Quote from: Habitat on February 04, 2012, 03:07 amyou picked a VERY interesting time to cruise around the Silk Road - this weekend is like a candyland for us ;)and I would actually be very interested in this research thesis paper of yours. and in regards to research in specific, I have not heard of any directly related to SR, but I have read numerous studies of how black markets and underground businesses actually help keep many countries' economic markets alive and well, especially after the crash in '08 - all done through cash deals with no help from courts, lawyers, or governments (United States included, and I think Greece or Italy had the highest % with annual grossed money through black markets). nonetheless, you can most likely do a search for those specific stats around the world. very interesting. especially because it fucking works I believe the black/grey markets are analogous to a 'backup' system for Capitalism in many respects. When the white market crashes and burns due to malign influence or unintended consequences when governments throw spanners into the works, then it is up to the purest market of them all to provide that necessary dynamism to keep the Market alive. Even the DPRK has the black market.It's just survival of the fittest and I think there is nothing more ferociously beautiful. If the black market were itself a drug like alcohol it would be like having your brain hit with a slice of lemon wrapped around a gold brick.Protip John Humphreys, I've already done an informal survey on the success of the Silk Road. http://dkn255hz262ypmii.onion/index.php?topic=11731.30;topicseenWe currently have an almost 97% DSR (delivery success rate) across the board. Yeah, people respect private property and contracts, they know what's good for them. I guess you'll be studying our system using some model like Prisoner's Dilemma, so I suggest looking at Robert Axelrod's work on the subject and the Tit for Tit algorithm.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tit_for_tatPrisoner's Dilemma in general is a fascinating subject and I'd encourage any professional vendor to look into the research.