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.