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Fig. 1.4.4 Comparison of primary and secondary sources
1.4.3 Convergence and Divergence
The innovative thinker Donald Campbell first put forward
the idea that bringing together multiple perspectives could
reveal new truths. He called this method "triangulation", using
the analogy of different viewpoints coming together to map out
a shape. When we only look from one angle, we are limited by
that narrow viewpoint. But adding a second perspective from
a different position can open up a new understanding where
Combining the views intersect. This combination of different angles is
multiple like a guiding light, illuminating connections we couldn't see
perspectives before. It reflects an important philosophical truth - that there
is often an underlying unity beneath surface differences. By
linking up fields and combining approaches, we make new
connections between ideas that we missed. Through this
integration, our knowledge changes from fragmented to
holistic, from short-sighted to big-picture. When we stick to
one approach, our grasp of complex things is restricted to
the single note it sounds. But by taking another viewpoint,
a second melody joins the first, enriching the sound. Now
systems become multidimensional, granting clearer insight.
Thus the power of triangulation resides in gathering
isolated rays of insight and concentrating their radiance into
Integrating a unified beam, illuminating realms previously shrouded in
different darkness. It summons experts across diverse fields to unite
disciplines their perspectival prisms and refract reality's light through
an integrated lens. When biotechnology merges with ethics,
cultural studies with hard science, synthetic biology with the
humanities - novel hybrid vistas undulate across disciplines,
yielding revelations no solitary structure of thought could
84 SGOU - SLM - Foundational Skills for Research and Writing