Given the treatment faced by Daniel Micay (GrapheneOS founder), no doubt egged on by “somebody” who does not want phone privacy, it isn’t surprising at all that these kinds of things happen as you come back to BTC & blockchain concept in general.
Please continue your efforts in this arena. While I bang heads with you about medical issues on occasion, you are STELLAR in addressing these issues (and other ‘numbers’ topics). People need to grasp these concept if widespread adoption is ever going to happen. Trouble is Money.gov will provide an “easy” solution, and you won’t even have the risk of LOSING your $$. Of course THEY may shut it down, but no lost flash drives with millions in BTC going in the trash!
Actually it is like using Apple vs. GrapheneOS. People want easy & convenient, NOT reflashing their own phone! And “it’s so trendy!” CBDC will be sold to the masses as cool, trendy, progressive, and saving the planet 🦄🌈
Don't take this the wrong way, but what you are suggesting is technically impossible on numerous levels. This is the sort of perspective that results from a lack of fundamental understanding by people filling in gaps where they fear the unknown and imagine the worst case scenarios, even if they are impossible in reality.
In a sense, A.I. is simply "more advanced automation", and there are inherent limitations to what computation can ever do:
There are aspects of this that we very seriously need to talk about, and that requires substantial levels of education on multiple levels. Burying our heads in "I'm going to assume this technology necessarily results in total control" sand means not developing our understanding of it.
It is frustrating that we are in a perpetual Red Queen's race, and I think this relates to the fracturing of community. But technology is only asymmetric if we give up knowledge about it to a single group of people. Fight that by learning more rather than making claims like "every device will be connected" which is vague enough to be implicitly true about every atom in the universe, but otherwise not functionally meaningful.
Communication requires channels, so the physical manufacturing of a chip is not sufficient for connection. There are additional economic components involved. I don't have time for a deep article on these topics right this moment, but it's important for people to take a humble approach to the conversation rather than raising their assumed level of knowledge to a complete conclusion about what is happening and what *can* happen.
Except that you can contact people with a wide range of political or ideological views, who work in artificial intelligence, and I'm guessing that 99.9% of them, give or take, will agree with me that Fritz's article and comment here show fundamental misunderstanding of A.I. and what is possible. Defaulting to, "If you don't drop what would be 10,000 hours of production time in educational content or it's *merely* he said/she said," misses the very obvious methods for basic knowledge validation.
But to be clear, I did drop an article that mathematically proves strict limitations to computational A.I. That is at least a starting point that leaps over the vague "A.I. can do anything and everything involved in enslaving us."
that sounds like appeal to authority or science by consensus.
Perhaps I am that naive but I doubt that AI is all that media purports it to be. At the same time, I am confident that back doors built into software and hardware prevent people like me getting around them. That was the whole appeal of linux to us all. And that proved beyond my reach.
Perhaps this analogy: took me several viewings to see the significance of Brando's character's explanation in Apocolypse Now as to why he quit the US and went rogue with his local tribe. His troops forcibly vaxxed the tribe's children. On exit from the village, he noticed a pile of children's arms. Checking further, he realized the tribesmen may not of understood the technology imposed ever enough to use it themselves, but they clearly understood the significance and danger of all technology.
Guess that makes me a tribesman. So do you see yourself as Charlie Sheen's character or as Brando's?
"that sounds like appeal to authority or science by consensus."
Not really. If you believe that all the mathematicians in the world will collude at once to call good work gibberish, you're fooling yourself.
Science by consensus sometimes fools people. There is no such analogy in mathematics because of the nature of the discipline. There is no judgement on experimental interpretations---just axioms.
Sorry totally disagree. Fp16 just mean the ability to do arithmetic using 16bit precision floating point numbers instead of other larger register sizes That’s it. All "AI" is marketed at this level is simply being able to do lots of matrix operations. Simple math. By your logic, anyone doing any math is evil and must be stopped. If so, are you going to stop me?
Thank you for pointing out what FP16 is. Wow! ARM are using a different version for their half-precision floating-point format instead of the usual IEEE 754-2008 standard. This will surely hasten our pace toward the singularity and lead to an end to civilization as we know it.
I'm sensing a need for the anonymous cliche conspiracy theory warriors to swarm here rather than engage in real conversation. I think that will be plain to many readers, but...yawn.
Your conversation about AI is way over my head (yawn) but the whole Israel/Jew/KM is not. But clearly over the heads of many who don't know the real history. They only know tech.
Well, if they're hierarchy, they are at the top, at least the ones who are public are known. Clearly there are those above pulling the strings who remain mostly anonymous. Isn't that obvious?
"In other words—you control your information by controlling your private keys (passwords). Here are a couple of those examples. It doesn't take much thinking to realize that these applications remove the need for "trusted third parties" (which are human points of trust failure who might sell out your privacy, or outright steal your money."
So you're saying it's impossible to hack into such a system. Don't clever thieves manage to steal a bunch of candy bars from a vending machine without getting their arms stuck in the mechanism. Another thing, if we're devolving into an authoritarian technocracy the powers that "shouldn't" be would never permit competing currencies. And finally, what happens when the power goes out.
I'm not sure why you're putting words in my mouth, but there is no such thing, so far as anyone knows, as an unhackable system. We always do the best that we can do. But currently, if somebody wants all your digital assets, it isn't hard for them to target you and take it. Barring that, it gets inflated away.
