The knowledge synthesizer: A companion technology for urban innovation and data integration

The paper presents a novel digital tool – the “Knowledge Synthesizer” – that converges research knowledge in the context of sustainable urban development, and generates insights about relevant future trends in the field. Conceived and implemented for the large-scale research program “Sustainable Development of Urban Regions” (SURE), the prototype tool organizes knowledge created by roughly 400 persons who are active in 147 involved institutions. Throughout the history of science, various attempts have been made to design synthetic devices to integrate large bodies of knowledge and generate new intelligence. Inspired by such historical concepts, and informed by an inquiry into the epistemological nature of knowledge generation, the paper outlines the design and functionality of the digital prototype, its general components and first test applications in the context of SURE.