Thanks for dropping by, I don't expect too much action on this one :)

It’s hard to tell if they are simply weeding out the lower effort people who have stopped trying to contribute, or if the weeks of constant decline in the number submitted is an indicator of other things going on.

I think it is a bit of both of the above. The standard does need to go up to gain credibility.

That bug-hunting upswing is rather interesting. Are people simply finding where they can contribute in a meaningful way that gets them approved in this market or was this week just a bug filled week.

The first one :) The 'easiest' most exploitable category at present, in my opinion :D

Video –tutorials. Had such a nice approval rating. While it’s a shame it’s a new low it makes you wonder for those that are active in that category have finally honed their skill to produce quality content.

In the past there were 100s of these submitted each week. Low quality, too much overlap. Rules were changed and now I assume that all of these are of a very good standard.

Once in a while I’ll run into these analysis post and you can really tell that ones you expect to be accepted and the ones that get rejected. Some seem to understand what is being ask of them and others seem to still be struggling to find the kind of quality and effort that is being looked for.

Very much so. It's becoming more of a niche contribution area, but personally I don't mind this. The quality has to be of a good level as the project moves forward, you never know who is looking in :)

Thanks for the comments - one of the best I've has on a utopian post!