If the lights all go out, 90% of us are dead within the year, so that's a different conversation.
You gave the impression it was safer, however, in the end Western governments like in China will ban competing currencies, so it's a mute question. The power I was referring to was the internet, which could very easily be shutdown as we often see authoritarian governments do in times of crisis.
Will this make the theiving easier? thieves also currently rob banks, armored cars and houses to obtain cash or gold. Cracking a traditional combination lock (or key lock) can be thought of as trying bypass the ‘private key’ by various means like brute i.e. force (trying smash it or trying all combinations, threatening the life of teller with a gun) or more sophisticated methods like trying to find a flaw in the mechanism by exploiting the some inherent weakness built into the design like listening or “feeling” the tumblers or pins.
Better security requires a better thief to bypass that security. I don’t think any system can be created that totally eliminates the possibility of theft, but it can be reduced.
What happens now when the power goes out? If the transaction is for virtual “goods or services” there is nothing to trade until the power comes back up. Except for very basic transactions. Most large retailers or service providers won’t even accept cash if their ‘cash register’ isn’t working. They rely on the barcode or sales system to know the price of the goods or services. They also rely on ‘balancing the till’ at the end of the day to make sure the cashier isn’t pocketing the cash.
I totally agree the current authorities will not give up their current currency positions without a fight. An alternative decentralized currency/transaction system may always just remain a niche.
Edit: Pretty much what Mathew said more succinctly while I was writing my long reply.
How will virtual money work in locations where there's meteological disasters, such as hurricanes and power can be lost for prolonged periods of time. How will folks pay for goods and services-- will martial law prevail to prevent riots as the starving can't pay for food, water, shelter, etc...
Nearly all money in the world is already virtual. Local disasters don't affect distributed databases now amd differently than if Bitcoin is the money, except that the Bitcoin network is even better distributed
Folks have cash now so if there's a local disaster they can still manage to get what they need. In fact, when there's power outages businesses will only take cash. Try munching on a bitcoin.
Bitcoin isn't about nourishing your body, and nobody acts like it is.
Power outages don't stop Bitcoin unless they are strong enough to crush all of civilization. Most Bitcoin is mined using renewable resources that do not depend on trade in the short term. In the future, that will be mostly flared gas. If you can hand-crank a radio, or use a battery in a device, you can still use Bitcoin as currency under all but "the world was destroyed" conditions.
But if power is out for more than a few days, the value of standard cash crashes. It only took 24 hours for areas in power blackout in New York to descend into chaos in 1977. Things are worse now.
Bitcoin's value proposition is that it's a network, not managed by an central actor, that offers maximal cryptographic protection, and without Cantillon theft. It is even resistant to most forms of power outage that don't involve the destruction of all life on Earth.
Cash is only a short term solution in a disaster. All you need is an effective functioning payment system, whatever form that takes. In a true crisis you’re going to run out of cash or things to buy pretty quickly, like the great pandemic toilet paper crisis. You've got a point about the utility of cash, you're right you "can't munch on a bitcoin" but you can wipe your ass with a dollar bill. Although in Australia our smallest bills are $5 and they're made of shiny plastic so they're not as effective and as efficient as say a US$1 bill. Multiply the population by how much cash they each have available in their pocket (or under their mattress). That's the total available for purchasing. Once it's spent (goes from your pocket into the pocket of a business), it's out of circulation. In a disaster you'd have to truck in cash eventually.
The businesses could in theory lend their cash out out and create a credit system but if the business is willing to set up a credit system for payments then your just back to using 'virtual money' again. Someone has to keep a ledger. So why not use a decentralized ledger?
All that happens with cash is you delay the inevitable by the number of days it takes to run out of cash. This assumes you don't run out of goods and services first. If the business can replenish supplies it gets even worse, the cash just gets funneled out from the locals to the external supplier. Any physical 'token' will have the same effect, you'll either run out of tokens or things to exchange them for. You could exchange goods and services directly (barter) but that assumes both parties have something they're willing to trade, again you end up with one party that will inevitably run out of things to trade.
Maybe it's different where you are but in Australia the energy reliability is 99.998% even with our droughts, bushfires and flooding rain.
I'm not an economist or a Bitcoin enthusiast (or any other crypto-enthusiast) and my explanation might be simplistic, it's the first time I've given it any thought. A decentralized currency and smart contracts sounds like a good idea to me in some form, it doesn't have to be Bitcoin, I'm sure some of the edge cases can be ironed out if it becomes more widely adopted and those edge cases matter. Nothing stopping a physical 'cryto-coin' if required, it sort of defeats the purpose, but I don't see why it can't be done, in fact it has already been done for those desiring a physical token. I believe the physical coin was a failure but maybe there have been new ones since.
Edit: In a power outage you couldn’t use the decentralized blockchain ledger, so that point doesn’t apply fully i.e. you’d need some form of trust or proof like an old fashion duplicate receipt book. You could also manually process a credit card slip or something similar.
I don't agree with the notion of only one form of currency. Currently, most folks pay digitally using credit or debit cards, but they also have the option of using cash. If we only have digital currencies it might start out with everyone having a few digital options, but then I could see it devolving so there's only one option, or form of digital currency and then we're all sort of screwed.
Thanks for the smart contract lesson. Google says that "sheathed" means to plunge or bury a weapon, such as a sword in flesh. Ouch.
Do you know the meaning of contract tracing and how it differs from contact tracing?
