The Principles Behind Decentralized Rhizomatic Social Networking
"A rhizome has no beginning or end; it is always in the middle, between things, interbeing, intermezzo."
— Deleuze & Guattari, A Thousand Plateaus
Rhizome is not just another social network. It is a multi-protocol federation hub that treats social content as cultural knowledge that must be preserved. We're building the infrastructure for a decentralized, resilient, semantically-rich social web that works even when the internet doesn't.
No hierarchy. No root. No single path.
Traditional social networks are arborescent (tree-like): one post, one thread, one conversation. Break one link, and the thread dies.
Rhizome is rhizomatic: any node can connect to any other. Posts reference multiple concepts, works, places, and other posts simultaneously. Conversations emerge organically from these connections, not from imposed structure.
What this means:
- Multi-reference threading: a post can reference a book, a concept, and another post all at once
- No broken threads: each node is independent, connections are resilient
- Emergent conversations: patterns reveal themselves through graph visualization
- Cultural integration: books, movies, music become first-class conversation participants
Immutable history. Cryptographic verification. Portable data.
Every action—every post, reaction, comment, share—is recorded as an immutable event in an append-only log. Events are cryptographically signed and hash-chained, creating a tamper-proof record.
What this means:
- Sneakerware: Export your entire social graph to a USB drive, import it elsewhere
- Offline-first: Works without internet, syncs when connected
- Verifiable: Every claim can be traced back to its source
- Resilient: Survives censorship, network outages, platform shutdowns
Entities as core. Triplets as interpretations. Community-made meaning.
The Core Distinction:
- Events & Entities are the core:
- Events = immutable history (what happened): "User X posted Y at time Z" - the factual event log
- Entities = canonical objects (what exists): Person, Author, Tag, Media, Source - the factual, canonical objects. Every entity gets a canonical URI (akashic://cultural/album/pet-sounds-1966).
- Triplets are interpretations: Semantic triplets (Subject-Predicate-Object) are community-created interpretations layered ON TOP of events and entities, adding meaning and connections. (Post, references, Concept) is an interpretation - someone's way of relating an event/entity to an entity.
How It Works:
- Events are history (immutable facts): "User X posted Y at time Z" - this is the core event
- Entities are canonical (immutable facts): "Python" as a canonical Tag entity exists independently
- Triplets are interpretation (layered meaning): (post456, references, akashic://topic/python) - this is an interpretation/annotation added by the community, relating an event/entity to an entity
- Relationships are interpretations: (tag_python, broader, tag_programming_language) - this is a community interpretation of how tag entities relate
What this means:
- Graph queries: "Show me all posts about surf movies that also reference Pet Sounds"
- Cultural mapping: See how books influence movies, how concepts connect across domains
- Community interpretation: Users add triplets, creating layers of meaning on top of core entities
- Resonance: Popular interpretations gain traction, less resonant ones fade
- Stable core, evolving meaning: Core entities remain stable while interpretations evolve organically
Akashic Protocol: the universal piping layer.
We're building Akashic Protocol as a superset that can represent everything from ActivityPub, Nostr, RSS, and future protocols. It's protocol-agnostic at its core, with graceful simplification for export to less granular protocols.
What this means:
- Lossless representation: No information lost when importing from other protocols
- Bidirectional conversion: Seamless transformation to/from ActivityPub, Nostr, RSS
- Future-proof: Accommodates new protocols as they emerge
- Federation-ready: Interoperates with Mastodon, Pleroma, and other ActivityPub servers
Works without internet. Propagates through physical connections.
Rhizome is designed to work in disconnected environments. Data propagates through:
- USB drives (sneakerware)
- Mesh networks
- Delay-tolerant protocols
- Physical meetups
What this means:
- Censorship-resistant: Can't be shut down by cutting internet access
- Disaster-ready: Works during network outages, natural disasters
- Privacy-preserving: Local-first architecture, data stays in your control
- Community-building: Physical connections create stronger social bonds
Truth emerges from collective intelligence, not top-down authority.
We reject centralized fact-checking, editorial boards, and self-proclaimed experts. Every user can contribute, challenge, and verify information. Reputation is earned through community validation, not credentials.
What this means:
- Adversarial truth-seeking: Claims can be disputed by anyone with evidence
- Domain-specific reputation: No general "expert" status—build reputation in specific areas
- Transparent metrics: All user metrics are public and verifiable
- Community moderation: Moderation emerges from the community, not administrators
Rhizome is built in seven layers, each building on the previous:
See Bird's-Eye Architectural Map for details.
In botany, a rhizome is a horizontal underground stem that sends out roots and shoots. Unlike a tree (which has a single root and trunk), a rhizome has no center—it's a network of connections.
Deleuze & Guattari used the rhizome as a metaphor for non-hierarchical thinking:
- No beginning or end
- Always in the middle
- Multiple entry points
- Connects any point to any other point
This is exactly how we want social networking to work: decentralized, resilient, multi-dimensional.
Rhizome is open source and community-driven. We welcome:
- Developers (Python, Flask, PostgreSQL, ActivityPub)
- Designers (UI/UX for graph visualization, semantic interfaces)
- Philosophers (help refine our principles)
- Early adopters (test, provide feedback, shape the direction)
Get started:
1. Read the README for setup instructions
2. Join GitHub Issues or GitHub Discussions (if enabled)
"The rhizome operates by variation, expansion, conquest, capture, offshoots."
— Deleuze & Guattari
Welcome to the rhizome. 🌿
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