Cognitive Scaffold

Preparing your thinking workspace

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MENTAL MODEL · M0983

KISS Principle

KISS Principle
SystemsHigh supportSystems Theory
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Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-30

CORE DEFINITION

Keep It Simple, Stupid. Systems work best when designed simply; complexity is the enemy of reliability.

SCAFFOLDING EFFECT

psychology

Reduce cognitive load

- Engineering version of Occam's razor: don't use complex techniques just because you can. If Excel can solve the problem, don't write Python. If one sentence can clarify, don't write a document.

anchor

Anchor fast decisions

"Keep It Simple, Stupid" — systems work best when designed simply; complexity is the enemy of reliability. The mechanism is the engineering version of Occam's razor: prioritize the simplest solution that works, avoid unnecessary complexity for show, because complexity brings more failure points and maintenance costs.

MINIMUM ACTION

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Source support: Explicit

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    en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KISS_principleZH · Explicit
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