Content Architecture

We shape our tools and thereafter our tools shape us. — Marshall McLuhan

Preamble #

This document defines the primary organizational units of the Effusion Labs digital garden. It
supersedes any prior "pipeline" models. The following architecture is not a rigid, linear hierarchy
but a flatter, more stable structure that categorizes artifacts by their function and form.

I. Analyses #

Analyses are deep, evidence-driven investigations into external subjects. They are the signature
longform artifacts of the garden. This category is for substantive, research-heavy work that applies
the project's analytical lens to a specific case study, system, or phenomenon.

II. Frameworks #

Frameworks are abstract, theoretical models and conceptual schemas. These are the tools for
thinking. An artifact in this category proposes or defines a new lens, model, or set of principles
that can be used to understand other subjects.

III. Projects #

Projects are interfaces, prototypes, finalized reports, and interactive builds. These are the
tangible, often functional, outputs of research and development. This category is for artifacts that
a user can directly interact with or that represent the culmination of a data-driven process.

IV. Archives #

Archives contain raw data, collections, field reports, and provenance logs. This section serves
as the evidentiary foundation for the garden. It houses the datasets, source materials, and
observational records that inform the work in other sections.

V. Meta #

Meta is the set of documents that define the Effusion Labs project itself. It contains the
protocols, style guides, and philosophical frameworks that govern the operation of the entire
system. These documents are self-referential and provide the structural blueprint for the garden.