Towards the Systematic Reframing of Incomprehension through Metaphor

Use of an astrophysical to reframe the universe of knowledge

Annex A of Living with Incomprehension and Uncertainty: re-cognizing the varieties of non-comprehension and misunderstanding (2012)

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Introduction

It is curious the manner in which "incomprehension" is effectively excluded as a factor in considering the challenges of society and its future governance. It is even more curious that instances of incomprehension are naively treated as the fault of the other.

Incomprehensible unknowns: A degree of recognition is however accorded to "comprehension" in that it is from those who supposedly comprehend that proposals are engendered for governance from centres of excellence. There is a sense in which it is assumed that those in positions of governance, in receipt of such insights, are themselves characterized by appropriate comprehension. The questionable nature of such assumptions has been fruitfully highlighted by the notorious "poem" of Donald Rumsfeld regarding the unknown unknowns -- as discussed separately (Unknown Undoing: challenge of incomprehensibility of systemic neglect, 2008):

[T]here are known knowns; there are things we know we know.
We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know.
But there are also unknown unknowns -- there are things we do not know we don't know.

Mapping (in)comprehension: There is then a case for recognizing a global system characterized by zones of relative comprehension and incomprehension. Using a meteorological metaphor (as indicated in the main paper) -- whether "temperature" and/or "pressure" is used as a template -- this offers a way of recognizing the potential variety of comprehension conditions within a global knowledge society. Such a mapping avoids the easy assumptions of those who claim to "know" and "comprehend" -- however incomprehensible (and violent) their disagreements with others sharing similar assumptions regarding the respective "truths" they each so adequately comprehend. The mapping also gives space to those who are variously obliged to recognize that there is much they themselves do not comprehend -- especially to the extent that they have to deal with this experience of incomprehension on a daily basis.

A mapping of this kind potentially offers a more fruitful context in which to reflect on the possibilities of collective intelligence and the emergence of coherent comprehension of situations (Enabling Collective Intelligence in Response to Emergencies, 2010; Massive Elicitation of Psychosocial Energy: Requisite technology for collective enlightenment, 2011). It also enables clarification of issues associated with the constraint on adequacy of collective response, as discussed above. Given the considerable development of meteorological simulations and the ongoing development of psychosocial simulations enhanced by data mining (FuturICT Living Earth Platform; Synthetic Environment for Analysis and Simulations, Sentient World Simulation), simulations of "(in)comprehension" dynamics should be relatively straightforward.

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