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Sketchplanations makes complex ideas simple with clear, insightful sketches. Explore topics from science, creativity, psychology, and beyond explained in pictures.

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The most beautiful equation

OK, there are probably many candidates, but it is remarkable to me how such esoteric and difficult to define numbers - derived independently - have such a simple elegant relationship.…

4 Oct 2013

The 4 pillars of too much: too much stuff, too many choices, too much info and too fast

The four pillars of too much

The four pillars of too much are: Too much stuff Too many choices Too much information Tooooo fast Time to cut down. From Kim John Payne's Simplicity Parenting.…

3 Oct 2013

Zone of proximal development

What a child can do in cooperation today, he can do alone tomorrow. — Lev Vygotsky Based on visualizing Lev Vygotsky’s theory.…

2 Oct 2013

Store whiteboard pens with the nib down

Half the time when you pick up a whiteboard pen that doesn’t work, it’s because it’s been stored nib-upwards. It usually just needs a little re-charging.…

1 Oct 2013

The law of lockers

The law of lockers: If there are only two people in the changing room, your lockers will be next to each other. Also see: Muphry's Law Hanlon's Razor…

30 Sep 2013

Plug computing

I love the idea that the computer just disappears backwards into the plug. Neal Moore first mentioned this to me. In the Theory of Inventive Problem Solving there’s an idea that all functions will eventually be subsumed by the system above it. Assuming that we will always need some sort of power it makes sense that the computer will disappear into there at some point. The iMac was essentially a jump where the computer disappeared into the screen. For this reason I’ve often thought that floors, walls and ceilings should be given more thought than they are. When everything else has changed, I reckon they will still be around. I wouldn’t mind if our dinner table disappeared into the floor once we were done with it for example.…I love the idea that the computer just disappears backwards into the plug. Neal Moore first mentioned this to me. In the Theory of Inventive Problem Solving there’s an idea that all functions will eventually be subsumed by the system above it. Assuming that we will always need some sort of power it makes sense that the computer will disappear into there at some point. The iMac was essentially a jump where the computer disappeared into the screen. For this reason I’ve often thought that floors, walls and ceilings should be given more thought than they are. When everything else has changed, I reckon they will still be around. I wouldn’t mind if our dinner table disappeared into the floor once we were done with it for example.

29 Sep 2013

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