The Conway Heuristic

If you have not read Polya's "How to Solve It", [1], and have an interest in heuristic approaches to problem solving then I'd recommend it.

There are many heuristic approaches to problem solving that you probably use without realising it. The book may just help spot and discover new problem solving heuristics in the wild, [2].

It was whilst reading a version of Polya's book, with a forward by John Conway, that I read this passage:

It is a paradoxical truth that to teach mathematics well, one must also know how to misunderstand it at least to the extent one’s students do! If a teacher’s statement can be parsed in two or more ways, it goes without saying that some students will understand it one way and others another, with results that can vary from the hilarious to the tragic.

This has a clear application (to my mind) to testing. Think of specifications, requirements or any type of communication. We are generally very good at imprecise language so the risk for miscommunication, misunderstanding, hidden assumptions remaining hidden or unsynchronised priorities is real. I'm sure we all have our favourite misunderstanding war stories.

In about 2012, [3], I re-stated this paragraph specifically for communication as:-

I called it the Conway Heuristic. It's something I use from time to time - to remind me that there might be a loose agreement or understanding - or a shallow agreement. I tend to think of this when there are weasel words or phrases about. For example, saying something is "tested" - which can be interpreted as fault-free, where in fact there may be several issues remaining.

This is a heuristic for a couple of reasons: (1) it's a guide, and not fool-proof; (2) it's impossible to think of all the ways something would be misinterpreted. So, this is like a useful check question, "is there or could there be a problem here?" If it helps remove the big mistakes then it's done its job.

So, anywhere where there are context-free questions or context-free reporting - or really, generalised or context-free communication, then keep this heuristic in mind. There be dragons....

References
[1] How to Solve It: A New Aspect of Mathematical Method; Polya
[2] On Thinking about Heuristic Discovery
[3] Testing Lessons from The Rolling Stones