Decoding trust | Dr. David Strayhorn

<p>In this episode of <em>Trust Revolution</em>, Shawn welcomes Dr. David Strayhorn, a neurologist, electrical engineer, and freedom technologist, for a deep dive into Web of Trust. Recorded at Bitcoin Park in Nashville, David shares his journey from clinical practice to building <em>Brainstorm</em>, a personal Web of Trust relay on Nostr, and <em>GrapeRank</em>, an algorithm reimagining trust curation. Together, they explore how decentralized systems can empower individuals to control their data and trust networks, challenging centralized gatekeepers and reshaping how we find truth in a skeptical world.</p> <p><strong>Dr. David Strayhorn</strong> is a board-certified neurologist specializing in epilepsy, with a background in electrical engineering. A decade-long contributor to freedom technology, he focuses on decentralized systems and Web of Trust protocols. His current project, <em>Brainstorm</em>, is a personal Web of Trust relay on Nostr, while <em>GrapeRank</em> is an extensible algorithm for contextual trust scores. Follow him on Nostr (@[email protected]) or explore his GitHub (<a href="https://github.com/wds4">github.com/wds4</a>) for insights into <em>Concept Graph</em> and <em>Grapevine</em>.</p> <p><strong>Quotes to Remember</strong></p> <ul> <li>“Trust doesn’t live in any one place in the brain, just like there’s no single neuron in charge. It’s decentralized, like the systems we’re building.” — Dr. David Strayhorn</li> <li>“Web of Trust is about letting your community decide what trust means—not developers imposing categories.” — Dr. David Strayhorn</li> <li>“GrapeRank is PageRank for people: it uses any signal—follows, zaps, mutes—to calculate trust in context, not just importance.” — Dr. David Strayhorn</li> </ul> <p><strong>Resources & Links</strong></p> <ul> <li><strong>David Strayhorn’s GitHub</strong>: Dive into <em>Concept Graph</em> and <em>Grapevine</em> (<a href="https://github.com/wds4">github.com/wds4</a>).</li> <li><strong>Nostr Protocol</strong>: Learn about the platform powering Web of Trust (<a href="https://nostr.com">nostr.com</a>).</li> </ul> <p>Subscribe: <a href="https://podcast.trustrevolution.co">https://podcast.trustrevolution.co</a></p> <p>Music in this episode by <a href="https://moreghostthanman.com/album/more-ghost-than-man">More Ghost Than Man</a>.</p>