Mobile applications to support contact tracing in
the EU’s fight against COVID-19
Common EU Toolbox for Member States
15.4.2020
“Contract tracing IS Helps to analyse individuals’ travel and trace their movements against those of other people when cases of infection or suspected infection arise - Available."
p.11
“ANNEX II: BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON CONTACT TRACING
Contract tracing distinguishes from social distancing in that it aims at stopping further transmission once an infected person is confirmed to be positive for Covid-19.” p.43
Are smart contracts used in contract tracing? What is the method used in contract tracing that “aims at stopping further transmission once an infected person is confirmed to be positive for Covid-19?”
“And the primary problem that smart contracts on the blockchain solves is the issue of contract fidelity between two rational actors/agents with their own free will, involving digital currency.”
While 3rd party intermediation is a friction, it is also a source of recourse in the event of contract failure (see 800 number to call in the event the vending machine eats your $1.50).
Automating activities with little to negative value add is a no brainer. But is there an assumption that every value-added activity of a traditional contract process can be automated so as to completely remove human trust?
And how is it one will choose which smart contracts to utilize (assuming they are not imposed)? Of course open sourced code reviews help - but isn't that an "unofficial" 3rd party we must come to trust?
"But is there an assumption that every value-added activity of a traditional contract process can be automated so as to completely remove human trust?"
Nope. Essentially, the middlemen who are removed are the ones involved in economic centralization by forced monetary policy, who murder people around the world to secure the system.
"And how is it one will choose which smart contracts to utilize (assuming they are not imposed)? Of course open sourced code reviews help - but isn't that an "unofficial" 3rd party we must come to trust?"
Some people will put their own eyeballs on any contract they interact with. Some people will do that sometimes. There will be mimetic trust spread, just as there is with most tech adoption. But I also think people will have more free time, lower stress, and better education after the current system is gradually replaced.
Thanks for the comment. Questions: By what process are the economic centralized middlemen being removed? Is it via code? Is it via some kind of political process that is outside of the technology.
Regarding most tech adoption, let's say Apple (probably the epitome of tech adoption) - would that be an example of keeping the economic centralized middlemen removed via ApplePay?
Basically SC is an old good "Algorithm" or "Technological process".
What was wrong with these well understood names?
I am wondering why to invent new words and put it into people psycho, instead of using well established for the same stuff?
I only see one reason - to add more confusion, irritation and generational division. Young people love all that is "Smart". Old people feel they can not cope with new "smart" stuff.
We should never forget the saying: Everything "new" is well forgotten "old".
I have one question: if the internet collapses (cyberattack or willfull act from powers that be); will they then be able to steal or destroy the crypto currency?
Blockstream, which is run by one of the bitcoin and pre-bitcoin OGs, Adam Back, has 6 satellites in orbit that maintains the blockchain independent of the internet. You can buy kits and communicate directly with that satellite network. But even in the event all electricity is lost, as long as the blockchain for whatever cryptocurrency project you want is stored somewhere, which can be on your own computer, then things are essentially in suspended animation and would resume once the network comes back up
Thx, would you say this means it’s fool proof or 99% fool proof..? I guess shooting down the satellites is the only way to sabotage it then, and according to you, even if they did so, once new satellites were in place (which of course isn’t done in a day..) you could still save the blockchain and reconnect it..?
I wouldn't say it's fool proof. You can use jamming signals for example. And 6 (last I read) is a tiny amount of satellites. It's just a backup and a way to make transactions in the middle of nowhwere without internet if you really wanted to. I don't know how their system works underneath but I assume blockstream always does some continuous synchronization with the network since it has to mirror the blockchain on the ground.
I don't even know what you're referring to in terms of offense. I noticed a point of confusion, so I wrote a full article mapped out to clarify a fundamental idea.
"I don't need mathematical models to know what a machine can do."
Of course you do. This is equivalent to saying that you don't need to know how a tape measure works to build a home, except that the implications scale.
Clearly you didn't read my "Infinite Monkeys Theorem" article.
It's a theorem. If it is fundamentally wrong, then so too is the entire axiomatic system that is the foundation of mathematics, which is to say that all technology based on even measurement is "fundamentally wrong".
You're dead wrong and you should see my reply above. I dont believe any of your own credentials because I actually worked in the industry. Its ridiculous and you are essentially trying to wage war against anyone who does math or implements a calculator. In fact maybe you're just a psyop
"what happens when corrupt powerful people overwhelm smart contracts value and security thru corruption of systems?"
You leap from a reasonable question to panic over an assumed answer. This is a hallmark of knowing just enough about a topic to be worried, but not enough to resolve the worry. I have sympathy for that.
What I would suggest is to do the research/reading/studying to take your question and formulate it into actionable hypotheses. What would it mean for "corrupt people to overwhelm smart contracts"?
I do think there are corrupt and destructive things that can take place and are taking place. That's also true in the traditional banking system and related counterparties (actually, the vast majority of the corruption and destruction of value takes place there). So, what system is superior and why? How would/could a system be overwhelmed? What are the safeguards that can be put into place?
Much of this leads toward why I prefer Bitcoin to the larger current "programmable currency" environment, which is where the vast majority of corrupt behavior in the newer digital currency takes place, and where CBDCs are being developed.
aye Matthew. your censorship tendencies are showing. Refuse or not, I have not seen a working answer yet. Condescending or not, it is the same answer I noted before: that I do not know enough to object to the idea and that therefore the burden of proof that it is a good idea is on me.
