Workin on somethin and I'm curious if anyone know of, or has feedback for, a NOSTR based research ecosystem? I've worked in and know a lot of people in academia getting fucked by every angle (university obligations/IP restrictions, pay-to-publish funding from shady priviate/public institutions, who-you-know gatekeeping for publishing) and I think there's a potential for a NOSTR ecosystem to help with this. Here's a distillation of what I'm thinking (using AI to help me distill my thoughts): I. Overview This ecosystem leverages the NOSTR protocol and Bitcoin's Lightning Network to create a decentralized, transparent, and efficient marketplace for academic research. It encompasses the entire research lifecycle from proposal to citation, integrating funding, collaboration, peer review, and reputation management. II. Key Stakeholders A. Researchers - Role: Propose, conduct, and publish research; collaborate with peers - Interactions: Submit research plans, seek funding, conduct peer reviews, collaborate on projects, publish findings, cite other work - Benefits: Direct access to funding, broader collaboration opportunities, reputation building, immediate rewards for impactful work B. Funders - Role: Provide financial support for research projects - Interactions: Review research proposals, contribute funds via Lightning Network - Benefits: Direct influence on research directions, potential returns (financial or knowledge) from successful projects C. Peer Reviewers - Role: Evaluate research proposals and publications - Interactions: Review submitted plans and papers, provide feedback, influence funding decisions - Benefits: Contribute to research quality, build reputation, potential compensation for reviews III. Key Mechanisms A. Cryptographic Linking 1. Research Plans: - Hashed and stored on NOSTR, creating an immutable record - Linked to researcher's identity and reputation 2. Funding: - Each contribution cryptographically linked to the research plan - Creates transparent, verifiable funding trail 3. Peer Review: - Reviews linked to both the reviewer and the research plan/publication - Ensures accountability and builds reviewer reputation 4. Citations: - Each citation event cryptographically linked to both citing and cited works - Enables automatic tracking of research impact and facilitates micropayments B. Lightning Network Payment Flow 1. Funding Stage: - Funders send BTC to researchers via Lightning Network - Payments linked to specific research plans 2. Collaboration Payments: - Automated distribution of funds among collaborators based on predefined terms 3. Citation Micropayments: - Small payments automatically sent to cited researchers upon publication - Creates direct financial incentive for impactful research C. NOSTR Protocol Facilitation 1. Data Storage and Retrieval: - Research plans, publications, reviews stored as NOSTR events - Ensures data persistence and easy retrieval 2. Identity Management: - Researchers, funders, and reviewers have persistent identities on NOSTR - Enables reputation building and accountability 3. Real-time Updates: - New publications, citations, and funding events propagated in real-time - Keeps all participants updated on ecosystem activities 4. Decentralized Architecture: - No central authority controlling the flow of information or funds - Resistant to censorship and single points of failure IV. System Flow 1. Research Proposal: - Researcher publishes a plan on NOSTR - Plan includes detailed methodology and funding requirements 2. Peer Review of Proposal: - Qualified peers review the proposal - Reviews are linked to both reviewer and proposal 3. Crowdfunding: - Approved proposals open for funding - Funders contribute via Lightning Network 4. Research and Collaboration: - Funded researchers conduct work, potentially collaborating with others - Progress updates published on NOSTR 5. Publication: - Completed research published on NOSTR - Linked to original proposal, funding, and collaboration data 6. Citation and Impact: - Other researchers cite the work - Each citation triggers micropayment and updates reputation scores 7. Continuous Reputation Update: - All actions (proposing, funding, reviewing, publishing, citing) update reputations - Reputation scores influence future interactions in the ecosystem V. Key Advantages 1. Transparency: All actions and interactions are public and verifiable 2. Efficiency: Automated payments and reputation updates reduce administrative overhead 3. Meritocracy: Reputation-based system rewards quality contributions 4. Global Collaboration: Reduces barriers to international and cross-institutional collaboration 5. Rapid Dissemination: Real-time updates accelerate the spread of new knowledge 6. Financial Sustainability: Direct rewards for impactful work can provide ongoing funding for researchers VI. Challenges and Considerations 1. Technical Barriers: Requires familiarity with cryptocurrency and decentralized systems 2. Regulatory Compliance: Need to navigate varying international laws on cryptocurrency and research funding 3. Quality Control: Maintaining high standards without traditional institutional oversight 4. Privacy Concerns: Balancing transparency with necessary confidentiality in sensitive research areas 5. Volatility: Cryptocurrency price fluctuations could affect funding stability 6. Adoption: Overcoming inertia of traditional academic systems and practices All in all, I think there's something here but it's just an idea seed at the moment. Curious what you think #nostr. Tags for vis, #bitcoin #asknostr