I wonder how many people on Steemit understand all the above in your article.

I did not understand much. All I know is that I pay in STEEM and in return am rewarded in STEEM and SP (and if I change STEEM to SP I get one for one, so I presume they have the same value.

A recent example (today):

For a post I paid Steem 0.650
I had returned 0.181
So it cost me Steem 0.469
I was paid Steem 0.099 and SP 0.099 giving me a total of 0.18 return for the 0.469 I paid.

However anyone theorises the situation, all I know is that I threw away Steem and am worse off for buying from Smartmarket.

If I am wrong...I sure would like to know where I am wrong, what mistake I am making.