STEEM Really Is STEAM ~ Jaimie's First Article On STEEMIT

STEEM Really Is Created By STEAM

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I’m kind of a nerd when it comes to words and I’m not ashamed to say it. It makes me weirdly happy when I can find exactly the right word to describe anything.

This nerdiness with words comes out frequently. Just last week my husband came home with a new shirt. TACOCAT spelled backwards is TACOCAT! Ha! Ha! He was really proud of it. Yes, it was funny, but when I saw that silly mustached cat enveloped in a taco shell, all I could think of was…palindrome. Yes, palindrome, because that is a word spelled the same forward and backward! Right?!! When I shared my little word gem, no one cared but me, but that didn’t keep me from being satisfied with knowing the appropriate use of the word.

So, when I first heard Steemit espoused around the house by almost my entire family, my brain set to work to find some meaning as to why a social media platform would be named something so…well…unsocial. Anyone else find the name weird to grasp? But the more I thought about this new, not yet dictionary worthy word, I began to see the genius of it. Because steam (spelled with an A) is not a new concept to the world of technology. It’s actually part of the reason the technology we use today actually exists. Let me explain what I mean.

Did you know that our world runs on steam? Steam power to be exact. The original steam power was generated, not by a decentralized system over a chain of computers, but by water submitted to a heat source (usually in the form of some kind of fuel being burned). We all learned this in science class, remember? Water begins to evaporate when heated. It turns into water vapor, commonly called steam. The steam put under pressure can do all sorts of amazing things.

Let’s start close to home. In my kitchen, the whistling of my teapot alerts me that the water has boiled. Steam has all sorts of uses in the kitchen. I rely on my pressure canner to preserve the food from the garden all summer. The steam under pressure inside the pot brings the food to temperatures much beyond the boiling point, allowing even meat to be preserved and stored without the use of refrigeration. You may have an Instant Pot in your own kitchen. It works on the same principle, using high temperatures from steam to cook and tenderize food faster than conventional methods.

But the magic of steam under pressure has uses far beyond the kitchen. The invention of the steam engine changed our world forever. It was the catalyst by which the Industrial Revolution took off. As a result, life as we know it today is profoundly different than it was for our ancestors who lived around the turn of the 19^th century. Before the steam engine was perfected, machines relied on old fashioned power like running water from rivers and streams, wind, horse power, and even man power. Grist mills (flour mills) and saw mills were important examples of machines that were in use before electricity. They were often built next to creeks or rivers in order to harness the power of running water.

The steam engine changed everything. As a result, industry began to grow exponentially. Today, we no longer rely on tradesmen like blacksmiths, carpenters, glass blowers, potters, printers, soap and candle makers, or weavers to produce the items we buy. Because of the steam powered Industrial Revolution, goods are now manufactured in factories and distributed worldwide. We have everything we could ever imagine that we would need or want at our fingertips.

STEAM TODAY

Steam has made our way of life possible. Today, most of the world’s electricity is produced by steam operated power plants. They may use a variety of fuels as their heat source, but they all use heated water to make the steam that turns the turbines to power the electrical generators. We all directly benefit from steam power. Unless you live under a rock somewhere, never purchase anything from a store, never drive a car, eat only the food you grow yourself, and only wear clothing made from fiber you have spun and woven into cloth...then maybe you do not rely on steam power. But I can guarantee if you are reading this, that is not you! Nor is it me. At this moment, I am writing this article using solar power because my family lives on an off grid homestead. But...I type on a laptop. I wear shoes. I drive my car on the paved highway. The list could go on and on. None of us can escape the reality of how steam affects our lives.

STEEM (with an E)

So, what does all this have to do with steem (with an E)? I believe that Steemit has hit upon an incredibly meaningful name. I have already made the point that steem in the computer world is possible because of steam in the industrial world. But the comparisons don’t stop there. Just as the steam engine entered a world ripe for the Industrial Revolution, steem has entered our world ripe for a decentralization revolution. Steem is only one of many crypto currencies formed in recent years. These currencies are making it possible for a power shift to happen. Power is no longer centralized, meaning that it is owned and controlled by only the few at the top. Decentralization means that it is being spread out over the block chain, so that every user has equal control.

What does that mean? The content of Steemit is rated (upvoted) by the users themselves. There are no owners or group or owners that have the ultimate say in what is distributed or allowed to be viewed the most on the site. Only the users have that power by what the majority likes or dislikes. That is the beauty of decentralization. I can say anything I want. Be it politically correct or not. I’ve put it out there and whoever reads it gets to decide if they like it or not. There is no possible censorship by the owners at the top.

FREEDOM

All of a sudden, I feel freedom to be able to adequately express my point of view knowing that I can’t be silenced by a minority. Maybe you like it and maybe you don’t. You have the power to tell me (or not) with an upvote. But if you don’t like what I have to say, don’t get all huffy because complaining to the head haunchos at the top will not help you. If the majority of the users agree with you, then my opinion will not continue to be heard. But if they don’t, then you have to realize that you are in the minority. Just like in days gone by...if you don’t like something...move on. Simple.

I hope some of this is resonating with you. Let me just say that I am not a technical person. Writing this has made my head explode and steam come out my ears. Pun intended! It has taken a lot of coaching and explaining from my husband for me to wrap my head around this new technology. So, for those of you who are like me, let me just leave you with another steam analogy that has helped to give me a frame of reference.

Steemit, as the social media platform, has content that the users put on the site. That content is like water going into the steam engine. The users’ upvotes are like the heat source having an effect on the water. Without the content and the users’ response to it, there would be no steem. Without the water and the heat affecting it, there would be no steam. So, there you have it. Steem really is steam!

Jaimie is a writer and vlogger for AnAmericanHomestead

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