MIT economist César Hidalgo in his book Why Information Grows describes how physical products, which he calls “crystals of imagination,” allow us to turn what we know into concrete objects that other people can access: “Crystallizing our thoughts into tangible and digital objects is what allows us to share our thoughts with others.” And elsewhere: “Our ability to crystallize imagination… gives us access to the practical uses of the knowledge and knowhow residing in the nervous systems of other people.”
