Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 18, 2026

Evidence-based Knowledge Synthesis and Hypothesis Validation: Navigating Biomedical Knowledge Bases via Explainable AI and Agentic Systems
Published on: June 13, 2025
Searching for evidence
1Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA. eedelstein@ucsd.edu
Purpose:
There is a clear call for a single-source knowledge base linking literature on architecture and human outcomes. However, this seemingly simple need relies upon a vast source of information from multiple disciplines, each with their own vocabulary, structures, and modes of disciplinary thought.
Background:
The "Information Age" provides an abundance of research from the sciences as well as the humanities. Despite unprecedented access via public and licensed databases, searching across knowledge repositories remains a labor-intensive and skilled task. It therefore behooves the design profession to collaborate with experts in research, and to seek new skills for searching, interpreting, and applying evidence to design.
Methods:
The pattern of database usage by 71 professionals involved with evidence-based design in healthcare facilities was studied. Respondents represented a range of interests including healthcare practitioners and executives, researchers, and design professionals.
Findings:
Survey analysis revealed that a large number of information repositories are used (45), though few sources were used in common among the respondents.
Related Concept Videos
The Evidence for Evolution
Confirmation Biases
Archival Research
Eyewitness Memory
One such error is memory distortion, which occurs because human memory does not function like a...
Statistical Significance
Case Studies
