Majoritarianism and Monoculture (M&M)
Research in decentralized computing, specifically in consensus algorithms, has focused on providing resistance to an adversary with a minority stake. This has resulted in systems that are majoritarian in the extreme, ignoring valuable lessons learned in law and politics over centuries. In this artic...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Cambridge University Press
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Data & Policy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2632324924000506/type/journal_article |
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| author | Mansoor “Manny” Ahmed Dann R. Toliver Hazem Danny Nakib |
| author_facet | Mansoor “Manny” Ahmed Dann R. Toliver Hazem Danny Nakib |
| author_sort | Mansoor “Manny” Ahmed |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Research in decentralized computing, specifically in consensus algorithms, has focused on providing resistance to an adversary with a minority stake. This has resulted in systems that are majoritarian in the extreme, ignoring valuable lessons learned in law and politics over centuries. In this article, we first detail this phenomenon of majoritarianism and point out how minority protections in the nondigital world have been implemented. We motivate adding minority protections to collaborative systems with examples. We also show how current software deployment models exacerbate majoritarianism, highlighting the problem of monoculture in client software in particular. We conclude by giving some suggestions on how to make decentralized computing less hostile to those in the minority. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-349c3200ca9341e08b018a7a27b4a4c2 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2632-3249 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Data & Policy |
| spelling | doaj-art-349c3200ca9341e08b018a7a27b4a4c22025-01-28T06:32:28ZengCambridge University PressData & Policy2632-32492025-01-01710.1017/dap.2024.50Majoritarianism and Monoculture (M&M)Mansoor “Manny” Ahmed0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1078-6185Dann R. Toliver1Hazem Danny Nakib2https://orcid.org/0009-0000-3576-0892OpenOrigins Limited and Department of Computer Science and Technology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United KingdomCentre for Redecentralisation (CRDC), Department of Computer Science and Technology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United KingdomCentre for Redecentralisation (CRDC), Department of Computer Science and Technology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United KingdomResearch in decentralized computing, specifically in consensus algorithms, has focused on providing resistance to an adversary with a minority stake. This has resulted in systems that are majoritarian in the extreme, ignoring valuable lessons learned in law and politics over centuries. In this article, we first detail this phenomenon of majoritarianism and point out how minority protections in the nondigital world have been implemented. We motivate adding minority protections to collaborative systems with examples. We also show how current software deployment models exacerbate majoritarianism, highlighting the problem of monoculture in client software in particular. We conclude by giving some suggestions on how to make decentralized computing less hostile to those in the minority.https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2632324924000506/type/journal_articleconsensus algorithmsdigital collaborationdecentralisationmajoritarianismminority rights |
| spellingShingle | Mansoor “Manny” Ahmed Dann R. Toliver Hazem Danny Nakib Majoritarianism and Monoculture (M&M) Data & Policy consensus algorithms digital collaboration decentralisation majoritarianism minority rights |
| title | Majoritarianism and Monoculture (M&M) |
| title_full | Majoritarianism and Monoculture (M&M) |
| title_fullStr | Majoritarianism and Monoculture (M&M) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Majoritarianism and Monoculture (M&M) |
| title_short | Majoritarianism and Monoculture (M&M) |
| title_sort | majoritarianism and monoculture m m |
| topic | consensus algorithms digital collaboration decentralisation majoritarianism minority rights |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2632324924000506/type/journal_article |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT mansoormannyahmed majoritarianismandmonoculturemm AT dannrtoliver majoritarianismandmonoculturemm AT hazemdannynakib majoritarianismandmonoculturemm |