Drawing on the Tower of Babel myth and Fred Brooks's The Mythical Man-Month, this piece explores how implementation complexity grows faster than team size or effort. Key themes include the O(N²) cost of team communication, Kolmogorov complexity as a measure of task description overhead, and the hidden dangers lurking in internal project interfaces. The author uses the NEMA 5-15 electrical outlet as a concrete example of how even seemingly simple interfaces carry layers of unstated assumptions and standards. Three strategies for managing internal interfaces are examined: formal specifications, gray-box cross-team awareness, and relying on common assumptions — each with its own pitfalls. The concept of 'farsourcing' (psychological distance between teams) and the importance of documenting assumptions are highlighted as practical tools for keeping gremlins at bay.
