Glossary – Thinking Like a Node
Antifragility–A concept from Nassim Taleb: systems that don’t just survive stress, but get stronger because of it. Nodes are antifragile. They learn from failure, evolve through friction, and adapt faster than centralized systems can react.
Cognitive Sovereignty–The ability to think clearly, independently, and critically without outsourcing one's judgment to institutions, influencers, or algorithms. A core trait of node behavior.
Collapse–The breakdown of systems, institutions, or structures that can no longer sustain their function or legitimacy. Collapse isn’t always explosive. Often, it’s quiet; an invisible erosion of trust, meaning, and effectiveness. It creates the friction field that nodes must navigate.
Constructed Reality–A sociological concept from Berger & Luckmann. It refers to the shared beliefs, stories, and norms that shape how we experience “truth.” Nodes understand that much of what appears solid is socially constructed, and can be redesigned.
Emergence–The appearance of higher-order patterns or intelligence from the interaction of smaller parts, without central control. Nodes don’t need to command. They create conditions for emergence.
Epistemic Humility–A mindset that acknowledges the limits of what we know, especially in complex or rapidly changing systems. Nodes don’t rush to certainty. They make space for ambiguity, contradiction, and learning.
Localism–A design principle that prioritizes small-scale, human-centered coordination over distant, centralized control. Localism isn’t isolationism. It’s resilience through proximity, trust, and adaptability.
Mental Models–Internal frameworks used to interpret information, assess risk, make decisions, and navigate uncertainty. Nodes use diverse mental models to stay clear-headed amid complexity.
Node–A person who distributes signal, builds trust, and hosts coordination within failing or chaotic systems. Nodes are not influencers; they’re stabilizers, organizers, and pattern recognizers.
Post-Institutional Thinking–A worldview that starts with the assumption that legacy systems will not be fixed in time. It doesn’t cling to reform: it prototypes alternatives, builds outside the boundaries, and trusts emergence.
Protocol Thinking–A shift in mindset: from building static structures to designing adaptive, remixable rules for coordination. Nodes use protocol thinking to build systems that don’t require permission to operate.
Redundancy–The opposite of fragility. In node logic, redundancy means multiple ways to coordinate, connect, and recover. If one system fails, another can carry the signal.
Signal–Clear, meaningful, context-rich information. Signal helps people think, decide, and act. It’s the opposite of noise.
Systems Failure–When a system continues to exist on paper, but no longer delivers on its function.
A college degree that doesn’t educate. A healthcare system that doesn’t heal. A platform that no longer informs. Collapse often begins with quiet systems failure.
Trust as Infrastructure–In a world where institutions lose credibility, trust becomes the new infrastructure. It’s not just a feeling, it’s the scaffolding that holds decentralized systems together.