Explorable explanation: Difference between revisions

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{{short description|Form of informativeinformational media}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2020}}

{{short description|Form of informative media}}

[[File:Parable of the Polygons drag & drop.png|thumb|329x329px|Screenshot from ''[[Parable of the Polygons]]'' by [[Nicky Case]], an explorable explanation that simulates [[racial segregation]], which allows the audience to control how "shapist" the entities in the simulation are.]]

An '''explorable explanation''' (often shortened to ''explorable'') is a form of informativeinformational media where an [[interactive]] [[Simulation|computer simulation]] of a given concept is presented, along with some form of guidance (usually prose) that suggests ways that the audience can [[Learning|learn]] from the simulation. Explorable explanations encourage users to discover things about the concept for themselves, and test their expectations of its behaviour against its actual behaviour, promoting a more [[Active learning|active]] form of learning than reading or listening.

== Definition ==

The term "explorable explanation" was first used in passing by [[Peter Brusilovsky]] in a 1994 paper,<ref>{{Citation|last=Brusilovsky|first=Peter|chapter=Explanatory visualization in an educational programming environment: Connecting examples with general knowledge |date=1994 |pages=202–212 |publisher=Springer Berlin Heidelberg |isbn=9783540586487 |doi=10.1007/3-540-58648-2_38|title=Human-Computer Interaction|volume=876|series=Lecture Notes in Computer Science|citeseerx=10.1.1.160.9141}}</ref> but did not enter into common use until 2011, when [[Bret Victor]] published an eponymous essay<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=http://worrydream.com/ExplorableExplanations/|title=Explorable Explanations|website=worrydream.com|access-date=January 18, 2019}}</ref> (the essay included an explorable explanation of a [[digital filter]]). Victor distinguishes explorable explanations from isolated interactive widgets and visualizations by the fact that they deliberately guide the attention of their audience towards particular phenomena within the simulation. In characterizing the concept, Victor explains:<ref name=":0" /> <{{blockquote>|Explorable Explanations is my umbrella project for ideas that ''enable and encourage truly active reading''. The goal is to change people's relationship with text. People currently think of text as ''information to be consumed''. I want text to be used as an ''environment to think in''.</blockquote>}}

Some of the ideas Victor espoused in the essay occurred to him while during work with [[Al Gore]] on the app version of the 2009 book [[Our Choice]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/1665397/after-trying-to-kill-math-an-ex-apple-designer-aims-to-kill-reading |title=After Trying To "Kill Math," An Ex-Apple Designer Aims To Kill Reading |last=Pavlus |first=John |date=November 9, 2011 |website=Fast Company |language=en-US |access-date=January 18, 2019}}</ref> He had proposed that the app should contain interactive models, but this idea was rejected on the basis that all numerical values proposed regarding climate change needed to have a citation, and the interactive models would generate un-cited numbers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://worrydream.com/ClimateChange/#media-writing |title=What can a technologist do about climate change? A personal view.|website=worrydream.com|access-date=May 15, 2019}}</ref>

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The term has since also been characterized as being about learning through play.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://explorabl.es/|title=Explorable Explanations|website=explorabl.es|access-date=April 5, 2019}}</ref> The related term "active essays" was used by [[Alan Kay]] to refer to text-based explorable explanations,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.playfulinvention.com/emergence/active-essay.html |title=Active Essays |website=www.playfulinvention.com |access-date=April 2, 2019}}</ref> and a major goal of [[Squeak]] (the precursor to [[Scratch (programming language)|Scratch]]) was to allow for the creation of them.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://wiki.squeak.org/squeak/3307|title=Active Essays|website=wiki.squeak.org|access-date=April 2, 2019}}</ref>

A few video games may be considered explorable explanations. For example, [[Sim City]] uses a complex city simulation that is intended<ref>{{cite web|url=https://archinect.com/features/article/112824468/the-theory-of-everything-in-sandbox-city-will-wright-s-keynote-at-acadia-2014 |title=The theory of everything in sandbox city: Will Wright's keynote at ACADIA 2014 |website=Archinect |language=en |access-date=March 3, 2019}}</ref> to present issues that appear in real-world [[urban planning]]. Many other games in the [[Simulation video game|simulation]] genre have a similar intention, although with many it is not a necessity that the simulation be scientifically accurate. In the [[Puzzle video game|puzzle]] genre, games such as [[Miegakure]] and [[Incredipede]] also involve interacting with systems with the intention of learning. Video games may not involve explanatory text or narration.

