Mark Wyner :vm: on Nostr: Have you heard the theoretical origin story of the Cobra Effect, which is a Perverse ...

Have you heard the theoretical origin story of the Cobra Effect, which is a Perverse Incentive?

In colonized India, the Brits were concerned about the vast population of cobras. So they offered a bounty on them.

Indians gamed the system, breeding cobras and selling them for the bounty. When the Brits found out, breeders released them into the wild. This is the Cobra Effect.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perverse_incentive

#Psychology #Incentives #CobraEffect #PerverseIncentive #India #UK #Colonization