I hope that a Steem developer who understands the ins and outs of the upvote functions answers this question. I can only give an opinion.
One fact about the upvote button is that it is still in beta, so it remains to be seen how it will develope.
Furthermore, I am interested in doing science on Steem; the upvote button can be used by scientists to vet other scientists work. The button could evolve into a very sophisticated tool; something more than just rating an article. For example there could be percentage of a vote where you vote can give 50% or 25% of your vote and approval.
I upvote this article because it poses an important question to the community.
Thank, really thanks