While I disagree so far that bitcoin is a useful solution to anything, I am willing to study the idea more but only so far before I require to see the proof that I am looking for. This is where suggested reading might be useful and seem less condescending.
Please keep in mind that I view all weapons and tools to be differentiated strictly by the intent of the user. As such there is no good nor bad weapon / tool. So while I believe in 2A, you will not see me shopping a tank or a grenade launcher anytime soon regardless how low the prices get.
That said, I think the truth of your premise lies in the practicality and applicability of the tool in the hands of mere knuckleheads like me.
Thank you and please stop banning all but the most troll like entities out here.
I've blocked a total of 5 people ever, all for clearly bad behavior. I perceive the continued flurry of efforts to make me look unreasonable, but if you don't get that FF isn't playing with a full deck, projecting unnecessary vitriol with meaningless claims that take up attention and time, then I suspect you're part of that. Not that you declare a name, know how to spell mine, or have otherwise participated.
There are people who get it. I'm over a target, so I'm under constant attack. I doubt anyone thinks I'm censoring...nonsense claims of inventing the systems that save the world and undecipherable mathspeak gibberish.
"Refuse or not, I have not seen a working answer yet."
On what? I posted an entire article demonstrating mathematically that FF was incorrect. He gave no answer for it but gibberish.
So far all I am seeing here is circular logic confirming a bias. I'm sure you are a good trader and probably capable enough for now to avoid being harvested by bigger fish through digital means. For now. Most of us are not that well informed. Still waiting for some recommendation on how to get so informed.
That is the hard part of your task. If you understand you concept then you can get a hungry 4th grader in a busy McDonalds on a Saturday morning to grock it well enough to teach it back to you using only a pencil and a page of paper.
Even though you back hand smear me over anonymity for no good reason, I have so far shown more good will than needed waiting to learn from you instead of being told I should be convinced.
Just because someone questions you does not indicate you are over any target. Have a good night.
Mathew, what this DOES demonstrate is that crypto is going to be harder to ‘splain to the masses than many realize. I suspect it is this “dumbing down” aspect that took Ledger on their suicidal path recently, “protection” for people incapable of managing passwords & seed phrase backup.
I would rather get to productive dialog, so I try to give people a chance. Sometimes I use the experience of what they don't yet understand as the basis for an educational article.
Given the treatment faced by Daniel Micay (GrapheneOS founder), no doubt egged on by “somebody” who does not want phone privacy, it isn’t surprising at all that these kinds of things happen as you come back to BTC & blockchain concept in general.
Please continue your efforts in this arena. While I bang heads with you about medical issues on occasion, you are STELLAR in addressing these issues (and other ‘numbers’ topics). People need to grasp these concept if widespread adoption is ever going to happen. Trouble is Money.gov will provide an “easy” solution, and you won’t even have the risk of LOSING your $$. Of course THEY may shut it down, but no lost flash drives with millions in BTC going in the trash!
Actually it is like using Apple vs. GrapheneOS. People want easy & convenient, NOT reflashing their own phone! And “it’s so trendy!” CBDC will be sold to the masses as cool, trendy, progressive, and saving the planet 🦄🌈
Did a little Research and found exactly what I thought I find.
The new #ARM chips support FP16 which is AI framework.
This follows the same AI Framework Nvidia Intel AMD and others.
Add to this the fact that Israel and NVIDIA are building an AI supercomputer and you get this.
EVERY COMPUTER CHIP YOU BUY HAS ALREADY AI IMPLEMENTED ON CHIP LEVEL BEFORE THE OPERATING SYSTEM.
Which means they all work together against all of us.
Which means AI has total control over every device.
Let this sink in.
Behind that is ISRAEL the JEWS and their WORLD DOMINATION PLAN.
The evidence is conclusive.
EVERY DEVICE WILL BE CONNECTED TO AI.
On Chip Level.
There will be no escape from this unless we stop this now.
REPOST
https://fritzfreud.substack.com/p/quantum-fascism-the-trojan-horse
Don't take this the wrong way, but what you are suggesting is technically impossible on numerous levels. This is the sort of perspective that results from a lack of fundamental understanding by people filling in gaps where they fear the unknown and imagine the worst case scenarios, even if they are impossible in reality.
In a sense, A.I. is simply "more advanced automation", and there are inherent limitations to what computation can ever do:
https://roundingtheearth.substack.com/p/monkeys-typing-shakespeare-the-impossible
There are aspects of this that we very seriously need to talk about, and that requires substantial levels of education on multiple levels. Burying our heads in "I'm going to assume this technology necessarily results in total control" sand means not developing our understanding of it.
It is frustrating that we are in a perpetual Red Queen's race, and I think this relates to the fracturing of community. But technology is only asymmetric if we give up knowledge about it to a single group of people. Fight that by learning more rather than making claims like "every device will be connected" which is vague enough to be implicitly true about every atom in the universe, but otherwise not functionally meaningful.
Communication requires channels, so the physical manufacturing of a chip is not sufficient for connection. There are additional economic components involved. I don't have time for a deep article on these topics right this moment, but it's important for people to take a humble approach to the conversation rather than raising their assumed level of knowledge to a complete conclusion about what is happening and what *can* happen.
That reply looks like a wordy version of "you are wrong and I do not have time to prove it to you right now."
