Design Culture: The Ultimate Particular (or how we obtain and transform knowledge through design)

This is part of a series of articles that explore the concepts that make up our Data Products Framework.

An important concept that guides us here at Odd is the ultimate particular¹. It is so important that this concept is at the heart of our definition as a company:

Odd is a science, design and technology studio that applies methods to transform complex data into its simple particular essence.

This particular essence highlights the differences between design and science and points to the nature of the products created in each of these two ways of acquiring knowledge about the world. The essential difference between them is in the objectives: while scientists are concerned with explaining reality, designers develop artifacts used to mediate interactions between human beings and reality in very specific contexts.

In other words: while one is concerned with "the true", another deals with "the real".

The closer to "the true" (abstract & simple), more universal it is; the more closer to "the real" (concrete & complex), more particular it becomes.

Brief philosophical break: what is “the true” and what is “the real”?

Understanding what is true and what is real is a task that has always occupied philosophers throughout history — and we certainly are not going to solve this issue here.

But for the purpose of absorbing the concept of the ultimate particular, we can say that:

[…] The true, on the one hand, comes from patterns of accurate descriptions, and explanations, through controlled observation, such as William James’s “tough-minded” empiricism. The true can also come from careful abstract reasoning, and logic, as in William James’s “ tender-minded ” rationalism. The real, on the other hand, is the result of particular actions, taken through specific judgments, and formed by distinct intentions. true are the patterns that arise from controlled observations and experiments, or through exercises of logic and reasoning of the human mind. The real, on the other hand, is the result of concrete actions taken from contextual judgments and carried out with different intentions, which change from person to person and from context to context. ²

Simply put:

• The atomic weight of copper is true; a copper sculpture is real.
• A predictable trend is true; an experience is real.
• A scientific theory is true; a chair is real.

We can say that the true is universal: the postulates of the Theory of Relativity are the same in Brazil, China or Tuvalu. On the other hand, the real is contextual: the speedometer (concrete and particular application of part of this theory) can present different shapes and styles depending on the vehicle in which it is present. There is no universal speedometer that represents all the different ways to project and interact with this object. Did you get the idea?

There is no spoon, er…universal speedometer.

This does not mean that one way of obtaining and expressing knowledge is better than the other. On the contrary: it only reinforces the importance of the role of science and design in all the projects we carry out. Design needs to rely on scientific discoveries and theories to create products and services. Science need design, architecture and engineering to develop essential tools in the search for truth. They are complementary forces, which rely on each other’s knowledge to advance.

Ok, but… what does this have to do with our method for data products?

Data Products deals with data obtained from observing reality (just as scientists do). This data, however, needs to be contextualized and organized so that they become information available for consumption that helps in decision-making processes.

The answers given by a data product must always be based on reality.

That is why every data product is the manifestation of an ultimate particular, as its primary objective is to respond to a specific, concrete and real context. And when we realize it, we give up on the idea of ​​a universal product, which does everything and serves everyone. It is crucial to understand this to accept the fact that the outputs change according to the inputs, the interfaces adapt according to cultural needs and the artificial intelligence that deals with the data and suggests alternative responses, will always be biased.

Given the complexity of reality, having all the information is practically impossible. Sometimes, the volume of data is so great that it can lead to paralysis by analysis. That’s where the Data Products framework comes in, when we seek to reveal and reflect on the complexity of a context, allowing us to deal with it. Only after discussing the different facets of the situation (objectives, users, barriers, metrics, and so on) does it becomes possible to co-create products, services or strategies that make sense in this specific reality. Only then, it is possible to reach the ultimate particular.

Odd.method: simple < complex < simple+

The big secret of our framework is not a formula to create a data product ready to be executed or to answer a problem — this is not a tool for solving problems, but a method for finding them. In other words: the Data Products Framework ends up working as a mediation tool between all those responsible for the development of the data product, revealing what each one wants and can contribute for the ultimate particular in question.

To achieve the simple, it is necessary to dive into its complexity.

[1] Ultimate particular is a concept created by Harold Nelson and Erik Stolterman.

[2] NELSON, H.; STOLTERMAN, E. The Design Way. Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2012.