i've always admired the cute logos underneath our more illustrious member's names; the badges indicating moderator status, the flasks for chemistry expertise, the head and brain for senior members, etc...these icons really do assist us in recognizing the skills and level of prowess our community is lucky enough and proud to have. it's one of the things that sets us apart from the other forums online.

i was thinking...so much of what we discuss here encompasses many disciplines, talents and gifts. our community is not just made up of scientists and "others"....we are filled with a rich fabric of educated and experienced explorers. we have medical practitioners, engineers, teachers, artists, musicians, yoga and meditation educators (like me!)....the list is long.

we all draw knowledge from this vast pool. and while i would never minimize the wealth of information i have gleaned from our resident chemistry oracles, i have also learned a lot from others...about breathwork. about music. about medicine. about politics. you get it.

what if we had other types of "badges" that identified expertise in other fields besides science? not that they would be given out without regard, but after significant contribution pertaining to a field a member practices and is professionally affiliated with.

maybe this has been suggested before; i hadn't heard of it. i just thought it might be a cool way to recognize the huge field of talent that makes up this amazing, irreplaceable nexus of genius we all call home.

love y'all...

I like the idea of expanding the expertise badges, if they are somewhat relevant to issues discussed here

What badges do you think should be added?

I'm not sure how much work it all means for The Traveler, though, so we gotta ask him...

I think due to the clandestine nature of our community, and the potential contentiousness around verifying and even accepting expertise in softer fields (opinions may -and do- wildly vary on who can be considered a valid shaman, yogi, artist, etc.), and providing proof of expertise in illegal activities online is really not something we should encourage, I think the badges should be limited to what really counts in discussions, as opposed to adopting a boy scoutish badge-o-rama mindset of treating these as showing respect and love for each other.

I think a badge should be added for verified medical doctors. Their expertise can help reduce harm, potentially save lives, and is just as important as that of chemistry professionals.

A 'master gardener' or 'verified grower' badge, similar to that on Shroomery would be another good addition. Growing Caapi, Iboga and other sacred plants is thankfully not illegal in most jurisdictions, and even where it is, one can validate their green thumb through their success with legal species.

And I personally would stop there with the badges. But of course that's just my personal opinion.

For the record, we already have the Medical Doctor badge, though only one member currently holds that one afaik.

The badges are generally issued to demonstrate truly extraordinary knowledge of a topic. The chemical expert flasks, or nen's acacia sprig for example.

Occasionally *someone* may trick the boss into issuing a fancy skillset list where none truly exist. Ahem

I do agree we could probably do with issuing a few more badges, and I suppose this thread is as good as any to point out members that offer the truly extraordinary levels of knowledge on certain topics. A botanical expert badge for Ringworm and Muskogee Herbman, a harm reduction expert badge for Endlessness, a master herbalist badge for Dox Buxin, and a big fat shroom for Loveall's extensive mushroom research come readily to mind.

Perhaps we could add a skills section to the user profile page, where users can profess their own unique skillsets, in addition to the community bestowed badges?

some ppl need badges, otheres don't need no stinkin badges JK

I have ninja skills!!

Please add a ninja badge to my profile! Thanks!

Servicemen badge... I’m an army vet (combat medic) and I know a veterans badge doesn’t particularly pertain to dmt but many veterans are advocates for psychedelics because they help them with ptsd. I feel like a veterans badge would help to distinguish the community from just any regular group of people. It help show that we’re not all just a bunch of hippies(excuse my politically incorrectness) but a community made up of strong and intelligent people. We are a community made up of doctors, chemists, horticulturists, and VETERANS... this should be added to the nexus. Most def

... and artists

So an artist badge would be useful to exclude one's statement/post from valuation!

I suggest a physicist badge.

Physics and psychedlics can cross paths when discussing the nature of reality. It may be helpful to know which members have a formal physics background.

What do physics and psychedlics have in common? They both question established notions of reality through experimentation


Cheers.

Loveall, is the heart icon beneath your avatar a forum issued badge?

No, it is just a unicode character which I added to my profile: 💖

Neat, thanks for the info!

I would love an NPC badge.
But I can't be the only person who had a mild aversion to the word badge...

Badgers scare me.
Except those with merit.
Merry badgers are OK.
I was a boy scout once.

that would be funny if I had a turntable badge.
I have been known to mix music in chat, anywhere from half an hour, to my longest set, six hrs.

got my first flask about 9 years ago, when I really dropped a ton of chem knowledge on the forum and spectra, working at the university. then the gold one once I got into industry (doing quality control). Good with the badges, now I'm a resident. They truly reflect my passion in life.

I love the idea of an NPC badge hah! what about a chatroom addict badge?

It's not a habit it's cool.

I can stop anytime I want, I just don't want to today.

i just need a little something to help me through the day.

I don't know what your talking about, I don't even know what a hypertoad is.