- A day in the life of an ancient Athenian - Robert Garland
CiviCue is a civic technology platform committed to providing a diverse and inclusive public space in homage to the Ancient Greek polis (city-state) of Athens. On the basis of public trust empowered by blockchain technology and voter authentication, CiviCue enables anyone to call on local communities, gather public opinions, and put ideas into actions. Every opinion poll launched on CiviCue, called Cue, is a signal seeking response from the public. There are three types of Cues: Question Master, Poll, and Vote.
- How to launch a Cue?
orbuttons can be located throughout CiviCue. Press “Launch” after filling out the form with content according to instructions.
- User Tiers:
- Visitor: User can cast ballots in QM without registration.
- Netizen: User has full access to the Forum after completing registration.
- Citizen: User has full access to the Forum and the Chamber after passing authentication.
- What is blockchain?
A blockchain, also known as distributed ledger technology, is a decentralized network with immutability, anonymity, and transparency. In a blockchain network, every participating node can access all immutable records stored in the distributed ledger. The first example of blockchain is Bitcoin, and the first blockchain built with smart contract capability is Ethereum.
- What is Bitcoin?
A cryptography expert by the pseudonym of Satoshi Nakamoto published a whitepaper in 2008 through a mailing list describing a currency system based on peer-to-peer network and proof-of-work mechanism. Exhibiting a gold-standard-like deflationary nature due to its scarce supply of 21 millions in total, Bitcoin has operated transparently and anonymously throughout the world without relying on trust. Bitcoin is the first application of blockchain technology.
- What is Etherscan?
Etherscan is a blockchain explorer for Ethereum. Through Etherscan, users can examine public information such as transactions, wallet address, and smart contract, as well as track CiviCue ballots.
- How to verify one’s own ballot on CiviCue?
A 66-digit hash dubbed Ballot ID and a Blockchain Smart Contract verification link by Etherscan will appear at the bottom within minutes after a ballot has been casted. Each user can verify their own ballot content using the unique Ballot ID by visiting the verification link. Ballot ID and the content are stored and protected on blockchain, and therefore immutable.
On Etherscan, each user can locate the unique Ballot ID in Transaction Hash under the Overview tab, and verify the choice made on the ballot in Data under the Logs tab. The default data format Hex can be changed to Number through the dropdown menu. Number 1 means choice 1, number 2 means choice 2, and so on and so forth.
- Why is the cell phone not receiving any SMS confirmation code?
Please check the cell phone reception quality and SMS filter status, as well as with the telecom service provider to disable enterprise SMS block. A new SMS confirmation code can be requested every five minutes.
- Are phone number and Email address changes allowed?
Only Email address change is allowed at the moment. Enter the desired Email address on the “Profile” page and press “Save” at the bottom. Hit “Verify” next followed by entering the confirmation code received at the new Email address.
- Why is it necessary to provide bank account information, name, and government ID number?
- Can foreigners sign up?
Foreigners with Taiwan Resident Visa and local bank account are welcome at CiviCue.
- How much time and fee are required to complete a wallet withdrawal through bank transfer? Can multiple withdrawals be made at the same time?
The bank transfer will take 1 to 3 days at $10 TWD per request. Users who opt for KGI Bank will enjoy free withdrawals at no charge. The cutoff time for withdrawals is 19:00 Taipei Time. Withdrawal requests submitted after the cutoff time are processed the next business day. Users are allowed to make one withdrawal at a time. A pending withdrawal must be processed before a new one is allowed.
- How is personal data protected?
- Why rewards?
Freedom of choice is deemed valuable in democratic societies as evidenced in ancient Greek Athens where attendance for assembly or jury is compensated to encourage citizen participation in public affairs. The same is true for CiviCue. Cues can be launched with rewards to attract more participants. Rewards are equally distributed to all participants at closing or when the total number of votes needed has been reached. Participants will receive amounts rounded down to the nearest whole number If rewards cannot be divided evenly. To raise social awareness and encourage creativity, CiviCue also awards winners of Question Master with prizes.
- What is “Question Master”?
Question Master (QM), is a daily prized game that challenges the public’s social awareness. Users who respond to 3 Cues in the Forum will earn a chance to compete in QM. The system ranks all contestants in the last 24 hours at midnight 00:00 Taiwan time. Those who meet the following criteria will be announced as QM winners:
- The contestant cue attracts at least 10 ballots.
- The contestant cue ranks top 7 in ballot count.
- How to proceed with a tiebreaker in Question Master when ballot counts are the same?
The system will automatically rank QM contestants through four rounds of counting at 00:00 every midnight.
- Contestant with the most total ballots wins
- Contestant with the most netizen and citizen ballots wins
- Contestant with the most citizen ballots wins
- Contestant with the latest launch time wins (or shortest exposure time)
- What is Civic Technology?
Civic Technology, also known as Civic Tech, is a software application based on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) that aims to encourage citizen participation in the discourse of public issues and to strengthen communication with the government.
- Why olive branch?
In a competition over the patron saint status for the ancient Greek city-state, Athena, the goddess of wisdom, and Poseidon, the god of sea, each presented a gift to the residents. Poseidon struck his trident and made a gorgeous but undrinkable salt spring, while Athena planted an olive tree with agricultural and industrial value, symbolizing peace and prosperity. To this day, wreaths made of olive branches known as kotinos are worn by the Olympic Games athletes as a symbol of victory, and the expression of “extend an olive branch” is used to mean a friendly gesture of peace and reconciliation in international diplomacy.