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The negative comments and name calling against Sam Odie is way out of line. Jonathan made an "experiment" and launched it. It was wildly successful and he got

The negative comments and name calling against Sam Odie is way out of line. Jonathan made an "experiment" and launched it. It was wildly successful and he got lots of data about how people react to the experimental situation he created. Real experiments don't have outcomes that are pre-ordained. Let it go. Learn and move on.

jonhohle 15y ago
I'm slightly concerned that more people here don't get this. The whole point of an experiment is to have a hypothesis, perform a test, observe the result, and make some conclusion related to your original hypothesis. It seems like what most people wanted was a "challenge". I don't have any issue with that, but call a duck a duck. If this really was a social "experiment", you have to expect people to behave as they would in society, including leaches. This experiment is a reminder of why we can't have nice things on an honor system. There will _always_ be actors who game the system - typically for personal gain, but sometimes for the lols.
chrischen2 15y ago
People are just angry that the experiment didn't go the way they had hoped.
mechnik 15y ago
Are these "negative comments" "way out of line" compared with stealing $600? Are they somehow less "real" outcomes of Jonathan's experiment?
SoftwareMaven 15y ago
This was never an experiment. Where was the hypothesis? Where was the control? It was no more an experiment than me "experimenting" with Elbonian food is an experiment. To write off somebody's lack of understanding of social mores because "we were all just ants" is disingenuous. That said, this whole thing has actually been very interesting to watch from the outside, and there is little doubt Odie made it far more interesting (if not somewhat dishearening).
- molbioguy 15y ago
  From a CNN article quoting Jonathan Stark: "Jonathan's Card is an experiment in social sharing of physical goods using digital currency on mobile phones ...," he wrote on his site.

jonhohle 15y ago

I'm slightly concerned that more people here don't get this. The whole point of an experiment is to have a hypothesis, perform a test, observe the result, and make some conclusion related to your original hypothesis. It seems like what most people wanted was a "challenge". I don't have any issue with that, but call a duck a duck. If this really was a social "experiment", you have to expect people to behave as they would in society, including leaches. This experiment is a reminder of why we can't have nice things on an honor system. There will _always_ be actors who game the system - typically for personal gain, but sometimes for the lols.

chrischen2 15y ago

People are just angry that the experiment didn't go the way they had hoped.

mechnik 15y ago

Are these "negative comments" "way out of line" compared with stealing $600? Are they somehow less "real" outcomes of Jonathan's experiment?

SoftwareMaven 15y ago

This was never an experiment. Where was the hypothesis? Where was the control? It was no more an experiment than me "experimenting" with Elbonian food is an experiment. To write off somebody's lack of understanding of social mores because "we were all just ants" is disingenuous. That said, this whole thing has actually been very interesting to watch from the outside, and there is little doubt Odie made it far more interesting (if not somewhat dishearening).

molbioguy 15y ago
From a CNN article quoting Jonathan Stark: "Jonathan's Card is an experiment in social sharing of physical goods using digital currency on mobile phones ...," he wrote on his site.