When propagating value, apply leaching before donations

forum-network/notes/protocol.md

@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+The communication protocol(s) among network nodes
+Each communication protocol among network nodes
+has its own purpose
+has its own assumptions, expectations, requirements, constraints
+
+I think it makes sense to identify the constraints for our protocols.
+
+We need the general public to be able to reliably
+
+- Query information about the reputation WDAG
+- Submit requests and fees for work
+- Obtain the products of the work submitted by forum experts
+
+Suppose we want only the requestor to be able to access a given work product.
+(Why might we want this?)
+Then the (soft) protocol for reviewing the work product would consist of
+validating a signature by the requestor, attesting to their acceptance of the work product.
+
+Alternatively access could be permitted to some group, such as reputation holders (a.k.a. experts).
+
+Otherwise, for maximum utility, we would want to make the work products available indefinitely, as valuable artifacts.
+Value here can be equated to the expected fees that the work products will help attract, which can in turn be equated to
+reputation awarded to authors and reviewers of the work products.
+
+Thus, the work of making the artifacts available must be funded.
+
+The work of participating in a gossip / forum node consensus protocol and validating forum chain blocks must also be funded.
+
+Suppose we have a storage contract.
+
+- There can be a market for specific pledges of storage.
+  - buy: (amount, duration, price)
+  - sell: (amount, duration, price)
+- Governance: Management of storage price
+  - may negotiate via loose -> tight binding traversal forum post sequence
+  - reputation in accordance with majority opinions on price parameters
+- Verification of storage must occur by (randomly) querying the storage nodes and validating their responses.

forum-network/notes/work.md

@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+This system is meant to represent a body of experts receiving fees to perform work.
+Experts register their availability to receive work via the availability contract.
+Request and associated fees are sumbitted via the business contract.
+Evidence of the work performed is submitted as a post to the forum.
+A successful validation pool ratifies the post.
+Reputation is minted and distributed.
+Fees are distributed.
+
+What if we want the work to be block production for a blockchain?
+Then to perform this work, an expert will need to participate in a communications network
+such that they can confidently arrive at a majority view of each block.
+Or else must at least be able to attest that a proposed block is valid,
+meaning that it
+
+- does not conflict with what the node believes to be the majority view
+- includes what the node believes must be included according to the majority view
+  note that with this scheme there be muliple possible valid proposed blocks.
+
+---

forum-network/src/classes/forum.js

@@ -144,8 +144,7 @@ export class Forum extends ReputationHolder {
   }) {
     const postVertex = edge.to;
     const post = postVertex?.data;
-    const balanceFromInbound = this.posts.getEdgeWeight(BALANCE, edge.from, edge.to) ?? 0;
-    this.actions.propagateValue.log(edge.from.data, post, `(${increment}) balance (${balanceFromInbound})`);
+    this.actions.propagateValue.log(edge.from.data, post, `(${increment})`);
 
     if (!!params.referenceChainLimit && depth > params.referenceChainLimit) {
       this.actions.propagateValue.log(
@@ -164,37 +163,47 @@ export class Forum extends ReputationHolder {
       depth,
       value: post.value,
       increment,
-      balanceFromInbound,
       initialNegative,
     });
 
