---
title: C- Incrementally processing notes is a key user behavior to promote synthesis
enableToc: false
tags:
- claim
---
Authored By:: [[P- Rob Haisfield]], [[P- Brendan Langen]]

This claim is a response to [[Q- What workflows and behaviors facilitate synthesis]].

The thought behind this claim is that [[C- People are lazy]] and needing to process 6 months worth of research at once is more difficult than processing 1 month worth of information 6 times. As we use it here, the word processing refers to the act of going through old information and sorting it, either into new groups, by importance, or by stage in some pipeline. [[Q- What friction underlies the act of processing notes]]? 

[[C- Synthesis is supported by Active Reading]], and one method of active reading is the act of [progressive summarization](https://fortelabs.co/blog/progressive-summarization-a-practical-technique-for-designing-discoverable-notes/) (as coined by [[P- Tiago Forte]]). 

Tools like [[Readwise|Readwise]], [[LiquidText]], and [[Hypothesis]] promote this act within their via annotations, highlighting, and focused views to gradually process notes. This is an area where [[C- It will be important to capture the potential energy of information consumption]], as other individuals can help process notes while they are reading.

Tools alone do not enable incremental processing, though. This has led the PKM community to reference routines and [algorithms for thought](https://www.cortexfutura.com/getting-started-algorithms-of-thought/) in order to turn ideas into synthesized knowledge. [[C- Multiplicity facilitates synthesis]].

Many people will [[C- Apply progressive summarization to your own notes|progressively summarize their own notes]]. [[C- People process complex information in multiple levels and stages of processing]].