I’m beginning to feel that constrained universes of expression sounds silly and, I don’t know, pretentious – but it was the first thing that came to my mind, so I’ll keep calling it that until I can think of a better term.

I mentioned yo-yo playing as an example of such a universe: what you can do with a yo-yo is pretty limited, but because of this people keep trying to invent new things. The fact that the possibilities aren’t endless seems important.

I also mentioned Go in my aborted post, but it’s not a good example. Today I thought about haikus and limericks, two strict formats for expression. Now, in the case of haikus, the strict 5–7–5 syllable format seems to me to be more of a guide for beginning writers; what’s important is the mood or tone, not adhering to the format. But I believe that this constraint is an important factor in the popularity of haiku writing. The limericks format, I guess, is something you had better stick to if you hope for success as a limerick writer.

In the case of haikus and limericks, on the one hand these constraints pose a challenge – you need to be a little clever to make it work in this format – while on the other hand they somehow liberate the writer – they make it so you can focus on the content and not the form. In the case of yo-yos, the constrained nature obviously is why it’s challenging. But I’m not sure whether they are liberating.

I thought about yo-yo playing and about sports in general, and how you can see them as spaces in which people collectively are exploring the possibilities of each space, by means of competition. Sports are constrained spaces where, once in a while, breakthroughs happen – such as in the case of Dick Fosbury – after which the constraints are redefined.

There seems to be lots of things that can be viewed as constrained universes of expression. I’m also thinking about software projects as such universes. But it’s a little different: it’s perhaps not as important to push the boundaries of the universe of the software project. Rather, it’s about uniting the team and exploring the space. In sports, the constraints are redefined as there are breakthroughs; perhaps in software projects, things are redefined as the team gains a better understanding of its universe.

In response to my Dogme post the other day, Matt Jones wrote to say that perhaps The Structure of Scientific Revolutions says something about how new genres cause bursts of productivity. It probably is very relevant here as well; I’ll have to read it soon.