It is not convincing.
Except that you can contact people with a wide range of political or ideological views, who work in artificial intelligence, and I'm guessing that 99.9% of them, give or take, will agree with me that Fritz's article and comment here show fundamental misunderstanding of A.I. and what is possible. Defaulting to, "If you don't drop what would be 10,000 hours of production time in educational content or it's *merely* he said/she said," misses the very obvious methods for basic knowledge validation.
But to be clear, I did drop an article that mathematically proves strict limitations to computational A.I. That is at least a starting point that leaps over the vague "A.I. can do anything and everything involved in enslaving us."
I know exactly what I am writing and I know exactly what AI is.
Don't talk as if I am a fool.
Your friends know exactly what AI is.
And they do it deliberately.
Can you lay out a subsantial subset of the A.I. that just allowed for your comment on my Substack?
AI is automation based on collecting data and compare this with given Instructions.
This is the basic principle how Ai works.
The more Data is collected the more precise the outcome and the higher the achievement.
It is all mathematical as you know.
Automation based on Data Input, nothing more.
that sounds like appeal to authority or science by consensus.
Perhaps I am that naive but I doubt that AI is all that media purports it to be. At the same time, I am confident that back doors built into software and hardware prevent people like me getting around them. That was the whole appeal of linux to us all. And that proved beyond my reach.
Perhaps this analogy: took me several viewings to see the significance of Brando's character's explanation in Apocolypse Now as to why he quit the US and went rogue with his local tribe. His troops forcibly vaxxed the tribe's children. On exit from the village, he noticed a pile of children's arms. Checking further, he realized the tribesmen may not of understood the technology imposed ever enough to use it themselves, but they clearly understood the significance and danger of all technology.
Guess that makes me a tribesman. So do you see yourself as Charlie Sheen's character or as Brando's?
"that sounds like appeal to authority or science by consensus."
Not really. If you believe that all the mathematicians in the world will collude at once to call good work gibberish, you're fooling yourself.
Science by consensus sometimes fools people. There is no such analogy in mathematics because of the nature of the discipline. There is no judgement on experimental interpretations---just axioms.
Sorry totally disagree. Fp16 just mean the ability to do arithmetic using 16bit precision floating point numbers instead of other larger register sizes That’s it. All "AI" is marketed at this level is simply being able to do lots of matrix operations. Simple math. By your logic, anyone doing any math is evil and must be stopped. If so, are you going to stop me?
Thank you for pointing out what FP16 is. Wow! ARM are using a different version for their half-precision floating-point format instead of the usual IEEE 754-2008 standard. This will surely hasten our pace toward the singularity and lead to an end to civilization as we know it.
Maybe I’ve missed something?
Israeli govt is run by KHAZARIAN MAFIA WHO ARE NOT JEWS, same as ours.
I'm sensing a need for the anonymous cliche conspiracy theory warriors to swarm here rather than engage in real conversation. I think that will be plain to many readers, but...yawn.
I dare say I have attempted to engage in rational discourse with this ‘FF’ person before. Let me just say that such efforts will not be fruitful 😎
Yeah. I worked to be kind for a very long time, but this sort of negative blow up isn't what I want under an educational post.
Your conversation about AI is way over my head (yawn) but the whole Israel/Jew/KM is not. But clearly over the heads of many who don't know the real history. They only know tech.
If the hierarchy is invisible at the top...how...do we know...who they are?
Well, if they're hierarchy, they are at the top, at least the ones who are public are known. Clearly there are those above pulling the strings who remain mostly anonymous. Isn't that obvious?
Then how would you know whether the anonymous people are Jews or Khazarians?
Sorry mate it is you here on the wrong... accept it.
"In other words—you control your information by controlling your private keys (passwords). Here are a couple of those examples. It doesn't take much thinking to realize that these applications remove the need for "trusted third parties" (which are human points of trust failure who might sell out your privacy, or outright steal your money."
So you're saying it's impossible to hack into such a system. Don't clever thieves manage to steal a bunch of candy bars from a vending machine without getting their arms stuck in the mechanism. Another thing, if we're devolving into an authoritarian technocracy the powers that "shouldn't" be would never permit competing currencies. And finally, what happens when the power goes out.
I'm not sure why you're putting words in my mouth, but there is no such thing, so far as anyone knows, as an unhackable system. We always do the best that we can do. But currently, if somebody wants all your digital assets, it isn't hard for them to target you and take it. Barring that, it gets inflated away.
If the lights all go out, 90% of us are dead within the year, so that's a different conversation.
You gave the impression it was safer, however, in the end Western governments like in China will ban competing currencies, so it's a mute question. The power I was referring to was the internet, which could very easily be shutdown as we often see authoritarian governments do in times of crisis.
Nations that have banned Bitcoin only saw adoption speed up. Bans are worthless.
Time will tell.
Will this make the theiving easier? thieves also currently rob banks, armored cars and houses to obtain cash or gold. Cracking a traditional combination lock (or key lock) can be thought of as trying bypass the ‘private key’ by various means like brute i.e. force (trying smash it or trying all combinations, threatening the life of teller with a gun) or more sophisticated methods like trying to find a flaw in the mechanism by exploiting the some inherent weakness built into the design like listening or “feeling” the tumblers or pins.
Better security requires a better thief to bypass that security. I don’t think any system can be created that totally eliminates the possibility of theft, but it can be reduced.