-    let totalOutboundAmount = 0;
-
-    for (const citationEdge of postVertex.getEdges(CITATION, true)) {
-      const { weight } = citationEdge;
-      let outboundAmount = weight * increment;
-      const balanceToOutbound = this.posts.getEdgeWeight(BALANCE, citationEdge.from, citationEdge.to) ?? 0;
-      // We need to ensure that we propagate no more reputation than we leached
-      if (initialNegative) {
-        outboundAmount = outboundAmount < 0
-          ? Math.max(outboundAmount, -balanceToOutbound)
-          : Math.min(outboundAmount, -balanceToOutbound);
+    const propagate = async (positive) => {
+      let totalOutboundAmount = 0;
+      const citationEdges = postVertex.getEdges(CITATION, true)
+        .filter(({ weight }) => (positive ? weight > 0 : weight < 0));
+      for (const citationEdge of citationEdges) {
+        const { weight } = citationEdge;
+        let outboundAmount = weight * increment;
+        const balanceToOutbound = this.posts.getEdgeWeight(BALANCE, citationEdge.from, citationEdge.to) ?? 0;
+        // We need to ensure that we at most undo the prior effects of this post
+        if (initialNegative) {
+          outboundAmount = outboundAmount < 0
+            ? Math.max(outboundAmount, -balanceToOutbound)
+            : Math.min(outboundAmount, -balanceToOutbound);
+        }
+        if (Math.abs(outboundAmount) > EPSILON) {
+          const refundFromOutbound = await this.propagateValue(citationEdge, {
+            rewardsAccumulator,
+            increment: outboundAmount,
+            depth: depth + 1,
+            initialNegative: initialNegative || (depth === 0 && outboundAmount < 0),
+          });
+          outboundAmount -= refundFromOutbound;
+          this.posts.setEdgeWeight(BALANCE, citationEdge.from, citationEdge.to, balanceToOutbound + outboundAmount);
+          totalOutboundAmount += outboundAmount;
+        }
       }
-      if (Math.abs(outboundAmount) > EPSILON) {
-        const refundFromOutbound = await this.propagateValue(citationEdge, {
-          rewardsAccumulator,
-          increment: outboundAmount,
-          depth: depth + 1,
-          initialNegative: initialNegative || (depth === 0 && outboundAmount < 0),
-        });
-        outboundAmount -= refundFromOutbound;
-        this.posts.setEdgeWeight(BALANCE, citationEdge.from, citationEdge.to, balanceToOutbound + outboundAmount);
-        totalOutboundAmount += outboundAmount;
-      }
-    }
+      return totalOutboundAmount;
+    };
 
-    increment -= totalOutboundAmount * params.leachingValue;
+    // First, leach value via negative citations
+    const totalLeachingAmount = await propagate(false);
+    increment -= totalLeachingAmount * params.leachingValue;
 
+    // Now propagate value via positive citations
+    const totalDonationAmount = await propagate(true);
+    increment -= totalDonationAmount * params.leachingValue;
+
+    // Apply the remaining increment to the present post
     const rawNewValue = post.value + increment;
     const newValue = Math.max(0, rawNewValue);
     const appliedIncrement = newValue - post.value;

forum-network/src/tests/scripts/forum/forum3.test.js

@@ -28,8 +28,8 @@ describe('Forum', () => {
         { postId: posts[1], weight: 1 },
       ]);
       forum.getPost(posts[0]).value.should.equal(0);
-      forum.getPost(posts[1]).value.should.equal(20);
-      forum.getPost(posts[2]).value.should.equal(10);
+      forum.getPost(posts[1]).value.should.equal(30);
+      forum.getPost(posts[2]).value.should.equal(0);
     });
   });
 });

forum-network/src/tests/scripts/forum/forum4.test.js

@@ -44,8 +44,8 @@ describe('Forum', () => {
         { postId: posts[2], weight: 1 },
       ]);
       forum.getPost(posts[0]).value.should.equal(0);
-      forum.getPost(posts[1]).value.should.equal(20);
-      forum.getPost(posts[2]).value.should.equal(10);
+      forum.getPost(posts[1]).value.should.equal(30);
+      forum.getPost(posts[2]).value.should.equal(0);
       forum.getPost(posts[3]).value.should.equal(0);
     });
 
@@ -55,8 +55,8 @@ describe('Forum', () => {
       ]);
       console.log('test5', { posts });
       forum.getPost(posts[0]).value.should.equal(0);
-      forum.getPost(posts[1]).value.should.equal(30);
-      forum.getPost(posts[2]).value.should.equal(10);
+      forum.getPost(posts[1]).value.should.equal(40);
+      forum.getPost(posts[2]).value.should.equal(0);
       forum.getPost(posts[3]).value.should.equal(0);
       forum.getPost(posts[4]).value.should.equal(0);
     });