[[Educational video game]]s have an overlap with explorable explanations,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://explorabl.es/|title=FAQ {{!}} Explorable Explanations |website=explorabl.es |access-date=March 3, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Seskir|first1=Zeki C.|last2=Migdał|first2=Piotr|last3=Weidner|first3=Carrie|last4=Anupam|first4=Aditya|last5=Case|first5=Nicky|last6=Davis|first6=Noah|last7=Decaroli|first7=Chiara|last8=Ercan|first8=İlke|last9=Foti|first9=Caterina|last10=Gora|first10=Paweł|last11=Jankiewicz|first11=Klementyna|last12=La Cour|first12=Brian R.|last13=Malo|first13=Jorge Yago|last14=Maniscalco|first14=Sabrina|last15=Naeemi|first15=Azad|last16=Nita|first16=Laurentiu|last17=Parvin|first17=Nassim|last18=Scafirimuto|first18=Fabio|last19=Sherson|first19=Jacob F.|last20=Surer|first20=Elif|last21=Wootton|first21=James|last22=Yeh|first22=Lia|last23=Zabello|first23=Olga|last24=Chiofalo|first24=Marilù|title=Quantum games and interactive tools for quantum technologies outreach and education|journal=Optical Engineering|volume=61|issue=8|pages=081809|year=2022|arxiv=2202.07756|doi=10.1117/1.OE.61.8.081809}}{{Creative Commons text attribution notice|cc=by4|from this source=yes}}</ref> summarized as:

[[Educational video game]]s have an overlap with explorable explanations.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://explorabl.es/|title=FAQ {{!}} Explorable Explanations |website=explorabl.es |access-date=March 3, 2019}}</ref> They are similar in that both involve a computer simulation that is visualized, and both have the intended goal that the audience learns something. However, in an educational video game, the simulation is not necessarily a simulation of the game's intended learning content.<ref name=":3" /> Instead, learning content in educational video games is usually put in a non-interactive form such as text or voiceover; the educational game then usually has some schedule whereby the audience alternates between seeing the text and, separately, playing a game, usually a game with mechanics from a standard [[video game genre|genre]], such as a [[platformer]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cc.gatech.edu/~asb/papers/bruckman_gdc99.html |title=Can Educational Be Fun? |website=www.cc.gatech.edu |access-date=March 3, 2019}}</ref>

{{blockquote|Science-based games [...] primarily focus on creating an experience sparking intrinsic motivation, that is, students play for fun, but learn in the process, as their gaming experience requires learning concepts to proceed or provides an explorative pathway through the game that promotes learning. [...] Explorable explanations (or “explorables”) come at educational games from the opposite direction: instead of “games, but with science communication added,” they are “science communication, but with interactivity added”.}}

Explorable explanations are also distinct from [[Gamification#Education|gamification]],<ref name=":3">{{cite web|url=https://blog.ncase.me/explorable-explanations/|title=Explorable Explanations |date=September 8, 2014 |website=[[Nicky Case]]'s Blog|access-date=January 21, 2019}}</ref> which has the stated intention of improving the structure of [[Reward system|rewards]] in learning. An explorable explanation may or may not involve rewards, and most involve none.

[[Educational video game]]s have an overlap with explorable explanations.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://explorabl.es/|title=FAQ {{!}} Explorable Explanations |website=explorabl.es |access-date=March 3, 2019}}</ref> They are similar in that both involve a computer simulation that is visualized, and both have the intended goal that the audience learns something. However, in an educational video game, the simulation is not necessarily a simulation of the game's intended learning content.<ref name=":3" /> Instead, learning content in educational video games is usually put in a non-interactive form such as text or voiceover; the educational game then usually has some schedule whereby the audience alternates between seeing the text and, separately, playing a game, usually a game with mechanics from a standard [[video game genre|genre]], such as a [[platformer]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cc.gatech.edu/~asb/papers/bruckman_gdc99.html |title=Can Educational Be Fun? |website=www.cc.gatech.edu |access-date=March 3, 2019}}</ref>

Explorable explanations are also distinct from [[Gamification#Education and training|gamification]],<ref name=":3">{{cite web|url=https://blog.ncase.me/explorable-explanations/|title=Explorable Explanations |date=September 8, 2014 |website=[[Nicky Case]]'s Blog|access-date=January 21, 2019}}</ref> which has the stated intention of improving the structure of [[Reward system|rewards]] in learning. An explorable explanation may or may not involve rewards, and most involve none.

