Finds

№ 109 | Algodeck, Alternatives to Arrows, Comic Lettering, Equations Explained Colorfully, Chemistry Advent Calendar, A Framework for Making Decisions, TikTok’s System Map, Learner Engagement Checklist, and Closing Prompts

Stephen P. Anderson

Stephen P. Anderson

— 5 min read
№ 109 | Algodeck, Alternatives to Arrows, Comic Lettering, Equations Explained Colorfully, Chemistry Advent Calendar, A Framework for Making Decisions, TikTok’s System Map, Learner Engagement Checklist, and Closing Prompts

Let’s close out the year with an XL-sized roundup of ‘playful things to think with’ and think about.

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NOTE: This will be the last newsletter until next year. I normally publish Thinking Things every two weeks. But, I do like to take a bit of time off during the holidays, to reflect and recharge. The next issue of Thinking Things won’t arrive until later in January (either the 18th or 25th, TBD).

Until then… Be present with your friends and family; and, if you feel inclined, make something! Cookies. Carpentry. Maybe a card deck 😉. There’s an often overlooked joy that comes from simply working with our hands. I’m hoping to—after the holidays—make time for a few of my “backburner” projects. Here’s to sharing some things I’ve been working on in the new year! 🤞

Algodeck

Computer Science. Card sized. I’m in!

Algodeck is pitched as “a collection of mental models and frameworks for Software Engineers, problem solvers and the curious.” It looks like each card is a visual representation of an algorithm, with a detailed explanation on the back of the card (I’ll know more when my deck arrives!). Bonus points for the friendly, retro aesthetic, which is especially refreshing in contrast to a more serious, techy direction the creator might have taken this project [LI].

A set of Algodeck cards displayed on a wooden surface. The deck box shows the Algodeck branding with a large red circle. The visible cards feature various data visualization and algorithm-related designs in red and blue: one card shows a scatter plot with clustering, another displays geometric shapes including circles and grids with connected nodes, a third shows a network diagram with connected dots resembling a tree or hierarchy structure, and the card back features a blue geometric pattern. The cards are packaged in a red-bordered box.

Context for the next two finds… When I talk about the visual representation of information, I tend to focus on spatial arrangement. But, focusing on how something (a shape, a line) is represented, is equally important. The next two ‘finds’ emphasize this, in different ways…

Alternatives to arrows

Arrows are ambiguous. But, as Koen Van den Eeckhout shows us [LI], there are a number of alternatives to a simple arrow that can provide more clarity. Fairly self-explanatory visual.

An infographic titled 'Arrows are ambiguous: They mean different things to different people: Here are some better alternatives.' The image shows nine rows, each with a simple arrow on the left, its ambiguous meaning in the center, and a clearer visual alternative on the right: 1) 'First this, then that' shown as numbered circles 1 and 2 connected by an arrow; 2) 'Zooming in' shown as a small square expanding into a larger detailed square via dotted lines; 3) 'Zooming out' shown as a large square reducing to a smaller square via dotted lines; 4) 'This is the range' shown as a scale from 0% to 100%; 5) 'This element's name is' shown as a labeled diagram with 'nucleus' and 'narrowing' callouts; 6) 'The trajectory' shown as a curved path from 'start' to 'finish'; 7) 'All of this' shown as a bracket spanning a range; 8) 'Things come together' shown as two lines merging into one; 9) 'Things split apart' shown as one line dividing into two.

The language of comic lettering

Lettering—in comic books—is so much more than simply placing text into speech bubbles. This short post, written for “Letterer Appreciation Day 2022” highlights many of the nuanced ways that letterers convey emotion or reinforce the narrative, often through visual associations.

A sample of three kinds of speech bubbles. From left to right: burst, deflated, whisper. Bursts: Jagged edges on a word balloon indicate yelling, screaming, or generally loud speech. Deflated: A wavy outline can communicate weak speech. Whisper: A dashed outline indicates quiet speech. Small text inside a big balloon or a gray border can also represent whispering.
From left to right: burst, deflated, whisper

Equations Explained Colorfully

Equations Explained Colorfully is… exactly what you’d expect! And, it’s a simple way to make equations just a bit more accessible.

