I was considering how attention is the primary form of value in a network. For instance, content is secondary to attention, since, without attention, there is no perception of content to begin with. a la. "If a tree falls in the forest".
As we know from the twisted wreckage of all preceding media systems, the presence of content alone does not predict attention.
So, I'm wondering a few things that I would genuinely appreciate answers to.
How do you spend your attention? What motivates you to focus your will on a single point, a single theme, a work of art, a comment, an essay, a platform?
What motivates you to venture out into a new place, or return to a particular venue, either in person, or online?
The limitless possibilities afforded us by new social 3.0 platforms such as Hive, are potentially overwhelming... and distraction has never been more ubiquitous, so... only our attention can help us. Without our attention, however ingenious, the tool has no meaning.
It follows then, how we direct our attention is the ultimate value.
Surely, this has been true since the beginning of time. Around the world, radiating outward from the centers of human affairs, through connected and unconnected domains alike there is a war for attention, and it has never been louder or more chaotic.
Meanwhile, the fragility and disunity of social and economic systems and the concomitant collapse of the energy flows we depend on: water, food, resource (waste) management, housing, security, and so on, is making our collective attention all the more valuable, all the more necessary.
I believe at this moment in history, tools that enable us to consciously agree on how and where to prioritize our attention on the many urgent social, philosophical, and political themes of our age, are the most valuable tools that can be built.
I'm hoping that Hive will be foundational in this regard.
But it is the sum of our conscious attention that will bring the necessary developments about, and make it work for us. No matter what tools become available for publishing and collaboration, the burden is on us to make it matter.
How do you think we can make this matter?
Beyond the tokenomics, why do you care?