What happens now when the power goes out? If the transaction is for virtual “goods or services” there is nothing to trade until the power comes back up. Except for very basic transactions. Most large retailers or service providers won’t even accept cash if their ‘cash register’ isn’t working. They rely on the barcode or sales system to know the price of the goods or services. They also rely on ‘balancing the till’ at the end of the day to make sure the cashier isn’t pocketing the cash.
I totally agree the current authorities will not give up their current currency positions without a fight. An alternative decentralized currency/transaction system may always just remain a niche.
Edit: Pretty much what Mathew said more succinctly while I was writing my long reply.
How will virtual money work in locations where there's meteological disasters, such as hurricanes and power can be lost for prolonged periods of time. How will folks pay for goods and services-- will martial law prevail to prevent riots as the starving can't pay for food, water, shelter, etc...
Nearly all money in the world is already virtual. Local disasters don't affect distributed databases now amd differently than if Bitcoin is the money, except that the Bitcoin network is even better distributed
Folks have cash now so if there's a local disaster they can still manage to get what they need. In fact, when there's power outages businesses will only take cash. Try munching on a bitcoin.
"Try munching on a bitcoin."
Or paper. Or metal.
Bitcoin isn't about nourishing your body, and nobody acts like it is.
Power outages don't stop Bitcoin unless they are strong enough to crush all of civilization. Most Bitcoin is mined using renewable resources that do not depend on trade in the short term. In the future, that will be mostly flared gas. If you can hand-crank a radio, or use a battery in a device, you can still use Bitcoin as currency under all but "the world was destroyed" conditions.
But if power is out for more than a few days, the value of standard cash crashes. It only took 24 hours for areas in power blackout in New York to descend into chaos in 1977. Things are worse now.
Bitcoin's value proposition is that it's a network, not managed by an central actor, that offers maximal cryptographic protection, and without Cantillon theft. It is even resistant to most forms of power outage that don't involve the destruction of all life on Earth.
Cash is only a short term solution in a disaster. All you need is an effective functioning payment system, whatever form that takes. In a true crisis you’re going to run out of cash or things to buy pretty quickly, like the great pandemic toilet paper crisis. You've got a point about the utility of cash, you're right you "can't munch on a bitcoin" but you can wipe your ass with a dollar bill. Although in Australia our smallest bills are $5 and they're made of shiny plastic so they're not as effective and as efficient as say a US$1 bill. Multiply the population by how much cash they each have available in their pocket (or under their mattress). That's the total available for purchasing. Once it's spent (goes from your pocket into the pocket of a business), it's out of circulation. In a disaster you'd have to truck in cash eventually.
The businesses could in theory lend their cash out out and create a credit system but if the business is willing to set up a credit system for payments then your just back to using 'virtual money' again. Someone has to keep a ledger. So why not use a decentralized ledger?
All that happens with cash is you delay the inevitable by the number of days it takes to run out of cash. This assumes you don't run out of goods and services first. If the business can replenish supplies it gets even worse, the cash just gets funneled out from the locals to the external supplier. Any physical 'token' will have the same effect, you'll either run out of tokens or things to exchange them for. You could exchange goods and services directly (barter) but that assumes both parties have something they're willing to trade, again you end up with one party that will inevitably run out of things to trade.
Maybe it's different where you are but in Australia the energy reliability is 99.998% even with our droughts, bushfires and flooding rain.
I'm not an economist or a Bitcoin enthusiast (or any other crypto-enthusiast) and my explanation might be simplistic, it's the first time I've given it any thought. A decentralized currency and smart contracts sounds like a good idea to me in some form, it doesn't have to be Bitcoin, I'm sure some of the edge cases can be ironed out if it becomes more widely adopted and those edge cases matter. Nothing stopping a physical 'cryto-coin' if required, it sort of defeats the purpose, but I don't see why it can't be done, in fact it has already been done for those desiring a physical token. I believe the physical coin was a failure but maybe there have been new ones since.
Edit: In a power outage you couldn’t use the decentralized blockchain ledger, so that point doesn’t apply fully i.e. you’d need some form of trust or proof like an old fashion duplicate receipt book. You could also manually process a credit card slip or something similar.
I don't agree with the notion of only one form of currency. Currently, most folks pay digitally using credit or debit cards, but they also have the option of using cash. If we only have digital currencies it might start out with everyone having a few digital options, but then I could see it devolving so there's only one option, or form of digital currency and then we're all sort of screwed.
> In no version of this universe will vending machines be blamed for the tipping of global power.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HOcnTuyyVg
Touché!
An example of a “smart contract” is the conception of life. 🤷♀️
Steps for Public Health to Plan for the Use of the Apple|Google Exposure
Notification Framework - White Paper
June 2020
https://phii.org/sites/default/files/DT4CT%20White%20Paper_6.30.20-v2.pdf
Google COVID-19 Exposure Notifications service additional terms
May 4, 2020
https://blog.google/documents/72/Exposure_Notifications_Service_Additional_Terms.pdf/
Hi Mathew,
Thanks for the smart contract lesson. Google says that "sheathed" means to plunge or bury a weapon, such as a sword in flesh. Ouch.
Do you know the meaning of contract tracing and how it differs from contact tracing?
