In June 2019 (international date), Microsoft filed a patent and in March 2020 it was made public. The patent is in process and has not been approved as of the date of this thread. The abstract reads:
The internet went into a flutter about the "mark of the beast", 5G, implants, and so on. The debunkers went the other direction. The filing number is WO/2020/060606, which does contain 3 sixes. Also, the mark does reference buying and selling, and the technology is for mining cryptos. 5G is not mentioned, but as internet speed would be a component, it follows 5G would be desirable. The abstract says nothing about implants but does mention devices, so anything is possible.
Leaving all this aside, what does this patent mean? Popular Mechanics and PC Magazine (both mainstream sources) give pretty good descriptions.
Devices attached or installed, as well as monitoring body fluid flow and organ activity sound like some intense and invasive activities. Looking at how call centers were moved overseas because of cheaper labor, as well as the well-known sweatshops producing our cheap clothing, suggests the same thing could happen with this product. Line people up in front of screens, attach some device, and collect the data. If the people are good enough, then they would get cryptos.
I'm sure the Greenies will be all over this as a way to reduce pollution. Yet, my thought is to the potential inner pollution of a person. People already have their heads down on their phones and zone out in front of Netflix. The possibility of being paid for it would be so enticing. Perhaps there could be something good in this, but then I look at who filed the patent and think - No.
Human body activity associated with a task provided to a user may be used in a mining process of a cryptocurrency system. A server may provide a task to a device of a user which is communicatively coupled to the server. A sensor communicatively coupled to or comprised in the device of the user may sense body activity of the user. Body activity data may be generated based on the sensed body activity of the user. The cryptocurrency system communicatively coupled to the device of the user may verify if the body activity data satisfies one or more conditions set by the cryptocurrency system, and award cryptocurrency to the user whose body activity data is verified. https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=WO2020060606&tab=PCTBIBLIO
The internet went into a flutter about the "mark of the beast", 5G, implants, and so on. The debunkers went the other direction. The filing number is WO/2020/060606, which does contain 3 sixes. Also, the mark does reference buying and selling, and the technology is for mining cryptos. 5G is not mentioned, but as internet speed would be a component, it follows 5G would be desirable. The abstract says nothing about implants but does mention devices, so anything is possible.
Leaving all this aside, what does this patent mean? Popular Mechanics and PC Magazine (both mainstream sources) give pretty good descriptions.
While cryptocurrency mining is automated, it's also a major energy hog. Research in the journal Joule estimates that Bitcoin mining generates 22.9 metric tons of carbon emissions a year, which is the same amount the entire country of Jordan produces annually.
Now, Microsoft thinks it has a solution: using your brainwaves to mine bitcoin.
The concept, as outlined in a March 26 patent application, sounds pretty strange, but it's really just a way to replace the involved computation work that usually verifies Bitcoin transactions, for example.
"Instead of massive computation work required by some conventional cryptocurrency systems, data generated based on the body activity of the user can be a proof-of-work, and therefore, a user can solve the computationally difficult problem unconsciously," the inventors write in the patent application's summary. "Accordingly, certain exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure may reduce computational energy for the mining process as well as make the mining process faster."
Crypto mining is decentralized because no single server handles all of the transactions. Instead, cryptocurrency relies on blockchain technology. We're specifically talking about proof-of-work, which is the consensus algorithm blockchain depends on to confirm transactions.
Let's say you send your friend a digital token. Behind the scenes, "miners"—essentially a network of computers—compete against each other to complete the transaction, which results in a reward. To mine crypto, like Bitcoin, the computers must solve some sort of mathematical puzzle, and whichever miner does it first finishes the transaction.
In the process, these competing computers consume loads of electricity, which explains some of Microsoft's motivation. As the company describes in the patent application, while a person watches an advertisement or conducts some other simple internet task, sensors can monitor their brain activity. Because these actions are largely unconscious work, they aren't massively draining to the person.
Each cognitive task would be assigned a pattern of numbers, depending on how much effort was put in. If that string matches the target, it's considered a proof-of-work, and the transaction may be completed. Using the brainwaves as a stand-in would take some light effort on the part of the human involved, but would save massively on electricity. https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/a32318654/microsoft-brainwaves-mine-cryptocurrency/
So, the human would watch certain programs or ads with a device attached, and the device would record the brainwaves. I presume the brainwaves are expected to fall within a particular range, which then would be proof of completing the algorithm. Have to stop and laugh here because I suspect a number of people on this site would not deliver the desired results. "Wait, that's not right. I don't agree." and so on.In order to access this validation data, the human user would need to have a sensor attached to, or installed in, their body. Microsoft envisages users being rewarded for allowing their bodies to be monitored in this way by paying them in cryptocurrency for performing specific tasks.
As well as brain waves and heat, the patent also suggests using "body fluid flow" and "organ activity and movement" to track a range of tasks including using social media, search engines, email, visiting websites, or using chatbots. https://uk.pcmag.com/personal-finance/126703/microsoft-patent-describes-tracking-brain-activity-to-mine-cryptocurrency
Devices attached or installed, as well as monitoring body fluid flow and organ activity sound like some intense and invasive activities. Looking at how call centers were moved overseas because of cheaper labor, as well as the well-known sweatshops producing our cheap clothing, suggests the same thing could happen with this product. Line people up in front of screens, attach some device, and collect the data. If the people are good enough, then they would get cryptos.
The patent states that certain tasks would reduce or increase computational energy accordingly, depending on how much activity they generate. The cryptocurrency system using human body activity data would most likely work through a server giving a command to a wearable device.
At this stage, Microsoft hasn’t yet stated whether this new cryptocurrency will be based on any blockchain in particular or whether the software giant will create its own framework. It’s also not certain whether this new cryptocurrency will actually go ahead. But, in case you were thinking about using human brain waves to replace hash power, sorry, Microsoft patented it first. https://bitcoinist.com/microsoft-wants-to-replace-asics-with-basic-humans/
I'm sure the Greenies will be all over this as a way to reduce pollution. Yet, my thought is to the potential inner pollution of a person. People already have their heads down on their phones and zone out in front of Netflix. The possibility of being paid for it would be so enticing. Perhaps there could be something good in this, but then I look at who filed the patent and think - No.
