Retrofuturism: The Unmeasurable Forces of the Universe

June 4, 2025

Eli Kuslansky

There are many things in the universe that are measurable—time, distance, mass, temperature, velocity, even a project’s profitability. And, of course, the time it takes to count the tiles on the ceiling while Uncle Ruddy launches into one of his “when I was your age” stories.

But while much in the universe is measurable, some of the most powerful forces are not. As design professionals, this matters deeply. Because although our work often relies on metrics, innovative design sometimes depends on what we can’t measure. I call these The Unmeasurable Forces of the Universe.

These forces fall into two domains: the scientific and the anecdotal.

Scientific Forces That We Cannot Measure

These concepts are unmeasurable because they either lie beyond current technological capabilities or exist in realms we can’t yet perceive:

• Dark Energy – Thought to make up about 68% of the universe. Still a mystery.
• Quantum Entanglement – What Einstein called “spooky action at a distance.”
• Consciousness – A fundamental and mysterious part of human experience.
• Singularity – The point at which gravity becomes infinite.
• The Origin of the Universe – Still unknown.
• The Nature of Time – Not fully understood.
  

Anecdotal Forces That Fuel Creativity

More relevant to design practice are the anecdotal forces—those abstract, subjective, and personal phenomena that drive discovery and innovation. These include:

• The Power of Inversion
• The Power of Serendipity
• The Power of Reframing
  

Let’s explore.

The Power of Inversion – The Simplicity of Flipping

Sometimes a problem can be solved simply by looking at it from the opposite direction.

Take the discovery of DNA’s double helix. Francis Crick and James Watson were stuck. Despite endless attempts, their model wasn’t working—until they saw Rosalind Franklin’s X-ray crystallography image, known as Photo 51. That visual insight prompted them to invert their approach, and suddenly everything clicked. While Crick and Watson made history, Franklin’s essential contribution remains underappreciated.

Inversion is the act of flipping the frame, revealing assumptions and unlocking hidden solutions.

The Power of Serendipity – From a Streetlight to the Atom Bomb

In 1933, Hungarian physicist Leo Szilard was frustrated. He had just left a lecture where Ernest Rutherford dismissed the potential of atomic energy. As Szilard stepped into the street—right as the traffic light changed—he had an epiphany: the concept of a nuclear chain reaction. That single moment eventually led to the Manhattan Project.

Serendipity is more than luck—it’s a mindset that embraces the unexpected. It rewards openness, curiosity, and flexibility.

The Power of Reframing – How You Say It Matters

Barry Bonds holds the record for home runs (762), but he also struck out 1,539 times. That’s twice as many misses as hits. Still, he kept swinging.

Failure, in design and in life, is often framed as weakness. But reframing transforms it into wisdom.

Thomas Edison, who tested thousands of versions of the lightbulb, famously said: “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”

Reframing allows us to view setbacks not as endpoints, but as necessary steps toward resilience, creativity, and growth.

If these forces resonate with your practice, I encourage you to reflect on how they show up in your work. And maybe give Uncle Ruddy a little more patience—there may be some cosmic insight buried in those long-winded stories, after all.

References:
Watson and Crick describe structure of DNA
1953

Discovery of DNA Structure and Function: Watson and Crick

Szilard and the Idea of a new bomb