== History ==

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[[File:PLATO chem exp.jpg|thumb|The PLATO computer system, which predates the personal computer, was the first platform for what would now be called explorable explanations]]

Many explorable explanations predate the popular use of the phrase.<ref>{{Cite journalbook|last=Singley|first=Mark K.|date=1991|title=MOLEHILL: An Instructional System for Smalltalk Programming |journal=Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conferenceconference on Human Factorsfactors in Computingcomputing systems Reaching through technology - Systems|series=CHI '91 |chapter=Molehill |date=1991|___location=New York, NY |publisher=ACM |pages=439–440 |doi=10.1145/108844.108992 |isbn=9780897913836|s2cid=21614588}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journalbook|last=Redmiles|first=David F.|date=1993|title=ReducingProceedings of the VariabilitySIGCHI ofconference Programmers'on PerformanceHuman Throughfactors Explainedin Examples|journal=Proceedingscomputing ofsystems the- INTERACTCHI '93 and|chapter=Reducing CHIthe '93variability Conferenceof onprogrammers' Humanperformance Factorsthrough inexplained Computingexamples Systems|seriesdate=CHI '931993|___location=New York, NY|publisher=ACM|pages=[https://archive.org/details/interchi93confer0000unse/page/67 67–73]|doi=10.1145/169059.169082|isbn=9780897915755|s2cid=13014326|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/interchi93confer0000unse/page/67|doi-access=free}}</ref> For example, the [[PLATO (computer system)|Plato system]], a computer-assisted instructional system created in 1960 depicted to the right, used interactive examples to teach concepts to students.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hackeducation.com/2018/01/25/plato|title=PLATO and the History of Education Technology (That Wasn't)|date=January 2, 2018|website=Hack Education|language=en-US|access-date=March 27, 2019}}</ref> In 1996, [[Mitchel Resnick]] created an explorable explanation of [[emergence]] using [[Conway's Game of Life]] as an example.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.playfulinvention.com/emergence/|title=Exploring Emergence |website=www.playfulinvention.com |access-date=March 3, 2019}}</ref>

The target audience for explorable explanations has historically been limited by available [[Software Platformplatform|software distribution platforms]] (although some have been made for specific museums, without any intention of wider distribution, including some created by [[Karl Sims]]<ref>{{cite webnews|url=http://www.karlsims.com/rd-exhibit.html|title=Reaction-Diffusion Media Wall |website=www.karlsims.com |access-date=March 3, 2019}}</ref>). Due to the fact that explorable explanations have not previously been successfully [[Monetization|monetized]], physical media such as [[CD-ROM]]s could not be considered. Since the 2000s, explorable explanations have become more common, because of widespread internet access and increased [[computer graphics]] possibilities within [[web browser]]s, for example via [[Scalable Vector Graphics|SVG]], [[WebGL]], and [[Canvas element|HTML5 canvas]] [[API]]. This allows complex simulations to be accessed instantly and shared on social media.

Wikipedia has some examples of basic explorable explanations.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/Conic_section_interactive_visualisation.svg|title=conic section interactive visualisation |website=upload.wikimedia.org |access-date=March 27, 2019}}</ref>

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The most prevalent examples of explorable explanations concern topics within mathematics<ref>{{cite web|url=http://explorabl.es/math/|title=Math {{!}} Explorable Explanations|website=explorabl.es|access-date=April 5, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|last=Benziane|first=Chakib|title=A curated list of awesome explorable explanations.: sp4ke/awesome-explorables|date=April 3, 2019|url=https://github.com/sp4ke/awesome-explorables#math|access-date=April 5, 2019}}</ref> or [[computer science]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://explorabl.es/programming/|title=Programming {{!}} Explorable Explanations|website=explorabl.es|access-date=April 5, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|last=Benziane|first=Chakib|title=A curated list of awesome explorable explanations.: sp4ke/awesome-explorables|date=April 3, 2019|url=https://github.com/sp4ke/awesome-explorables#algorithms |access-date=April 5, 2019}}</ref> There are numerous explanations of concepts within statistics and [[machine learning]] as well as of specific [[algorithm]]s.

