Hmmm...
I have, sadly, had the sense that I'm not getting as much "juice" lately. With occasional exceptions, when I write on certain "hot" topics. But I really have so many different things I want to / need to write about, I can't be worrying all the time about attracting powerful upvotes.
Guess I'm not very good at "gaming" the system. ;)
Hey, thanks again for the references and explanation. :D