Lesson 176: Subtle Evidence

Answer: D. By the pattern of the information.

Again, the key to strategy is knowing how to use information. Sun Tzu teaches that to use information, we must be sensitive to details. In some situations, we don’t even need direct evidence to get information about what is happening. Properly analyzing information is often a matter of forensics, noticing specific details that go together to create a meaningful picture.

We can think of dust as the tiny disturbances that arise from the actions of our opponents. Dust particles are the seemingly meaningless rumors or mere indications of the opponent’s presence here and there. Sun Tzu’s point is that the information itself doesn’t have to make any sense. We can glean a great deal merely from the pattern of dust.

Where do these bits of information come from? Are they coming directly from a few people? Are they the top people or people lower down? Are they coming broadly from everywhere? The sources tell us where and how broadly the competition is working. Is competitive activity increasing or is it dying down? This change in pattern reveals a change in activity.

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