Yeah, I know that the weighted calculation is the "correct" one, but I noticed that my small upvotes on average provide better efficiency, so if I want to optimize my curation efforts, the weighted calculation would distort my progress.
Based on the efficiency numbers shown on steemworld, I bet that I can improve my curation by using more small upvotes (which I will try now). Maybe you as a mathematician can explain why this is going to improve my efficiency and give me higher curation rewards in total. Because I don't understand 100% why it seems to work this way.
Yes, I discovered this some time ago: increasing smaller votes gives better returns... It's a consequence of binomial distribution, assuming one has an edge to start with, that edge increases ;-)
If you're mixing strategies with the same account then, yes, you may wish to separate the earning-strategy from just upvoting friends and good posts.