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The Button (Cassius)

Most digital systems are built around a very simple behavioral loop.

Stimulus → Response → Reward → Repeat.

Notifications. Infinite scroll. Recommendation feeds. Each element is engineered to deliver a small reward in exchange for a small act of attention.

To the right is a deliberately small demonstration of that mechanism.

The modern internet runs on reinforcement loops. Press the button. Receive a reward. Press again.

Sometimes the reward is useful. Often it is trivial. But the mechanism is extremely effective.

Cassius exists to make the mechanism visible.

Because deliberate engagement with technology begins with recognizing how it captures attention.

Essay

Coming Soon

—Cassius