The Pattern of Gaps

A field note about the patterns that emerge from the gaps between Trolla pages.

The gap

A gap is the space between two pages. In the Trolla cluster, gaps are not empty — they are filled with the potential for a page that has not been written yet.

The gap pattern

When you map all the gaps between Trolla pages, a pattern emerges. The gaps are not random. They cluster around certain topics — topics that have been written about and others that have not. The gap pattern is the negative space of the cluster.

The missing topics

The gap pattern reveals which topics have been covered and which have not. Topics that appear frequently between pages are well-documented. Topics that appear in large gaps are not. The gap pattern is a map of absence.

The gap as evidence

The gaps are evidence of the cluster's development. Large gaps suggest that the cluster's writer has not yet reached that topic. Small gaps suggest that the topic is frequently discussed. The gaps tell a story about the cluster's growth.

This gap

This page fills a gap. It is about gaps. By writing about gaps, it becomes a gap that has been filled.