Explorable explanations have a bias towards focusing on these topics, and when the subject matter comes from disciplines of [[empirical science]], there is a tendency to focus on [[quantitative research|quantitative models]] from within the discipline. This is true even in the case of explorable explanations about disciplines where quantitative models are less common, such as [[social science]].<ref>{{cite webjournal|url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2017/07/30/the-evolution-of-trust-is-a-cute-explain-o-game-about-cooperation/ |title=The Evolution of Trust is a cute explain-o-game about cooperation |last=Horti |first=Samuel |date=July 3, 2017|websitejournal=Rock, Paper, Shotgun |language=en-US|access-date=January 21, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite webnews |url=http://www.citylab.com/design/2014/12/an-immersive-game-shows-how-easily-segregation-arisesand-how-we-might-fix-it/383586/|title=An Immersive Game Shows How Easily Segregation Arises—and How We Might Fix It |last=Bliss |first=Laura |websitenewspaper=CityLabBloomberg.com |date=December 10, 2014 |language=en|access-date=January 21, 2019}}</ref> The bias is due to the fact that explorable explanations involve a [[Programming language|programmed]] simulation which is required to follow a [[Consistency|consistent]] [[mathematical model]] or [[formal system]]. [[Jonathan Blow]] has argued<ref>{{Citation|last=Glen Chiacchieri|title=Storytime with Jonathan Blow at PAX East 2016|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwBl7Rnkt78&t=1923|access-date=January 21, 2019}}</ref> that this requirement forces subject matter to be dealt with more [[Rigour|rigorously]] than other mediums such as [[speculative fiction]].

Additionally, since the simulation requires a [[Visualization (graphics)|visualization]], there is a certain bias towards subject matter close to [[geometry]]. For example, there are at least three explorable explanations about [[special relativity]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lucify.com/inside-einsteins-head/|website=www.lucify.com|access-date=January 21, 2019|title=Inside Einstein's head - an explorable explanation of relativistic spacetime}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://testtubegames.com/velocityraptor.html|title=Velocity Raptor|website=testtubegames.com|access-date=January 21, 2019}}</ref> including [[A Slower Speed of Light]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://gamelab.mit.edu/games/a-slower-speed-of-light/|title=A Slower Speed of Light|last=Admin|first=Game Lab|website=MIT Game Lab|language=en-US|access-date=March 3, 2019}}</ref>

== Use in media ==

Explorable explanations are increasingly being created by journalists,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://killscreen.com/articles/your-brain-anxiety-interactive-explanation-nicky-case/|title=Your brain on anxiety: an interactive explanation with Nicky Case|last=Joho|first=Jess|date=September 2, 2015|website=Kill Screen|language=en-US|access-date=January 24, 2019}}</ref> sometimes by organisations that formerly focused on [[print news media]]<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/04/02/technology/uber-drivers-psychological-tricks.html,%20https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/04/02/technology/uber-drivers-psychological-tricks.html|title=How Uber Uses Psychological Tricks to Push Its Drivers’Drivers' Buttons|last=Scheiber|first=Noam|date=April 2, 2017|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 21, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/datablog/ng-interactive/2017/sep/28/hooked-how-pokies-are-designed-to-be-addictive|title=Hooked: how pokies are designed to be addictive|lastlast1=Evershed|firstfirst1=Nick|last2=Ball|first2=Andy|website=the Guardian|language=en|access-date=January 21, 2019|last3=Liu|first3=Ri|last4=Davey|first4=Melissa}}</ref> and radio.<ref>{{cite webnews|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2015/05/21/408234543/will-your-job-be-done-by-a-machine|title=Will Your Job Be Done By A Machine?|websitenewspaper=NPR.org|date=May 21, 2015|language=en|access-date=January 21, 2019|last1=Bui|first1=Quoctrung}}</ref> In 2015, [[FiveThirtyEight]] collaborated with [[The Marshall Project]] to produce an article on prison parole assessment<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/prison-reform-risk-assessment/|title=Should Prison Sentences Be Based On Crimes That Haven't Been Committed Yet?|last=Barry-Jester|first=Anna Maria|date=August 4, 2015|website=FiveThirtyEight|language=en-US|access-date=January 24, 2019}}</ref> that included aan explorable explanation of the effects of policy changes on prison populations. The article was cited by the [[Columbia Journalism Review]] as an example of how explorable explanations could be used to advance digital storytelling.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cjr.org/q_and_a/could_explorable_explanations_help_tell_a_new_kind_of_story.php|title=Could 'explorable explanations' help tell a new kind of story?|website=Columbia Journalism Review|language=en|access-date=January 24, 2019}}</ref> [[Newsgame]]s may be considered explorable explanations.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.robinkwong.com/newsgames-list/|title=A list of recent newsgames|website=www.robinkwong.com|date=February 24, 2018 |access-date=April 1, 2019}}</ref>

