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Problem Genome Project

Patterns Perspectives Collection About

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© 2026

Problem Genome Project—N+A Labs at Dartmouth

Patterns

Different problems, same shape

When you tag 500 unsolved problems with structural DNA, clusters emerge: groups of problems from completely different fields that share the same underlying shape. A sensor failing in a Brazilian pasture and a sensor failing on an ocean buoy. A regulation blocking digital therapeutics and a regulation blocking recycled plastics. These 16 patterns are the repeating failures no single field can see on its own.

16clusters

277problems

19domains

57bridge problems

Sort:

C01★★★ · 55 problems · 17 domains · IB 1%

It Worked in the Lab

Lab-to-Field Sensor Deployment Gap

technicallab-to-field-gapsensing

C02★★ · 25 problems · 15 domains · IB 2%

The Model Was Never Trained on This

Data-Constrained Predictive Models Failing at Extremes

dataignored-contextalgorithm

C03★★ · 23 problems · 15 domains · IB 48%

The Solution Exists but Nobody Can Afford It

Proven Technology Blocked by Unviable Economics

economicunviable-economicscost-reduction

C04★★★ · 27 problems · 15 domains

Making One Is Easy. Making a Million Is the Problem

Manufacturing Scale-Up Barriers

manufacturinglab-to-field-gapprocess

C05★★ · 17 problems · 10 domains

The Answer Is in a Field You’ve Never Heard Of

Disciplinary Silos Blocking Convergent Research

disciplinary-siloknowledge-integrationalgorithm

C06★★ · 22 problems · 13 domains · IB 8%

Designed for a World That Doesn’t Exist Here

Low-Resource Context Deployment Failures

economicignored-contextcost-reduction

C07★★★ · 13 problems · 11 domains · IB 62%

The Data Exists but Can’t Talk to Itself

Data Interoperability Across Organizational Boundaries

datadata-integration

C08★★ · 10 problems · 7 domains · IB 80%

Built to Be Open. Now Under Attack

Critical Infrastructure OT/Cyber-Physical Security Gap

technicalignored-contextsensing

C09★★ · 17 problems · 10 domains · IB 31%

The Regulator Demands Evidence That Cannot Exist

Regulatory-Evidence Mismatch in Emerging Technologies

regulatorydataregulatory-mismatch

C10★★★ · 33 problems · 15 domains · IB 84%

The Rulebook Was Written for a World That No Longer Exists

Standards/Codes Void for Emerging Technologies

regulatoryregulatory-mismatchpolicy

C11★★★ · 13 problems · 7 domains · IB 5%

Designed for the Wrong Person

Wrong-Stakeholder Design Failures Across Equity Contexts

wrong-stakeholderequitybehavior-change

C12★★★ · 11 problems · 9 domains · IB 42%

We Can See the Danger but the System Won’t Act

Safety Investigation Regulatory Gap

regulatoryignored-contextsensing

C13★ · 10 problems · 10 domains

The Theory Hasn’t Been Invented Yet

Frontier Science Convergence

disciplinary-silotheoretical-gapknowledge-integration

C14★★★ · 28 problems · 12 domains

The Context You Didn’t Design For

Behavioral-Infrastructure Context Failure

infrastructureignored-contextwrong-stakeholder

C15★★★ · 10 problems · 8 domains · IB 10%

The Infrastructure That Generates Bad Science

Research Infrastructure Integrity

unrepresentative-dataprocessdata

C16★★★ · 16 problems · 6 domains · IB 7%

The Chemistry Itself Changes at Scale

Process Chemistry Scale-Up

technicallab-to-field-gapprocess

Cluster Growth

How clusters evolved from v3 to v6

Each bar shows the number of curated members at each taxonomy version. C15 and C16 were promoted in v6.

