you may need to upgrade libraries and maintain security patches finally you'll have to decommission it gracefully when it's no longer needed including dealing with data you may have stored New features are probably one of the key differentiators of your offering compared to others, but it bears a little consideration before adding something — a feature is not just for Christmas. Features Are Like Pets is from the excellent Intercom on Product Management podcast (Apple, Spotify, ebook).…When adding features to a software product it's easy to underestimate the overall time and cost they may take up. To keep the full impact in mind it can be helpful to think of Features As Pets. When I think of Features As Pets it helps me look past the initial cost of designing and developing a feature and consider its full lifecycle. For example: you're going to want to tell your users about it you'll want to check it's being used as intended you'll need to support it and check that it works in all different places and fix it when it breaks you may need to work hard to make sure it's compatible with new features you add you may have to return to the code and refactor it to improve performance you may need to upgrade libraries and maintain security patches finally you'll have to decommission it gracefully when it's no longer needed including dealing with data you may have stored New features are probably one of the key differentiators of your offering compared to others, but it bears a little consideration before adding something — a feature is not just for Christmas. Features Are Like Pets is from the excellent Intercom on Product Management podcast (Apple, Spotify, ebook).

6 Feb 2022

Don't ask the barber if you need a haircut

"Don't ask the barber if you need a haircut" is a simple reminder that asking someone with a vested interest in the outcome isn't likely to lead to an unbiased answer—"Do you need a haircut? Of course, you do!" Should I upgrade my phone? Mobile provider: Yes! Should I review my mortgage? Mortgage broker: Yes! Should I review my portfolio? Stockbroker: Yes! Should I get some more insurance? Insurance salesperson: Yes! Do I need a security audit? Cybersecurity firm: Yes! While we can decide about our hair with few consequences to anyone but ourselves, on more significant occasions or domains where we lack expertise, asking a professional may be precisely what we need. A professional with skills and knowledge we don't have can see what we can't. So, asking a professional to review what you're doing might tell you what you didn't and couldn't think to ask. Just be thoughtful about who and how you ask. Warren Buffet famously shared this phrase, though it appears in several similar earlier forms. I learned that in Italy, people say, "Don’t ask the innkeeper if the wine is good." Related Ideas to Don't Ask the Barber Also see: The Shirky Principle Goodhart's Law Campbell's Law The Law of Unintended Consequences This sketch, along with plenty of other sketches for advice, appears in my book Big Ideas Little Pictures…"Don't ask the barber if you need a haircut" is a simple reminder that asking someone with a vested interest in the outcome isn't likely to lead to an unbiased answer—"Do you need a haircut? Of course, you do!" Should I upgrade my phone? Mobile provider: Yes! Should I review my mortgage? Mortgage broker: Yes! Should I review my portfolio? Stockbroker: Yes! Should I get some more insurance? Insurance salesperson: Yes! Do I need a security audit? Cybersecurity firm: Yes! While we can decide about our hair with few consequences to anyone but ourselves, on more significant occasions or domains where we lack expertise, asking a professional may be precisely what we need. A professional with skills and knowledge we don't have can see what we can't. So, asking a professional to review what you're doing might tell you what you didn't and couldn't think to ask. Just be thoughtful about who and how you ask. Warren Buffet famously shared this phrase, though it appears in several similar earlier forms. I learned that in Italy, people say, "Don’t ask the innkeeper if the wine is good." Related Ideas to Don't Ask the Barber Also see: The Shirky Principle Goodhart's Law Campbell's Law The Law of Unintended Consequences This sketch, along with plenty of other sketches for advice, appears in my book Big Ideas Little Pictures

