This Week:
“Houston, We Have a Problem”
In the chaotic symphony of modern life, where every ping and notification competes for our limited attention, the concept of ‘signal to noise’ has never been more relevant. But before it became the buzzword of the digital age, it had its origins in the dry and dusty world of early telecommunications. We can imagine back in the 1940s, engineers huddled over crackling radios, trying to extract a coherent message from the static. Enter John R. Pierce, an unsung hero of this technical odyssey, who famously quipped, “The real problem is not just that the signal is too weak, but that the noise is too strong.”
Pierce wasn’t just talking about faulty radios; he was tapping into something universal. His insight is the foundation of our struggle today: How do we find meaning in a world overflowing with irrelevant information? His words remind us that the challenge isn’t merely about amplifying the message but also about filtering out the distractions that threaten to drown it.
Designing for Clarity – The Signal in Creative Practice
So, how does this principle play out in the world of design? The short answer: everywhere. Good design is about making the signal clear, whether you’re sketching a blueprint, crafting a website, or animating a story. The job of a designer is to decide what’s essential and what’s extraneous. It’s about creating a visual hierarchy where the important elements—the signal—rise to the top, while the noise fades into the background.
Design isn’t just about aesthetics; it’s about communication. Think of a great poster or an effective infographic. It doesn’t bombard you with information. Instead, it guides your eye, leading you to the key message with the finesse of a magician directing your gaze. The best designs are those that make the complex seem simple, cutting through the clutter to deliver a message that resonates.
A Tale of Two Creatives
Enter Jackson Pollock, the painter who made a career out of what initially looks like chaos. His canvases, at first glance, might seem like a riot of noise—drips, splashes, and splatters in every direction. But spend a little more time with his work, and you’ll start to notice patterns, rhythms, and an underlying order. Pollock’s genius was in finding the signal within the noise, making the chaotic coherent in a way that speaks directly to the subconscious.
Contrast this with Steve Reich, a minimalist composer who took the opposite approach. Reich’s music is all about repetition and gradual phase shifts, stripping away the unnecessary to focus on the core idea. Where Pollock found signal within noise, Reich created signal by eliminating it. Both approaches are valid, and both teach us something profound about creativity: sometimes, clarity comes from embracing complexity; at other times, it’s about paring down to the essentials.
Koos: Success becomes a shared cause - Whiteboard Animation
We Are Cognitive: Harnessing Signal in a Noisy World
At We Are Cognitive, we live and breathe the signal-to-noise ratio. Whether it’s through our whiteboard animations, explainer videos, or rich pictures, our goal is to distil complex ideas into clear, engaging visuals. We take the noise—the overwhelming data, the jargon, the endless stream of information—and transform it into a coherent narrative that sticks.
Take our whiteboard animations, for example. They’re not just about pretty pictures; they’re a strategic tool for cutting through the noise. We identify the key messages—the signals—and find the most effective way to communicate them visually. It’s a process of distillation, of removing the clutter so that what’s left is clear, impactful, and memorable.
For instance, when we create a whiteboard animation to explain a complex concept, we're not just throwing every fact and figure on to the screen. We carefully consider what the audience needs to know—what will inform, teach, enable and inspire them. It’s not just about conveying information; it’s about ensuring that information sticks. And how do we do that? By mastering the balance between signal and noise.
Inform, Teach, Enable, Inspire: A Symphony of Signals
Our work is guided by four pillars: Inform, Teach, Enable, Inspire. Each pillar is a lens through which we filter the signal, ensuring that what we create isn’t just seen but understood, felt, and acted upon.
Inform: We clarify the message, cutting through the noise to make data clear, rich, and understandable.
Teach: We break down complex ideas, step by step, ensuring that the signal is not just heard but learned.
Enable: We provide signposts and guidance, empowering people to act on the signal rather than getting lost in the noise.
Inspire: We aim to touch hearts as well as minds, creating a signal that resonates on an emotional level, leading to real change.
In every piece of content we create, from animations to illustrations, we strive to balance the signal and the noise, ensuring that what we produce informs, teaches, enables, and inspires.
Further Reading: “The Signal and the Noise” by Nate Silver
If the concept of signal and noise has piqued your interest, then Nate Silver’s The Signal and the Noise is a must-read. Silver, a statistician known for his razor-sharp predictions, explores how we can better understand and predict the world by focusing on the signals that matter while filtering out the noise. His book offers insights that are as applicable to personal decision-making as they are to understanding complex systems.
Silver’s exploration is more than just a lesson in statistics; it’s a guide to critical thinking in an age of information overload. It’s about honing your ability to see the forest for the trees, a skill that’s invaluable whether you’re navigating the news, your career, or even your social media feed. The book is a fitting companion to our discussion, providing deeper insights into how we can all become better at finding the signal in the noise.
Conclusion: Cutting Through the Noise
In a world awash with information, our ability to find and amplify the signal is more crucial than ever. Whether we embrace the noise or strip it away, our goal remains the same: to communicate clearly, creatively, and effectively. As we move forward, let’s remember the lessons of Pollock, Reichand Pierce, and strive to find—or create—the signals that truly matter. Because in the end, it’s not just about being heard—it’s about making a difference.
If you could pin down the essence of truth, could you draw it? That’s the question that lingered in my mind after speaking with Dan Ariely for my RSA Animate documentary—a project allowing me to reconnect with some of the most compelling thinkers of our time.