Technical protocols like Ethereum are only a subset in the broader field of protocol science. Anthropological angles are just as important, and the SoP community produces a lot of work on how humans organize – internally, with each other, and with technology – and how that molds behavior over time. One quote that regularly resurfaces is by Alfred North Whitehead.

Civilization advances by extending the number of important operations which we can perform without thinking of them.

Whitehead strikes at the core of what makes protocols important, even if he doesn't directly define them. This quote unites both technical and social protocol entrepreneurs. Their goal is to shift default modes of behavior.

Check out the following readings to build up your protocol literacy:

• Artificial Memory and Orienting Infinity by Kei Kreutler.

• Dangerous Protocols by Nadia Asparouhova.

• The Swarm and The Formation by Rafael Fernández.

• Unprotocolized Knowledge by Kara Kittel & Toby Shorin.

• Dangerous Dating Protocols by Shreeda Segan.

• Control and Consciousness of Time by Saffron Huang.

There are also ongoing projects being built in public on the forum that are worth exploring.

Matthew McDowell-Sweet is organizing a protocol watching meetup in the U.K., most likely in London, and you should go. You can easily RSVP on the forum, here.

On the main SoP Website, there's a handy field guide for protocol watching and blank templates so you can document what you find.

If you're organizing a meetup or would like to, make a post on the forum!