30 Jan 2022

Sankey diagram

Sankey diagrams are handy ways to visualise material or energy flows through usage and time. They are excellent for displaying energy source and usage, for example the UK government publishes a Sankey diagram of UK energy each year (pdf). Perhaps the most famous example is Charles Joseph Minard's remarkable visual showing Napoleon's invasion of and retreat from Russia in the Winter of 1812–13. In that chilling example the thickness of the lines represent the remaining size of Napoleon's army. I learned about Sankey diagrams from Edward Tufte but perhaps people see them most commonly today in Google Analytics showing the different paths visitors take on a website before leaving.…Sankey diagrams are handy ways to visualise material or energy flows through usage and time. They are excellent for displaying energy source and usage, for example the UK government publishes a Sankey diagram of UK energy each year (pdf). Perhaps the most famous example is Charles Joseph Minard's remarkable visual showing Napoleon's invasion of and retreat from Russia in the Winter of 1812–13. In that chilling example the thickness of the lines represent the remaining size of Napoleon's army. I learned about Sankey diagrams from Edward Tufte but perhaps people see them most commonly today in Google Analytics showing the different paths visitors take on a website before leaving.

23 Jan 2022

The Rhyme As Reason Effect

The Rhyme As Reason Effect suggests that we're more likely to consider something as accurate or truthful when it rhymes. In a lovely study that asked people to consider the accuracy of both rhyming and non-rhyming aphorisms, "Woes unite foes," or "What sobriety conceals, alcohol reveals," for example, were considered more accurate than "Woes unite enemies," or "What sobriety conceals, alcohol unmasks." A classic example outside of old sayings is OJ Simpson's trial where the defense attorney memorably noted "If the gloves don't fit, you must acquit!" You can read the study in the delightfully titled paper, Birds of a feather flock conjointly: Rhyme as Reason in Aphorisms (pdf), by Matthew McGlone and Jessica Tofighbakhsh. In a related note I was always curious how "Beer before wine, you'll feel fine," tallied up with what I heard in the US: "Beer before liquor, never been sicker," or even "Grape or grain but never the twain." It turns out from a neat 2019 study that, whichever way round you rhyme them, they have no effect on your hangover despite how persuasive the Rhyme As Reason effect may be — even after a few beers.…The Rhyme As Reason Effect suggests that we're more likely to consider something as accurate or truthful when it rhymes. In a lovely study that asked people to consider the accuracy of both rhyming and non-rhyming aphorisms, "Woes unite foes," or "What sobriety conceals, alcohol reveals," for example, were considered more accurate than "Woes unite enemies," or "What sobriety conceals, alcohol unmasks." A classic example outside of old sayings is OJ Simpson's trial where the defense attorney memorably noted "If the gloves don't fit, you must acquit!" You can read the study in the delightfully titled paper, Birds of a feather flock conjointly: Rhyme as Reason in Aphorisms (pdf), by Matthew McGlone and Jessica Tofighbakhsh. In a related note I was always curious how "Beer before wine, you'll feel fine," tallied up with what I heard in the US: "Beer before liquor, never been sicker," or even "Grape or grain but never the twain." It turns out from a neat 2019 study that, whichever way round you rhyme them, they have no effect on your hangover despite how persuasive the Rhyme As Reason effect may be — even after a few beers.

16 Jan 2022

Reef knot and clove hitch

A refresh for basic guiding and scouting skills — two satisfying and simple, but not secure, knots: the reef knot, or square knot, and the clove hitch. The reef knot was also known to the ancient Greeks as the Hercules knot. You can use it for non-safety critical things like belts, bandages, tying bundles and parcels but it doesn't hold weight well so don't use it when safety is important. The clove hitch is a simple knot that can quickly, say, tie a rope to a post. But don't use it if you need something to really hold. Again, don't use either for safety critical applications, but they're both nice knots to know. Also see a sheet bend…A refresh for basic guiding and scouting skills — two satisfying and simple, but not secure, knots: the reef knot, or square knot, and the clove hitch. The reef knot was also known to the ancient Greeks as the Hercules knot. You can use it for non-safety critical things like belts, bandages, tying bundles and parcels but it doesn't hold weight well so don't use it when safety is important. The clove hitch is a simple knot that can quickly, say, tie a rope to a post. But don't use it if you need something to really hold. Again, don't use either for safety critical applications, but they're both nice knots to know. Also see a sheet bend

9 Jan 2022

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