White Paper

Research Verified, Rewards Built-In

Operator: NobleBlocks LLC Contact: [email protected] Date: October 2025

Summary

Knowledge moves the world, but today’s research stack is fragmented. Identities for people and works live in different systems; provenance isn’t machine‑verifiable; peer review relies on goodwill; contributors rarely get rewarded; and AI speeds up reading without guaranteeing integrity. NobleBlocks unifies this into one platform: social research network, preprints, peer review, persistent identifiers, verifiable provenance, privacy‑preserving contributions/licensing, and a research‑native AI assistant. Journals and repositories can plug in via simple rails for sign‑in, minting, provenance, and contributor rewards—no rip‑and‑replace.

The Problem

• Split identity & provenance: people vs. works in separate systems → drift, link rot, unverifiable claims. • Weak incentives: reviewers/editors/staff under‑rewarded. • Privacy & economic leakage: fragmented value flows; public addresses and personal data exposed. • Discovery without integrity: unclear versions/licensing; poor data/code reproducibility. • Tool sprawl: authors juggle many tools; rights/data don’t travel.

Our Approach

One ID, four capabilities: Work, Person, Knowledge‑Proof Receipts, Support (tips/rewards/licensing). • Venue‑agnostic rails: keep editorial flows; attach IDs, provenance, discovery, and rewards to the record. • Privacy by default: fresh/relayed receiving addresses; minimal public identity; no personal data in receipts. • Open & interoperable: JSON‑LD, CSL‑JSON, BibTeX, RIS, OAI‑PMH; optional ORCID/ROR links. • Durable storage: signed receipts mirrored to BNB Greenfield; optional daily anchors on Base/BNB. • AI that cites its homework: every AI claim links back to exact sources or data.

End‑to‑End Flow

  1. Draft → Analysis (metadata parse, duplicate checks, optional integrity scans → structured summary)

  2. Mint the Work (Work ID + resolver; version emits a KPR receipt; mirror to Greenfield)

  3. Claim the Person (link/create; co‑author/affiliation attestations; optional ORCID/ROR)

  4. Preprint & Social (post updates; embeddable update‑checker)

  5. Review & Editorial (assignment → review → revision → decision; rewards when accepted)

  6. Contribute & License (tips/licensing on resolver; fair splits; dispute escrow)

  7. Discover & Harvest (JSON‑LD, OAI‑PMH, CSL/BibTeX/RIS; grant roll‑ups)

  8. Anchor (Optional) (daily Merkle roots to Base/BNB; proofs panel)

Social & Preprint Layer

Profiles & follows; updates & discussions; citable posts; discovery (topics, trending, citation graphs, ORCID/ROR).

Peer Review & Venue Ops

Workflow: intake → triage → assignment → forms → decision → production. Policy: COI, disclosure modes, SLAs, disputes. Built‑in rewards: venue‑controlled; claim flow (anonymous/pseudonymous/named). Low‑friction adoption: use ours or integrate rails. Hybrid Access: 50% NOBL + 50% cash option; below threshold → cash pricing.

Integration Paths

Sign‑in (OIDC); Minting (versions emit receipts; mirrors/anchors optional); Rewards (claim button; proofs verified; release to fresh/relayed destinations); Exports/harvest (JSON‑LD, CSL‑JSON/BibTeX/RIS, OAI‑PMH; grant roll‑ups).

Capability Matrix

Capability — DOI: have • ORCID: missing • NobleBlocks: have Identify works — DOI: have • ORCID: missing • NobleBlocks: have Identify people — DOI: missing • ORCID: have • NobleBlocks: have Knowledge‑proof receipts — DOI: missing • ORCID: missing • NobleBlocks: have Tips/licensing — DOI: missing • ORCID: missing • NobleBlocks: have Reviewer/editor/staff rewards — DOI: missing • ORCID: missing • NobleBlocks: have Blockchain mirror — DOI: missing • ORCID: missing • NobleBlocks: have Public anchoring (opt.) — DOI: missing • ORCID: missing • NobleBlocks: have Interoperate — DOI: have • ORCID: have • NobleBlocks: have Free to mint — DOI: varies • ORCID: have • NobleBlocks: have

“have/missing” expresses scope; NobleBlocks coexists with DOI/ORCID and can link or replace when ready.

Technical Highlights

Resolver & URLs: nobleid.org/ark:// (root → latest), .../.vN (pinned, immutable). KPR Receipt (min shape): signed digests, timestamps, storage pointers, optional chain anchors. Mirrors & Anchors: BNB Greenfield mirror; optional daily Base/BNB Merkle roots. Identity & Access: registration required to mint; Base wallet capability behind the scenes; OIDC for venues. Security & Privacy: encryption, WAF, rate‑limits, fixity checks, audits; minimal identity; relays.

Economics & Sustainability

Free to mint IDs; low‑cost venue license; Hybrid Access (50% NOBL + 50% cash). Platform fees on optional contributions/licensing; transparent splits. Enterprise packs (exports, anchoring, compliance). AI Suite: freemium + Pro/Team/Enterprise (metered credits). Token utility (optional): hybrid access, discounted fees, mirror/gateway staking with uptime/fixity rewards, refundable deposits for attestations, curation boosts. Reading/citing/minting never requires a token or wallet.

Governance, Policy, Safety

Policy registry (Privacy, Security, Metadata, Disputes, Retention, Terms). Resolver permanence; immutable .vN; tombstones; Greenfield mirrors; optional Base/BNB anchors. Dispute banners + escrow pauses; outcomes recorded. Non‑custodial by default; KYC only when required.

Why Now

AI + open science need verifiable provenance and clear licensing. Global rails enable small/frequent cross‑border rewards. Publishers/funders want lighter, open, lower‑cost infrastructure with verifiable proofs and incentives.

Stakeholders & Benefits

Researchers: one profile; fast minting; verifiable receipts; privacy‑preserving contributions; reviewer/editor rewards; AI that cites sources; easy exports. Journals & repositories: lower‑cost workflows; venue‑controlled rewards; provenance by default; clean resolvers; simple SSO/APIs; coexist with DOI/ORCID. Funders & institutions: Grant IDs auto‑roll outputs; exportable audits; topic‑scoped rewards. Developers: REST + webhooks; OIDC; open formats for discovery/analytics/curation apps.

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