Reference
Key Concepts from the Softwar Thesis
The vocabulary of power projection. Every term defined at your chosen depth level.
Power Projection
Using physical force to protect resources and establish ownership. Not about violence, but about the credible ability to impose physical costs.
Abstract Power
Imaginary power that exists only because people believe in it: laws, money, titles, social status. Requires trust to function.
Physical Power
Real-world force that operates regardless of belief: gravity, thermodynamics, watts, mass. Cannot be faked or wished away.
BCR_A (Benefit-Cost Ratio)
The ratio of how much an attacker gains versus how much it costs them to attack. When BCR_A < 1, attacking is irrational.
Bowtie Notation
Visual system from the thesis: green lobe = attractiveness (benefit of attack), red lobe = defensive power (cost of attack). The overlap creates the ratio.
Survivor's Dilemma
Growing rich makes you a target. You must grow your defense faster than your wealth, or predators will come.
God-King
Someone who exploits a population through their belief system. Uses abstract power (stories, rules) to extract real resources without physical contest.
Domestication
Removing a species' physical power capacity and replacing it with dependency. Makes populations docile, compliant, and exploitable.
Kinetic Ceiling
The paradox where weapons become too destructive to use. Nuclear weapons created a stalemate that prevents physical power competitions.
Proof-of-Work / Proof-of-Power
Converting real-world electricity into digital security. The "work" is thermodynamic: real watts consumed, not abstract computation.
Electro-Cyber Dome
A defensive shield built from proof-of-power walls. Like a castle wall, but made of cumulative watts in cyberspace. Passive, scalable, non-lethal.
Bitpower
Proposed rename for Bitcoin. Real-world watts converted into machine-readable tokens of physical power. Not "coins," but power receipts.
Softwar
Non-lethal, non-kinetic warfare using electricity instead of kinetic force. Achieves the same benefits as war, without bloodshed.
MAP (Mutually Assured Preservation)
Opposite of MAD. Competing on the same network makes adversaries into mutual beneficiaries. More competition = more security for everyone.