Cognitive Scaffold

Preparing your thinking workspace

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MENTAL MODEL · M10945

Matter-Element Analysis

Matter-Element Analysis
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Updated 2026-08-22

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INTRODUCTION

English translation pending.

CORE DEFINITION

The core tool of Extenics, developed by Cai Wen in the 1980s. A matter-element is written as R equals the triple of N, c, and v, where N is the thing, c a feature, and v the value of that feature. Problems of contradiction are represented as sets of such triples, and resolution proceeds by applying extension transformations such as substitution, addition, deletion, or scaling, followed by evaluation of the resulting elements. The qualification is that its purpose is problem solving through transformation, not mere classification of things.

SCAFFOLDING EFFECT

psychology

Reduce cognitive load

- Problem formalization: restate a messy problem as explicit name, feature, and value triples. - Contradiction spot: check where two separate requirements demand incompatible values of the same feature. - Transform search: apply substitution, addition, or scaling to generate fresh candidate resolutions for evaluation.

anchor

Anchor fast decisions

Writing a problem as explicit triples makes the incompatible values visible, so the conflict can be attacked directly instead of argued about in prose. Extension transformations then move the problem into a space where the values become compatible, and evaluation filters the generated candidates, turning an intractable qualitative conflict into a search over structured alternatives.

MINIMUM ACTION

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Source support: Explicit

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