Proposal: Add a new category for 'Philosophy'

Administrivia
#1

As we all know quite well, Ethereum is more than just a technology stack. It is a whole new paradigm of thought, and cultivating the Ethereum Community is to bring together like-minded people whole values align with that of the collective Ethereum community.

It would thus be relevant to explore questions and spark discussions on these values which are deeply embedded in the crypto and more specifically the Ethereum space, so that newcomers and long standing experts alike can explore this ‘infinite garden’ to greater depths.

15 Likes
#2

Governance section go brrr

Will this section allow questions regarding governance of ethereum? Both technical questions (example: what gaslimit to set) as well as questions of soft power (example: who gets to pick the gaslimit).

2 Likes
#5

Although I agreed that Ethereum is more than a technology stack, it’s important for Ethresear.ch to stay being a technology-focused forum with minimal distractions.

I believe it’s more appropriate to discuss philosophy and governance topics on the Ethereum Magicians forum or r/ethereum.

12 Likes
#6

Not just ethereum, we should say that blockchain is a model for thinking and collaborative building. When developing any blockchain product, it actually has great differences from internet products. Agree with adding additional discussion section to form a unique design atmosphere for blockchain developers.

1 Like
#8

Totally agree.

There’s anthropology, culture, game theory, spirituality and history. All of which is important to understand to really understand the blockchain.

#9

I like this. This would be a good place to discuss the meta mission and priorities of Ethereum and blockchain in general.

I find it stunning how often big agendas are pushed in this world without people ever taking the time to agree what they are trying to achieve with it. This is dangerous, people can wrongly assume that other members of society have a shared understanding, which then causes unexpected friction later. Or people do random stuff that “sounds good” without reflecting on the Why.

Somewhat controversial example, but let’s take climate change. The accepted opinion is that ESG is great and that climate change needs to be avoided/stopped at all cost. I don’t disagree, but I also don’t agree. I just can’t know.

Why? I don’t see that our world leaders have ever taken the time to discuss the more important, bigger picture questions like “where do we actually want to be as a race in XXXX years from now?”. How can we have decided that climate change is bad if we have never discussed what we are trying to achieve? How much we want to grow? If we even want to stay on this planet? Etc.

The thinking stops before enough steps have been made and it can lead us in the wrong direction.

Anyway, just a random example.

#11

Agreed, there’s’ other outlets for the Philosohical discussions of blockchain, how future power struggles will play out as scarcity increases and countries and individuals are late to the game, as well as where lines in the same will be drawn both socially. Definitely a topic for a more meta thread.