As more people join Less Wrong, more currency is also created, devaluing each unit of karma. This means that a post made a year ago that got 30 votes is getting more support than a post getting 30 votes today.
Indeed, but in that regard not all old posts are created equal.
Some are highly linked from more recent posts, from the about page, from the wiki and sequences page. Other are orphans that will only be found by a very small fraction of recent members.
I bet someone could do a thesis on the economics of karma in online communities (maybe it has already been done, in fact—anyone has seen one?).
Don’t forget karma inflation.
As more people join Less Wrong, more currency is also created, devaluing each unit of karma. This means that a post made a year ago that got 30 votes is getting more support than a post getting 30 votes today.
But at least we don’t have a central bank yet...
But surely this is offset somewhat by the possibility of new members voting on old posts.
Indeed, but in that regard not all old posts are created equal.
Some are highly linked from more recent posts, from the about page, from the wiki and sequences page. Other are orphans that will only be found by a very small fraction of recent members.
I bet someone could do a thesis on the economics of karma in online communities (maybe it has already been done, in fact—anyone has seen one?).