AIM Framework glossary
Buffer-Converting Property
Canonical definition
The Buffer-Converting Property is the property of Mimetic Premium extraction under the Unidirectional PM Flow Principle by which each Micro-Extraction Event converts A-I Buffer into Mimetic Premium, rather than redistributing Mimetic Premium that already exists. The attention, deference and positional concessions that flow upward are resources that would otherwise sustain horizontal cooperation, mutual aid and shared I-engagement. Each extraction therefore both raises the higher-Status party's capacity to extract and lowers the society's total buffering capacity. Because the extraction draws on the A-I Buffer and not on the pool of Mimetic Premium itself, it is not self-limiting.
Explanation
Status extraction does not just move standing from the bottom to the top. It is paid for out of the trust and cooperation that hold a society together, so every transfer makes the top stronger and the whole weaker at the same time, and the gap widens from both ends.
Epistemic status
Framework-Specific Construct.