<div dir="ltr"><div><font color="#666666"><br class=""><br></font></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">The Journal of </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Peer</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Production</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">: </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Value</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> and </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Currency</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> in </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Peer</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Production</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Edited by: Nathaniel Tkacz, Nicolas Mendoza and Francesca Musiani.</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">The marriage of cryptography and the dynamics of open-source have now</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">produced</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> a working distributed </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">currency</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> system. Bitcoin, as the most</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">notable example, can be understood as a new technics of exchange inspired</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">by the animal spirits of crypto-libertarianism. Whether or not there is a</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">place for </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">currency</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> -- and therefore exchange and (economic) </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">value</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> -- in the</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">utopian visions of commons-oriented thought is contested. Meanwhile, hybrid</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">forms like Bitcoin are developing unhindered by their constitutional</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">paradoxes. Capitalism, after all, equally thrives atop what David Graeber</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">has called a 'baseline' or 'everyday' communism. Current developments of</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">digital </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">currencies</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> are pervaded by a number of issues: Who or what issues</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">the money? What is the source of the collective agreement to concede </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">value</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">?</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">What forms of control are coded into </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">currency</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> systems and who is guiding</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">processes of (re)design? Who plays the role of guarantor when a </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">currency</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> is</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">decentralized? And what role does trust play in all these issues? Has</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">crypto-mathematics transformed trust into a technical quality of a system?</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">The flipside of this issue is </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">value</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">: The intensification and extension of</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">computational procedures, which is manifested most clearly in the rise of</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">big data, has lead to a proliferation of bottom-up procedures to formalise</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">'</span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">values</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">', rendering them easily calculable and lending order to the</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">decentralised world of </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">peers</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">. Wikipedia contributors, for example, have</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">long awarded each other 'barnstars' for valued service in a range of areas,</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">and the site has long explored ways of rating article quality. In place of</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">managerial commands and bureaucratic hierarchies we have Karma points,</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">ranking systems, reputation metrics and the long-tail logic of networks.</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Order in this sense is iterative, recursive and topological.</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">This issue of The Journal of </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Peer</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Production</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> invites contributions on the</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">themes of </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">value</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> and </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">currency</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> as they relate to </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">peer</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">production</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">.</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Topics might include but are not limited to:</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - Decentralised and crypto-</span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">currencies</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - Non-coercive taxation systems and/or experiments/experiences;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - Analog/pre-digital (or historical) networks for distributed </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">value</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   exchange;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Currency</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> and design;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Currencies</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> and the commons;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - Life after fiat (the becoming-uncertain of taxes);</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - What does/should </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">peer</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">production</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">value</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">?;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - Re-thinking the constitution of </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">value</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - Theories of non-monetary </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">value</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> and worth;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - The relationship between valuing practices and project hierarchies;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - Forms of belief in </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">peer</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">production</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - Automated systems of ranking and distributing </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">value</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - Theories of exchange, gift and voluntarism;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - Trust and anonymity in the building of </span><span class="" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">value</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">;</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">   - Intermediation and 'guarantees' in P2P exchanges.</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">

<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Submission proposals of under 500 words due by February 15, 2013 (slightly revised). Send submissions to n.tkacz (at) <a href="http://warwick.ac.uk">warwick.ac.uk</a>. Full </span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">submission details and extended CFP available at </span><a href="http://peerproduction.net/value-and-currency-in-peer-production/.*" target="_blank" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">http://peerproduction.net/<span class="" style="color:rgb(34,34,34)">value</span>-and-<span class="" style="color:rgb(34,34,34)">currency</span>-in-<span class="" style="color:rgb(34,34,34)">peer</span>-<span class="" style="color:rgb(34,34,34)">production</span>/</a><br>

</div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr"><font color="#666666">Nathaniel Tkacz </font><div><font color="#666666"><br></font></div><div><font color="#666666">Assistant Professor</font></div>

<div><font color="#666666">Centre for Interdisciplinary Methodologies</font></div><div><font color="#666666">The University of Warwick</font></div><div><font color="#666666"><br>Twitter: <a href="http://twitter.com/__nate__" target="_blank">http://twitter.com/__nate__</a></font></div>

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