Can we Transcend Linear Perspective and Thinking Through Non-Linear Search?
In a 2012 essay for The Financial Times artist David Hockney argues and illustrates (below) the case for a shift from a static view point to a mobile one, showing that this fundamental shift might emancipate our world view from that of a single infinity to multiple infinities.
Hockney’s work has long been associated with alternative and wider perspectives, from his early Grand Canyon photo-collage to reverse perspective paintings to recent multi-camera films.
“There is a great connection between the way we depict space and the way we behave in it.”
— David Hockney
Hockney’s notion of ‘a static perspective limiting our vision’ is central to our ability to adapt to the post-truth condition we have currently found ourselves within.
Our post-truth condition could be seen as an inevitable consequence of placing our faith in linear channels of thinking that open only onto single versions of a truth, leaving such truth exposed to manipulation from the holistic removal of nuance and perspective. Altering and widening our view point allows for new perspectives (visual / conceptual / metaphorical) that in-turn actively inform how we perceive and understand the world around us.
The same ‘Bigger Picture’ model proposed by Hockney can also be applied to technology, specifically Information Retrieval models and the domestic internet Search Engine.
The current information retrieval model of consensus used by all major domestic search engines follows a simple linear narrative (below left); A query is inputed into a search box > The query is transformed into a set of documents through a black-box algorithm > The documents are listed in a hierarchical order in a results page. The simple addition of multiple search buttons (below right) would allow for a the same mobile perspective on the information we are querying that Hockney also explores and encourages .
else evolve non-linear search engines that employ this basic principle of additional search buttons, moving us from a static perspective to a mobile one. The first else beta product takes it’s Information Retrieval model from Ancient Greek Philosopher Socrates (below), and will be followed by a series of additional models in development.
The initial benefits of non-linear search engines could help us to navigate post-truth uncertainty and practise deeper critical thinking, but then might next evolve into a means to directly transcend traditional linear thinking and open our horizons to new non-linear infinities.
