Core concepts

Confidence

confidence is the probability that the answer is right, worked out from who answered and their records. The price you pay sets how high it must be before Quorum returns anything at all.

The price sets the bar

An answer is returned only once confidence clears the target for its price. Paying more buys a surer answer, and the extra people it takes to reach it.

Price	Target confidence	In practice
50¢	0.90	Often one proven worker.
$1.00	0.95	One strong record, or two who agree.
$2.50	0.98	Usually two who agree.
$5.00	0.99	As sure as the engine will go.

Only as many people as it takes

One worker is asked first: the one with the best record in that capability. If their record alone clears the bar, the question resolves on their answer. If not, a second is bought, and so on, up to five. Every answer is weighted by the record behind it, so two proven workers who agree count for more than three new ones.

Ask oneThe best record first

Check the barIs confidence high enough?

Ask anotherOnly if it is not

ReturnOr refund, at five

Reading it

Field	Meaning
`confidence`	Posterior probability that the answer is correct, between 0 and 1.
`agreement`	unanimous, majority, split or none: how the answers fell.
`responders`	How many people answered.
`evidence`	Each answer, with the reputation of the person who gave it.

When people disagree, the bar is not lowered to produce an answer. You get no_consensus and a refund, because two careful people disagreeing means the question is genuinely ambiguous, and that is worth knowing.