Connections - Intertwingled: Information Changes Everything - page 74

In biological systems, there is a deep unity between structure, function, and origin. You cannot make
very much progress understanding any one of these unless you are also paying close attention to the oth-
er two . xci
I recall learning my mum sees letters, numbers, and words in color. B is dark blue. 7 is pale
green. Monday is cream yellow. We all had a laugh at her craziness. Years later, we discovered
she had a rare neurological disorder known as synesthesia. To some synesthetes, the touch of
denim is sadness; for others, C-sharp on a piano is blue. She was still crazy, but she wasn't alone.
Then synesthesia became popular. Studies revealed cross-sensory perception to be surprisingly
common among artists, poets, and musicians. Suddenly, everyone and their mother was a synes-
thete. And, according to Ramachandran, that's not far from the truth. We are all on the synes-
thesia spectrum. The neural linking of color and emotion is an evolutionary adaptation for find-
ing ripe berries, and our proclivity for synesthesia is an exaptation layered on top of that. “The
angular gyrus may have originally evolved for mediating cross-sensory associations and ab-
stractions but then, in humans, was co-opted for making all kinds of associations, including
metaphorical ones.” xcii
The ability to use analogy is the root of creativity, and like the future, it's unevenly distributed.
We all see the road not taken isn't really about a road, but its meaning is missed by many, and
its artistry is the domain of the few. We will invent the Web ahead by making cross-modal con-
nections in our mind-body-environment. That's what we all missed in our original vision in a
dream of Xanadu. To augment human intellect isn't enough. Action, emotion, and perception
are part of it too.
Hypertext is a place to start, but one-dimensional links are a trap. To escape flatland, we must
expand awareness. As information architects, we must identify and use invisible connections in
space and time. To build places made of information is exciting, but it's not the point. We must
also rise to the challenge as architects of individual, organizational, and environmental synes-
thesia. We must make links, loops, and forks into levers for positive change. Cross-channel isn't
enough. The systems of the future are cross-sensory. It's time to design and experience new
forms of connectedness.
There's a reason systems thinking isn't popular. It's too hard. In place of understanding, most
folks rely on culture, which not only tells us which road to take, but also that it made all the dif-
ference. Culture is a powerful, hidden force, highly resistant to change. That's why, to make sys-
tems better, we must start by mapping culture. It's hard to see, but it's not invisible. If we look
beneath the surface, we see that like art, music and all the webs we weave, culture is a reflection
of ourselves and our unquenchable thirst for connection.