The Hitchhiker's Guide to the FutureDeep Dives
Long-form essays on systems, platforms, and the structures that shape reality. Each is available to read on the site or download as PDF for offline reading.
Designing Games That Don't Capture
Most systems that start out functional eventually become traps. The solution is better game design—roles, seasons, exits, and a healthy meta-game. How to design systems that don't capture participants.
From Edges to Federations
Coordination is moving from centralized platforms to federated games built at the edges. A thesis bringing together validation distance, observable games, and non-capturing design into a forward-looking vision.
Observable Games vs. Algorithmic Capture
Human societies have always relied on observable games to produce real reputation. Modern digital platforms attempt to replicate this but produce algorithmic capture instead—systems where visibility and rewards are mediated by opaque mechanisms that can be gamed.
The Six Games Deep Dive
Six modes of coordination and cognition—not personality types, not career ladders. Knowing which game you're in—and which one comes next—is the first step to playing well.
The Validation Distance Problem
Modern platforms optimize for legibility at the expense of truth. The gap between where knowledge is produced and where it is judged creates systemic drift away from reality.