Bitcoin, Cryptocurrencies & The Future of Money (1 Viewer)

[Laron]

laron submitted a new transients.info article.

Bitcoin, Cryptocurrencies & The Future of Money

Neha Narula talks about the future of money in this TED talk. Cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin and Ethereum, are becoming the future of money.

In such a world where digital currency is becoming the norm, humans and institutions are removed from the loop along with any former friction that was caused because of them.

The webbot, with Clif High interpreting the data over at Half Past Human, has been forecasting for years the fact that Bitcoin was going to get very popular and that it would be a good option for people to invest in. This sixteen minute talk is useful for understanding why this is the case and why it has already become as popular as it has.

Cryptocurrneices are based on an area of mathematics called cryptography. Cryptography is about...
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[Stargazer]

In such a world where digital currency is becoming the norm, humans and institutions are removed from the loop along with any former friction that was caused because of them.

One of the concerns I have with any form of "digital" money is that it is dependent upon technology. A pocket full of cash spends a lot better in a power outage than an IOU or a check.

The other thing is that any kind of digital funds (while certainly convenient--and wholly appropriate for routine bill-paying, etc.) can be controlled, confiscated, tracked, or disallowed at the push of a button by those who control the technology. It's not that I would ever purchase anything illegal, but frankly, it's not anyone else's business where I spend my money or what I buy with it.

There comes a point where a society that depends upon technology for its very life also depends upon those who control the technology. I'm not very comfortable with that--and that's definitely not the kind of future I'm interested in experiencing.

 

[Laron]

The other thing is that any kind of digital funds (while certainly convenient--and wholly appropriate for routine bill-paying, etc.) can be controlled, confiscated, tracked, or disallowed at the push of a button by those who control the technology. It's not that I would ever purchase anything illegal, but frankly, it's not anyone else's business where I spend my money or what I buy with it.

That's a common misconception about these new cryptocurrencies as they can't be controlled like that. With bitcoin, because transactions are shared globally it's pretty much impossible to manipulate or shut down the system. You don't need the internet working 100% for Bitcoin to still be an option because of this reason. You could just have a local network and it would still function for example.

It's usefulness therefore depends on how many people decide to use it.

I think that a good backup to using a system like bitcoin is to invest in precious metals.

 

[Kristiina]

That's a common misconception about these new cryptocurrencies as they can't be controlled like that. With bitcoin, because transactions are shared globally it's pretty much impossible to manipulate or shut down the system. You don't need the internet working 100% for Bitcoin to still be an option because of this reason. You could just have a local network and it would still function for example.

It's usefulness therefore depends on how many people decide to use it.

I think that a good backup to using a system like bitcoin is to invest in precious metals.

Yes, agree. I also like to point out that bitcoin (or other crypto currencies) and precious metals are one way to solve the fundamental problem with current system, which is a fiat money system controlled by governments and central banks. That system is fundamentally broken, allowing also "too big to fail" banks to generate huge profits by taking high risks in stock markets, creating derivatives etc. and when SHTF, our governments are saving them by creating new money into market.

 

[Jenny]

Perhaps the best form of exchange to get the things you need or can't create yourself, is bartering?

No reliance on elec-trickery, and pretty much most people have something - knowledge, practical skills, healing, love being just a few - they can contribute. It seems to me that cryptocurrencies are just another form of money, or even precious metals for that matter. Better for everyone if we had a number of things that can be traded with rather than just one thing that is marked as 'currency'.

 

[Marilyn]

We are already dependent on technology and we already have a digital financial system, but right now it's a centralized one, which is what makes it corrupt and doomed. Andreas Antonopolous (see him on youtube) is great at explaining. In order to decrease their control over our productivity we need to remove our consent by using decentralized, peer to peer systems, like Bitcoin.

 

[Snowmelt]

I find it interesting that the stone currency format the YAP are using (intriguing) has the concept of the void or place of potential in the centre, surrounded by the substance. This symbology of a circle with an empty centre is found in many ancient cultures, notably Chinese. The coins of ancient China (Song through Qing dynasties) were made of copper and had square cut holes in a round coin format. This was only changed at the appearance of the Yuan. Original British settlements in parts of Canada (Prince Edward Island) and Australia (New South Wales) had a "Holey Dollar". They used Spanish Dollars and just punched out the middle, to create a new coin!