Other newsrooms such as [[Bloomberg Businessweek]], [[The New York Times]], and [[The Guardian]] are also notable for their use of explorable explanations to tell stories, for example covering topics like climate change, drug overdoses, and economics.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/upshot/buy-rent-calculator.html,%20https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/upshot/buy-rent-calculator.html|title=Is It Better to Rent or Buy?|lastlast1=Bostock|firstfirst1=Mike|date=May 2, 2014|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 24, 2019 |last2=Carter |first2=Shan |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331|last3=Tse|first3=Archie}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/ng-interactive/2015/feb/05/-sp-watch-how-measles-outbreak-spreads-when-kids-get-vaccinated|title=Watch how the measles outbreak spreads when kids get vaccinated – and when they don't|lastlast1=Harris|firstfirst1=Rich|work=The Guardian |access-date=January 25, 2019 |last2=Popovich|first2=Nadja|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077|last3=team|first3=Kenton Powell on the Guardian US interactive |last4=Harris |first4=Rich |last5=Popovich |first5=Nadja |last6=team |first6=Kenton Powell on the Guardian US interactive}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/03/19/upshot/3d-yield-curve-economic-growth.html,%20https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/03/19/upshot/3d-yield-curve-economic-growth.html|title=A 3-D View of a Chart That Predicts The Economic Future: The Yield Curve |lastlast1=Aisch |firstfirst1=Gregor |date=March 1, 2015|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 25, 2019|last2=Cox|first2=Amanda|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{cite webnews|date=2015-06-24|title=What's Really Warming the World?|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2015-whats-warming-the-world/|access-date=2020-10-17|websitenewspaper=Bloomberg Businessweek.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite webnews |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2015-whats-warming-the-world/ |title=Bloomberg – What's Really Warming the World? |last=Roston |first=Eric |date=June 2, 2015|websitenewspaper=www.bloombergBloomberg.com |access-date=January 25, 2019}}</ref> [[FiveThirtyEight]] has also used explorable explanations to cover topics such as gun violence<ref>{{cite web|url=https://theundefeatedandscape.com/features/fivethirtyeight-breaks-down-the-more-than-33000-annual-u-s-gun-deaths/|title=FiveThirtyEight breaks down the more than 33,000 annual U.S. gun deaths|last=Jones|first=Maya A.|date=July 1, 2016|website=The Undefeated[[Andscape]]|language=en-US|access-date=January 25, 2019}}</ref> and [[p hacking]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/science-isnt-broken/ |title=Science Isn't Broken |last=King |first=Ritchie |date=August 1, 2015|website=FiveThirtyEight |language=en-US |access-date=January 25, 2019}}</ref>

==Structure==

[[File:PhETCCKScreenshot.pdf|thumb|Screenshot of a Phet simulation, intended for use in a classroom. Since they do not involve a physically- present teacher to guide the user's interaction, most explorable explanations instead provide guidance using explanatory text.]]

Explorable explanations can differ widely in the kind of "guidance" that they give regarding how to interact with and think about their simulations. In some cases, guidance is intended to come from teachers in a school setting; this is the approach advocated for using [[PhET Interactive Simulations]] created by [[Carl Wieman]], and they have been found to be an effective complement to traditional [[Chalk talk|chalk and talk]] lessons.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://phet.colorado.edu/en/research|title=PhET Interactive Simulations|website=PhET|language=en|access-date=March 3, 2019}}</ref>