Meaning of problem space | Babel Free

Definitions

A mental representation of a particular problem, including initial, final, and possible intermediate states, and often when visualized as if it were a physical space.

Equivalents

Examples

“Entrepreneurs, scientists, and inventors all make⟳ calculated bets on what levels of technological advances they predict⟳ in the near future, even if they cannot know⟳ exactly how far they will need⟳ to venture into uncharted regions of the problem space. The best way to discover⟳ promising problems is to work⟳ with people who are actively pushing at the frontier. The advantage of working at firms, research⟳ labs, or in groups of people who are making new contributions is that you can get⟳ strong hints as to which aspects of the problem space are ripe for exploration and which are unlikely to immediately yield⟳ fruit. […] Takeaway #3: Explore⟳ the Problem Space, One Room at a Time. To explain⟳ how he approaches mathematics, [Andrew] Wiles draws an instructive analogy: "I could best describe⟳ my experience⟳ of doing mathematics in terms of entering a dark mansion. One goes into the first room, and it's dark, completely dark. One stumbles around bumping into the furniture, and gradually, you learn⟳ where each piece of furniture is, and finally, after six months or so, you find⟳ the light⟳ switch⟳. You turn⟳ it on, and suddenly, it's all illuminated. You can see⟳ exactly where you were." As we'll discuss⟳ in more detail in the next chapter, when we have⟳ no one we can learn⟳ from and must find⟳ our way in an unfamiliar problem space, it helps to first explore⟳ the space rather than solve⟳ problems. Approaching an unfamiliar branch of mathematics, Wiles not only equipped himself with mathematical tools discovered by others, but spent considerable time applying them until they became a familiar part of his repertoire. Exploring the problem space can proceed by trying things out and observing what happens, without deliberately trying to reach⟳ particular goals.”

CEFR level