How we use Abstraction for Solving Problems

Probably the single-most important capability your brain possesses is that of abstraction.  It is the ability to identify particular features of something to enable you to create a concept that groups all similar abstractions.

Without it you would not be able to think.   Take bones, for example.  There must be a zillion different kinds of bones in the world, all different shapes and sizes.  But when you pick one up you know it’s a bone- you may not know what kind of bone, but it’s a bone.  Your brain is able to look at a collection of different objects- such as bones, and note their characteristics and define their essential nature.  If you could not do that, all bones would be unique, and have no connection to any other bone; they would be completely different objects.

Think of it this way, without the power of abstraction, if I said to you ‘imagine –a  bone’, you would not be able to do it.  That’s how important it is.  It enables us to think about objects and ideas.

It is also a powerful tool for dealing with problems.  Without some degree of abstraction, every problem is unique, with a unique solution.  But if you could make it similar to another problem, or see ways in which it might be similar to another problem, finding a solution is going to be easier. 

The greater the level of abstraction, the simpler the problem becomes and the greater the number of potential solutions may present themselves.

The Gordian knot was famous for its intractability - no-one could untie it.  Alexander the Great did not see it in the same way as everybody else; he saw it as a metaphor, so he was able to come up with a simple and original solution.

Sometimes, solving difficult problems is all in the seeing.