Thinking in maps: from the Lascaux caves to knowledge graphs

Thinking in maps: from the Lascaux caves to knowledge graphs

What do hieroglyphs, flowcharts, road signs, and knowledge graphs have in common? They’re all thinking maps. Humans have been thinking in maps since the very first symbolic communication systems. Thinking in maps is substantively different from thinking in sentences. Maps provide visual representations of our knowledge, beliefs, or questions, combining word-maps and world-maps to convey meaning.

The oldest surviving map in the world, found in the Lascaux caves, is a map of the skies, not the earth. This map is symbolic, using visual symbols like pictograms, ideograms, and logograms to represent ideas and concepts. Beyond logograms, almost all cultures use pictograms in addition to their written language to communicate meaning.

Leonardo Da Vinci, one of the most famous visual thinkers in history, believed that everything connects to everything else. He saw links where others saw separations. Isaac Newton also used diagrams to explore scientific concepts and research ideas. These visual thinkers understood the power of maps to organize and convey information.

In information science, an ontology is a formal representation and definition of the categories, properties, and relationships between concepts in a specific area of knowledge. Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, had a dream for computers to analyze all the data on the web, including content, links, and transactions between people and computers.

The wisdom of the crowd is the collective opinion of a group of individuals, which can often be more accurate than the opinion of a single expert. This phenomenon occurs because different individuals bring different item-level knowledge to the table, which is integrated and augmented with each other's knowledge. Aristotle believed that the collective intelligence of a group can be better than that of individuals.

Scientists have developed techniques to harness the wisdom of the crowd. One such technique is called the "surprisingly popular," where people are asked to give two responses: what they think the right answer is and what they think popular opinion will be. The averaged difference between the two can indicate the correct answer. This technique relies on the diversity and independence of the crowd to cancel out extreme answers.

However, individual cognition is also subject to stochastic noise, and asking oneself multiple times does not necessarily improve accuracy. Averaging a large number of judgments from different people can eliminate random errors but may not compensate for systematic errors that affect the entire crowd. Cognitive biases can still influence collective opinions.

In conclusion, thinking in maps has been a fundamental part of human communication since ancient times. Visual thinkers like Leonardo Da Vinci and Isaac Newton understood the power of maps to connect knowledge and ideas. The wisdom of the crowd can provide valuable insights, but it requires diversity and independence to be effective. When leveraging the wisdom of the crowd, it is essential to consider individual biases and strive for a balance of perspectives.

Actionable advice:

1. Embrace visual thinking: Incorporate maps, diagrams, and other visual representations into your thought processes to enhance understanding and make connections.
2. Seek diverse perspectives: When seeking opinions or making decisions, actively seek out diverse perspectives to benefit from the wisdom of the crowd.
3. Be aware of cognitive biases: Recognize that both individuals and crowds can be influenced by cognitive biases. Take steps to mitigate biases by critically evaluating information and seeking multiple sources of input.