[CONCEPT] Living Computation - Social Computation - Steemit
The conclusion? Living systems are computational systems
And this should put into greater context the concept of Steemit as a Social Computation Game rather than just a "Social Media" platform. Steemit can actually compute using it's swarm intelligence in the form of collaborative filtering upvoting. In the experimental sense of the word, this ability to compute is what makes Steemit most intriguing.
Steemit needs to implement different forms of human computation
In some of my other posts I discussed with @craig-grant and @ned the topic of reward capping. I still do not support reward capping but to move on from that as now I expect a trial, I will offer my deeper and philosophical suggestion, that Steemit if it is seen as a Social Computation Game rather than a mere Social Media Platform, then the incentives in my opinion should be moved so that the playing styles and roles can be more diverse.
Yes, bloggers have to blog, curators have to curate, but there could be roles for people who want a more stead stream of rewards and I think human computation could fill that void long term. Subjective Proof of Work is only one example of a kind of human computation within a Social Computation Game, and many other examples are possible.
The only issue I have is when rewards are cut in a way which removes entire opportunity paths. In essence it becomes a road block and with nothing to replace it, the game becomes less fun for certain people who feel held back. The better solution in my opinion is to continue to open new opportunity paths when incentives are moved. So if they are going to do this reward cap trial, why not also at the same time activate the referral system, or perhaps something else for people to do who have the time and brain power?
What if Steemit can't currently open more doors or opportunity paths?
This would be a problem but not in the short term. In the short term, Steemit has limited or perhaps no competition. In the long term there is Synereo which is using a composable system design which means they will be able to implement and reward all forms of human computation from launch. The point is, for certain kinds of tasks you can have a fixed rate per task, for certain kinds it's subjective, for certain kinds it could be based on time, and a variety of these microtasks is the only way to satisfy everyone.
If we look at games we see there isn't just one way to play. There are usually different character types and playing styles. Depending on the character type you pick, it opens up different opportunity paths. The point is it doesn't get boring, and in an RPG some players might never hunt monsters and simply do blacksmithing or crafting, and still have fun. The variety of activities is what keeps it from being a situation where developers have to choose to take away fun from one group to give it to another group.
I like your idea of opening up more ways for people to get rewarded on Steemit. The more diverse the opportunities for reward, the greater range of people that will be attracted to the platform and ultimately the greater value the platform will have.
If you think of it as social computation, then yes as the diversity and novelty of the computation increases, it may have a positive impact Steemit. If Steemit is a game, positive impact could be measured in how fun it is, and this could be measured by looking at engagement statistics to track stickiness. If it's a social computer then you would look at the value of the computations produced, how high quality is the curation, and how interesting is the content?
If Steemit is a social computer which resembled a game, it might just work. If it's another social media platform, there are already a lot of these.
@dana-edwards Even though I haven't earned a massive amount from any one post ($359 is my record) I am always hopeful that one day with enough time and effort I might get that one big post.
Don't get me wrong I am loving steemit and will continue posting my stories regardless, however introducing a cap on earnings would diminish the ability for some to participate on steemit as regularly as they have been - especially if they rely on that one big post every now and then to make steemit their full time job and income.
Not only this but I believe some of the bigger earners on here may be seriously disincentivised to participate as much they have been or at all.
I do believe you are right in suggesting other opportunities for members of the community to participate and guaranteed rewards for their efforts, this could in turn ensure people participate and may even encourage new people to join.
I know I would love to supplement my posts with some extra funds on the side. It would give me the freedom to focus on my writing and put work out at my own pace rather than rushing them out in the hopes of a potential return. By the way there's a typo in the post the y is missing in steady :)
Dave Ackley is a very smooth presenter, and I love how he broke the 4th wall slideshow conceit in the second video. I presume he had a monitor off at 90 degrees to direct his gaze in register with ours as we watch. Thanks for introducing me to his work, @dana-edwards.
You would enjoy the work going on at NSF's BEACON Center for the Study of Evolution in Action. They developed the artificial life platform Avida, among other things. https://www3.beacon-center.org
World of Steemcraft? ;)