Praxis
The project is developing in multiple ways. We've been refining the theory, making it clearer and more concrete, and sharing it through presentations, articles, and documents. There's still a lot to do, so finding new ideas and perspectives is super important. If you have any thoughts after seeing the presentation or reading other related theories, we'd love to hear them. There is a lot of theory out there that touch on similar ideas and can spark new thinking. Here's a list of suggestions of those.
Right now, most of our digital communication happens on the communication app Discord. Feel free to link up there if you want to learn more or connect with others affiliated with the project. Finding people who could be interested in helping is crucial for the development of the project. We have also started using the project coordination software Coda a bit, it is viewable here. The project's current usages of these softwares are in early stages, and in the process of being updated and upgraded.
Development Roadmap
We are currently working on a Proof Of Concept, which would be a small, but at least partly functional version of Derivation, that would showcase the core functionalities. Meaning that it could be used roughly, for some things, but it would be difficult and impractical to do so. Once we have a neat Proof Of Concept, the project can grow and recruit more efficiently. It could help us connect with other similar projects, to collaborate. Ideally, we'd either reuse code from these to build a new platform, expand on an existing one using their code or combine the project with others. From there, the goal would be to develop a Minimum Viable Product, which would have enough features to be entirely functional, with everything not needed stripped away, and far from optimal. There would then be either a closed or an open beta-testing of it. How access to a closed beta would be granted is not yet determined, but if it's open, it would be hosted on a server to gather feedback for further improvements. As we gather feedback, Derivation will be continously upgraded, and eventually, it will be considered officially "complete", though updates will keep coming, perhaps forever.
How You Can Contribute
Things you can do for Derivation:
We need people who has knowledge of, or want to learn, any of the following fields. To help with any of these, or get into them, check out resources in the Discord,
or write to derivation.project@proton.me
Epistemology (philosophy of knowledge) is important for the relatively abstract theory of what Derivation is to become. It would be used to revise and evolve the theory, going through and using older, similar ideas, through criticising and being inspired by them, as well as sometimes even building upon them.
Logic (any kind, essentially) is perhaps the most important thing of what makes Derivation works. It is therefore, but even beyond that, used in a wide variety of ways for the project, for example to assist in laying out the formal structure of the systematization, how this is roughly translated to code, and the logical theory.
Programming is currently at the very core of the development on a functional Derivation. Partly for creating a Proof Of Concept, but from that point there will be more and more things to be done. Progress has been done in Python, but we're not married to that.
Systems science has not yet been used, but would largely work to facilitate how the relationships between knowledge can be visualized, and effectively and consistently categorized. It would be similar to logic, but with more of an emphasis on how it can be applied.
Information technology (IT) is another crucial field for the project, and in a sense it's really concerning the project as a whole. It would be similar to the role of systems science for the project, but with even more of a focus on the technological aspect, so a lot about the compability with the programming.
Communication theory has both a theoretical and practical relevance. When knowledge is shared; knowledge is communicated, and to ensure that communication actually happens, it is often benefitial to get a thorough grasp of why and how that could happen, to both add it to the theory, as well as considering it in the code in the functional Derivation.
Financial Support
Do you want to donate money?
Money goes to finance expenses of various software, such as the server for hosting this website, mail-account and communication servers. It could also cover the
expenses of tools, both software and hardware, that those working on the project use. And further on, with enough resources, it could also economically assist with some living expenses of
those working with the project, so that they would be able to engage with the project more.
Currently, you can only donate money domestically in Sweden, and that is either through Swish, to 070-3877107, and mark the donation with "Derivation", or directly to the back account with
the account number 5068 31 122 44, and please also mark this donation with "Derivation". Later on, more resources for
donating money will be added. Updates on how much money is recieved and how it's spend will be posted in the Discord server.
Outreach and Community Building
Do you want to help reach out to people who can help with either of these things?
To develop the project, it is easier and goes quicker the more we are collaborating on it. Therefore, it would be crucial to spread knowledge about the project
to those who might be interested. If you happen to speak to someone who you think might be interested, you are certainly encouraged to talk about it. How you talk about the project should
matter less, as long are you're under the impression that they are likely interested, but you can start in different ends. Maybe talk about the various applications and uses
for the project, or some other approach you believe will specifically resonate with the one you're talking to.
To access discussion and deliberation, link up with people connected to the project, mainly on the Discord server
currently. Doing this will make you a member of the non-profit organization for the development of Derivation.
If you're interested in helping out, even with ideas for planning, you can check out resources on the Discord or reach out to derivation.project@proton.me