10

25

43

55

55

10

18

22

25

25

10

17

22

23

23

9

18

24

27

27

6

15

16

17

17

11

17

21

22

22

5

13

8

13

13

3

5

7

10

10

7

14

16

17

17

7

24

32

33

33

6

7

7

13

13

8

10

11

11

8

8

10

10

22

28

28

10

10

16

16

v3/v4

v5

v6

Galaxy Groupings

Complementary cluster patterns

Clusters group into four galaxies based on structural affinity. Some clusters appear in multiple galaxies — marked with ◆.

Galaxy A

The Human Clusters

Equity-Behavioral

Human-centered problem clusters with near-zero installed-base. Interventions designed for the wrong person or context.

Galaxy B

The Rulebook Clusters

Regulatory-Policy

Regulatory clusters with the highest installed-base prevalence. Standards, safety codes, and evidence requirements lag deployed technology.

C09 C10◆C12◆

Galaxy C

The Knowledge Frontier

Frontier Science

Disciplinary integration clusters with zero installed-base. Knowledge exists in separate fields that don't communicate.

Galaxy D

Success Creates Failure

Success-Caused

Cross-cutting pattern: prior success creates the conditions for current failure. Distributes primarily into regulatory clusters.

Unaffiliated

Structurally distinct clusters not yet grouped into a galaxy

C01 C02 C03 C04 C06 C07 C08 C15 C16

Bridge Problems

Problems that live in multiple clusters

8 problems appear in 3 clusters and 49 problems appear in 2 clusters — evidence that the genome's structural patterns are deeply interconnected.

No Affordable Field Test Distinguishes Substandard Medicines at Point of Dispensing

Lab-to-Field Sensor Deployment GapLow-Resource Context Deployment FailuresBehavioral-Infrastructure Context Failure

We Cannot Predict Whether Organisms Will Adapt or Collapse Under Climate Change

Data-Constrained Predictive Models Failing at ExtremesDisciplinary Silos Blocking Convergent ResearchFrontier Science Convergence

Engineered Biological Systems That Work in Flasks Fail Unpredictably at Bioreactor Scale

Data-Constrained Predictive Models Failing at ExtremesManufacturing Scale-Up BarriersProcess Chemistry Scale-Up

Cultivated Meat Cannot Be Produced at Food-Industry Scale or Cost Using Mammalian Cell Culture

Proven Technology Blocked by Unviable EconomicsManufacturing Scale-Up BarriersProcess Chemistry Scale-Up

Precision Fermentation Proteins Cost Too Much to Purify for Food-Industry Margins

Proven Technology Blocked by Unviable EconomicsManufacturing Scale-Up BarriersProcess Chemistry Scale-Up

90% of Women in Low-Income Countries Have Never Been Screened for Cervical Cancer Because Screening Was Designed Around the Clinician, Not the Woman

Low-Resource Context Deployment FailuresWrong-Stakeholder Design Failures Across Equity ContextsBehavioral-Infrastructure Context Failure

Natural Gas Pipeline Leak Detection and Automated Shutoff

Critical Infrastructure OT/Cyber-Physical Security GapStandards/Codes Void for Emerging TechnologiesSafety Investigation Regulatory Gap

Rail Wayside Bearing Detection and Hazmat Tank Car Crashworthiness

Critical Infrastructure OT/Cyber-Physical Security GapStandards/Codes Void for Emerging TechnologiesSafety Investigation Regulatory Gap

Field-Deployable Detection of Waterborne Pathogens Remains Too Slow and Complex for Low-Resource Settings

Lab-to-Field Sensor Deployment GapLow-Resource Context Deployment Failures

Optical Fiber Ocean Sensors Can't Survive the Transition from Lab to Sea

Lab-to-Field Sensor Deployment GapManufacturing Scale-Up Barriers

Monitoring and Verification of Ocean-Based Carbon Dioxide Removal

Lab-to-Field Sensor Deployment GapProcess Chemistry Scale-Up

Tuberculosis Point-of-Care Diagnostics Cannot Reach the Patients Who Need Them Most Because They Depend on Sputum

Lab-to-Field Sensor Deployment GapBehavioral-Infrastructure Context Failure

+ 45 more bridge problems