Parable of the Polygons

Parable of the Polygons is a playable explainer about how mild individual preferences can reshape a whole community. It uses friendly squares and triangles to make a difficult systems question tangible.

What is Parable of the Polygons?

This is a short interactive lesson with an unusually good sense of scale. You are asked to move simple shapes around, then watch local choices accumulate into a pattern that none of the individual pieces necessarily intended. The cartoon geometry keeps the interaction approachable without making the subject trivial. It is less a game about winning than a chance to feel a social model change under your cursor.

What you can do there

• Move polygon characters
• Explore segregation simulations

Why we picked it

It turns an abstract systems problem into something you can touch. The project trusts a few movable shapes to do more explanatory work than a lecture sometimes can.

How to get the most from it

Read in order and take time with each prompt before moving on. The point is in the changing pattern, so try the interactions rather than treating it like an illustrated article.

Good to know

The creators release the source as public domain. No isolated interaction was captured here, so current controls, accessibility, audio, mobile behavior, and data handling are unverified.

Who made it, and when?

Vi Hart and Nicky Case is the credited creator or organization.