Stickiness

Pomelos: Using Schemas to Aid in Explanation

  • explain what a pomelo is in 2 ways:
    1. A pomelo is the largest citrus fruit. The rind is very thick but soft and easy to peel away. The resulting fruit has a light yellow to coral pink flesh and can vary from juicy to slightly dry and from seductively spicy- sweet to tangy and tart
    2. A pomelo is basically a super sized grapefruit with a very thick and soft rind
    • which do you know more about?
    • the second explanation is stickier because we have used our existing grapefruit schema to help understand a new concept
    • this is analogous to object-oriented programming, in the sense that a grapefruit inherit certain properties, such as tanginess, citrus, acidic etc. When we say something is like a grapefruit, then that object we are describing inherits all of these properties, plus all of the ones that we specify afterwards. (Ex. It is like uber for hotels)

  • the most basic way to get someone's attention is to break a pattern

    • humans adapt quickly to consistent patterns. Consistent and predictable patterns cause us to tune out
  • Percentages are easier to understand than big numbers

  • Use intuitive concepts when possible

    • ex. "...costs as much as a b-2 bomber" is not as relatable as "...costs as much as one soft drink per month"

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