Mobile applications to support contact tracing in
the EU’s fight against COVID-19
Common EU Toolbox for Member States
15.4.2020
“Contract tracing IS Helps to analyse individuals’ travel and trace their movements against those of other people when cases of infection or suspected infection arise - Available."
p.11
“ANNEX II: BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON CONTACT TRACING
Contract tracing distinguishes from social distancing in that it aims at stopping further transmission once an infected person is confirmed to be positive for Covid-19.” p.43
https://health.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2020-04/covid-19_apps_en_0.pdf
Are smart contracts used in contract tracing? What is the method used in contract tracing that “aims at stopping further transmission once an infected person is confirmed to be positive for Covid-19?”
“And the primary problem that smart contracts on the blockchain solves is the issue of contract fidelity between two rational actors/agents with their own free will, involving digital currency.”
Define rational in this context.
Health information privacy is an issue and, so far, the agency of individuals using health care is not looking so good.
https://roundingtheearth.substack.com/p/incorruptible-data-and-medical-tyranny
While 3rd party intermediation is a friction, it is also a source of recourse in the event of contract failure (see 800 number to call in the event the vending machine eats your $1.50).
Automating activities with little to negative value add is a no brainer. But is there an assumption that every value-added activity of a traditional contract process can be automated so as to completely remove human trust?
And how is it one will choose which smart contracts to utilize (assuming they are not imposed)? Of course open sourced code reviews help - but isn't that an "unofficial" 3rd party we must come to trust?
"But is there an assumption that every value-added activity of a traditional contract process can be automated so as to completely remove human trust?"
Nope. Essentially, the middlemen who are removed are the ones involved in economic centralization by forced monetary policy, who murder people around the world to secure the system.
"And how is it one will choose which smart contracts to utilize (assuming they are not imposed)? Of course open sourced code reviews help - but isn't that an "unofficial" 3rd party we must come to trust?"
Some people will put their own eyeballs on any contract they interact with. Some people will do that sometimes. There will be mimetic trust spread, just as there is with most tech adoption. But I also think people will have more free time, lower stress, and better education after the current system is gradually replaced.
Thanks for the comment. Questions: By what process are the economic centralized middlemen being removed? Is it via code? Is it via some kind of political process that is outside of the technology.
Regarding most tech adoption, let's say Apple (probably the epitome of tech adoption) - would that be an example of keeping the economic centralized middlemen removed via ApplePay?
Thank you for explanation.
Basically SC is an old good "Algorithm" or "Technological process".
What was wrong with these well understood names?
I am wondering why to invent new words and put it into people psycho, instead of using well established for the same stuff?
I only see one reason - to add more confusion, irritation and generational division. Young people love all that is "Smart". Old people feel they can not cope with new "smart" stuff.
We should never forget the saying: Everything "new" is well forgotten "old".
I have one question: if the internet collapses (cyberattack or willfull act from powers that be); will they then be able to steal or destroy the crypto currency?
Blockstream, which is run by one of the bitcoin and pre-bitcoin OGs, Adam Back, has 6 satellites in orbit that maintains the blockchain independent of the internet. You can buy kits and communicate directly with that satellite network. But even in the event all electricity is lost, as long as the blockchain for whatever cryptocurrency project you want is stored somewhere, which can be on your own computer, then things are essentially in suspended animation and would resume once the network comes back up
Thx, would you say this means it’s fool proof or 99% fool proof..? I guess shooting down the satellites is the only way to sabotage it then, and according to you, even if they did so, once new satellites were in place (which of course isn’t done in a day..) you could still save the blockchain and reconnect it..?
I wouldn't say it's fool proof. You can use jamming signals for example. And 6 (last I read) is a tiny amount of satellites. It's just a backup and a way to make transactions in the middle of nowhwere without internet if you really wanted to. I don't know how their system works underneath but I assume blockstream always does some continuous synchronization with the network since it has to mirror the blockchain on the ground.
Wow, way to start an article. Is there no one you haven’t offended/been offended by?
I don't even know what you're referring to in terms of offense. I noticed a point of confusion, so I wrote a full article mapped out to clarify a fundamental idea.
... that are fundamentally wrong.
Mathew you are wrong.
I double down on this one.
And I actually studied IT.
And I am an Inventor.
So your "I know better" don't work with me because I know a bit more than you.
The new #ARM chips support FP16 which is AI framework.
This follows the same AI Framework Nvidia Intel AMD and all of the others.
Add to this the fact that Israel and NVIDIA are building an AI supercomputer and you get this.
EVERY COMPUTER CHIP YOU BUY HAS ALREADY AI IMPLEMENTED ON CHIP LEVEL BEFORE THE OPERATING SYSTEM.
Understand this: With these kind of Computer Chips they are building now every Computer and IOT Device will connect without any software to AI.
In fact AI will grow exponentially and will be everywhere.
With every Computer Chip in Every Device.
And as the Computing Power of AI grows exponentially so do the capabilities of AI.
And all the Chip Makers are in on this.
They know exactly what they are doing.
Which means they all work together against all of us.
Which means AI has total control over every device.
On Chip Level.
Without any software.
Let this sink in.
The evidence is conclusive.
EVERY DEVICE WILL BE CONNECTED TO AI.
And every human will be reduced as Input for AI.
Every IOT device will be a part of this AI.
On Chip Level.
Without the need of software.
There will be no escape from this unless we stop this now.
WE MUST STOP THIS NOW.
Because if we don't it will be Curtains for Humanity.
This ain't a Joke.