Screenshot from the Equations Explained Colorfully web site. Different portions of Schrödinger Equation has been color coded. Each of these color coded segments can be hovered over, revealing a detailed description of that portion. and

Chemistry Advent Calendar

This time of year, I do enjoy the various ways that people use the advent calendar format, whether it’s the #FreeSoftwareAdvent to share software or Ruth Malan’s #AdventOfSystemSeeing to guide us through a series of systems thinking challenges. The Chemistry Advent Calendar is a new series I just stumbled across, which takes a chemistry perspective on Christmas-themed things 🤪. Bite-sized. Visual. Engaging. This definitely fits my criteria for a playful thing to think with!

Infographic showing how a blown-out candle can relight when a match is held in its smoke trail. The “smoke” is wax vapour that ignites. An example wax combustion equation is also shown.
Infographic on gingerbread graphic that highlights the chemical transformation that ginger undergoes when cooked, and shows the chemical structures of gingerol (before cooking) and zingerone (after cooking).
Infographics on chestnuts and turrón, showing some of the chemical compounds, including furfural, that contribute to their nutty flavours.

Decision making and delegation

Here’s a brilliant example of how a simple framework can provide a shared language for making decisions. In “Effective Leaders Decide About Deciding,” Nancy Duarte describes the circumstances that led to a simple 2x2 where all decisions—and how to make these decisions—map against two factors: urgency and risk.

When should a leader be pulled into a decision, and when can team members move autonomously? Identifying decisions as low risk or high risk and low urgency or high urgency helps to clarify expectations.
A 2x2 decision matrix with 'Urgency' (Low to High) on the horizontal axis and 'Stakes' (Low to High) on the vertical axis. The top-left quadrant (High Stakes/Low Urgency) is orange with a chat bubble icon and reads 'Propose for approval.' The top-right quadrant (High Stakes/High Urgency) is pink with a warning triangle icon and reads 'Escalate immediately.' The bottom-left quadrant (Low Stakes/Low Urgency) is lime green with a checkmark icon and reads 'Decide without me.' The bottom-right quadrant (Low Stakes/High Urgency) is yellow with a bell icon and reads 'Inform on progress.'

TikTok’s system map

I’ve found with systems thinking, seeing a map (already made) is often the best way to start seeing the systems nature of things. In this LinkedIn carousel, Sree Sevithaa M shares a systems map of TikTok (first created by Martin Tomitsch and Steve Baty in their article “The UX butterfly effect” ), that shows how design choices at the screen level ripple outward into loops that touch things like mental health, learning, and environmental impact.

Close-up, cropped portion of a system map for TikTok. Representative. More details in the linked posts.

Let’s wrap this issue up with a couple facilitation related finds…

Learner engagement checklist

Another LinkedIn carousel. This learner engagement checklist from Marie-Jo Leroux is loaded with some good tips and reminders that “predict whether your course will hook learners from slide one.” While these 5 tips are aimed at e-learning designers, the advice is equally relevant to any kind of facilitated learning.

Representative screenshot of several panels from the reference LinkedIn carousel.

10 closing prompts

In the past few years, I’ve started focusing more on how I close a workshop, and allow for individual reflection. Naturally, I’m filing away Gwyn Wansbrough’s “10 Favourite Closing Prompts for Virtual sessions” (yes, another LI carousel 🙄) in my reference library.

Representative screenshot of several panels from the reference LinkedIn carousel.

👉 It’s a stretch, but… here’s a challenge for YOU. Pick one of these closing questions (a few don’t apply). Apply it to the last year’s worth of Thinking Things posts. Shoot me an email with your response. It’s always nice to know there are people on the other side of these posts! 😃

RaNdOM sTuFf

Wow. A lot more random stuff this time around!

In addition to the random and interesting, I also came across several posts that made me stop and think. Here are two worth sharing:

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Quick. Go throw some money at this crowdfunding for Bonfire.

Okay, context: About 2 years ago, when I shuttered the Mighty Minds Club Circle group, I commented that the kind of social/community space I was looking for didn’t exist… yet. I think Bonfire might be what I’ve been holding out for… 🤔 (see this more detailed post on “Why Community Matters: Groups as the Next Step for the Fediverse”). Anyway, it’s a bit very last minute (the fundraiser may have closed by the time you read this), but if you want to learn more and throw a bit of money their way, this is the kind of open (translation: not corporate owned) community platform I’d like to see more of.

Until next year…Cheers! 🥂

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