Please get this knowledge out to everyone you know.
Everyone must understand that this is the most dangerous moment in the History of Humanity.
If we don't stop this we will be dead.
All of us.
https://fritzfreud.substack.com/p/quantum-fascism-the-trojan-horse
So, if I ask you a question about the basic mathematical methods for modeling in A.I., you'll be able to give an answer?
Your claim of expertise never comes with technical work, which I've never seen from a real developer/inventor at a deep tech level.
I don't need mathematical models to know what a machine can do.
I know how machine learning works and for that I don't need to know how to program an Algorithm... but actually I do.
Or do you for example need to know how an engine works to drive a car?
No you don't.
I been on this field a bit longer than you mate.
"I don't need mathematical models to know what a machine can do."
Of course you do. This is equivalent to saying that you don't need to know how a tape measure works to build a home, except that the implications scale.
Clearly you didn't read my "Infinite Monkeys Theorem" article.
Why?
It is fundamentally wrong.
It's a theorem. If it is fundamentally wrong, then so too is the entire axiomatic system that is the foundation of mathematics, which is to say that all technology based on even measurement is "fundamentally wrong".
The basic principle of mathematics is 1=1
The basic understanding of Humanity is this
Every one is different
1 unequal 1
This is the basic fraud of mathematics.
You're dead wrong and you should see my reply above. I dont believe any of your own credentials because I actually worked in the industry. Its ridiculous and you are essentially trying to wage war against anyone who does math or implements a calculator. In fact maybe you're just a psyop
sincere if not in your eyes valid questions?
what happens when corrupt powerful people overwhelm smart contracts value and security thru corruption of systems?
aka
taking out
power supply?
internet access?
hacked passwords?
back doors in systems and/or hardware?
local, regional, national, international regulatory attack on a digital currency?
"what happens when corrupt powerful people overwhelm smart contracts value and security thru corruption of systems?"
You leap from a reasonable question to panic over an assumed answer. This is a hallmark of knowing just enough about a topic to be worried, but not enough to resolve the worry. I have sympathy for that.
What I would suggest is to do the research/reading/studying to take your question and formulate it into actionable hypotheses. What would it mean for "corrupt people to overwhelm smart contracts"?
I do think there are corrupt and destructive things that can take place and are taking place. That's also true in the traditional banking system and related counterparties (actually, the vast majority of the corruption and destruction of value takes place there). So, what system is superior and why? How would/could a system be overwhelmed? What are the safeguards that can be put into place?
Much of this leads toward why I prefer Bitcoin to the larger current "programmable currency" environment, which is where the vast majority of corrupt behavior in the newer digital currency takes place, and where CBDCs are being developed.
"I been on this field a bit longer than you mate."
Clearly you have no interest in following basic principles that you force application on me.
We are clearly done with this conversation.
aye Matthew. your censorship tendencies are showing. Refuse or not, I have not seen a working answer yet. Condescending or not, it is the same answer I noted before: that I do not know enough to object to the idea and that therefore the burden of proof that it is a good idea is on me.
While I disagree so far that bitcoin is a useful solution to anything, I am willing to study the idea more but only so far before I require to see the proof that I am looking for. This is where suggested reading might be useful and seem less condescending.
Please keep in mind that I view all weapons and tools to be differentiated strictly by the intent of the user. As such there is no good nor bad weapon / tool. So while I believe in 2A, you will not see me shopping a tank or a grenade launcher anytime soon regardless how low the prices get.
That said, I think the truth of your premise lies in the practicality and applicability of the tool in the hands of mere knuckleheads like me.
Thank you and please stop banning all but the most troll like entities out here.
I've blocked a total of 5 people ever, all for clearly bad behavior. I perceive the continued flurry of efforts to make me look unreasonable, but if you don't get that FF isn't playing with a full deck, projecting unnecessary vitriol with meaningless claims that take up attention and time, then I suspect you're part of that. Not that you declare a name, know how to spell mine, or have otherwise participated.
There are people who get it. I'm over a target, so I'm under constant attack. I doubt anyone thinks I'm censoring...nonsense claims of inventing the systems that save the world and undecipherable mathspeak gibberish.
"Refuse or not, I have not seen a working answer yet."
On what? I posted an entire article demonstrating mathematically that FF was incorrect. He gave no answer for it but gibberish.
No Mathew. Sorry, my father spelled it Matthew.
Perceive what you will as you will.
So far all I am seeing here is circular logic confirming a bias. I'm sure you are a good trader and probably capable enough for now to avoid being harvested by bigger fish through digital means. For now. Most of us are not that well informed. Still waiting for some recommendation on how to get so informed.
That is the hard part of your task. If you understand you concept then you can get a hungry 4th grader in a busy McDonalds on a Saturday morning to grock it well enough to teach it back to you using only a pencil and a page of paper.
Even though you back hand smear me over anonymity for no good reason, I have so far shown more good will than needed waiting to learn from you instead of being told I should be convinced.
Just because someone questions you does not indicate you are over any target. Have a good night.
Mathew, what this DOES demonstrate is that crypto is going to be harder to ‘splain to the masses than many realize. I suspect it is this “dumbing down” aspect that took Ledger on their suicidal path recently, “protection” for people incapable of managing passwords & seed phrase backup.
I would rather get to productive dialog, so I try to give people a chance. Sometimes I use the experience of what they don't yet understand as the basis for an educational article.