Bitcoin
Your money exchanged for computer bits
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How it Started
On the 18th of August 2008, the domain name bitcoin.org was registered. Later that year, on 31 October, a link to a paper authored by Satoshi Nakamoto titled Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System was posted to a cryptography mailing list. This paper detailed methods of using a peer-to-peer network to generate what was described as "a system for electronic transactions without relying on trust". On 3 January 2009, the bitcoin network came into existence with Satoshi Nakamoto mining the genesis block of bitcoin (block number 0), which had a reward of 50 bitcoins. Embedded in the genesis block was the text:
The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks
The text refers to a headline in The Times published on 3 January 2009. This note has been interpreted as both a timestamp of the genesis date and a derisive comment on the instability caused by fractional-reserve banking.
Source: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_bitcoin
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/NCI5m
Who is Satoshi Nakamoto?
…Satoshi Nakamoto is recognized as the pseudonym of the person or group of people who created Bitcoin — the invisible figure or figures whose technological creation has influenced the world.
Satoshi Nakamoto was already a familiar name among cryptography enthusiasts like computer scientists and hackers long before the Bitcoin boom. Someone had posted on online message boards and corresponded with fellow developers via email under the same name years prior. Although unconfirmed, it is widely suspected that the person (or persons) behind the pseudonym was also behind those communications.
Source: https://cointelegraph.com/learn/who-is-satoshi-nakamoto-the-creator-of-bitcoin
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/P6JUr
The true identity of the creator of Bitcoin is one of the biggest mysteries in the modern world. Over the years many theories have popped up about who Satoshi Nakamoto really is, including a time traveler, a space alien, a rogue artificial intelligence or a front for groups such as the NSA, CIA and Yakuza. This article will present only the known facts about him and the more likely candidates who people suspect may be be the elusive figure.
In November 2017 a former intern at Musk’s rocket company by the name of Sahil Gupta presented the case that his old boss was really the founder of Bitcoin. A Yale University computer science student at the time, he claimed that Musk had both a preference and an excellent grasp of the C++ programming language like Satoshi did.
Gupta also pointed out that the stability of the financial system was a major global concern in 2008, and Musk is someone who “identifies the most urgent problems of our time and dedicates his time to solving them,” suggesting he had the drive “to solve the lack of trust in banks by creating a currency that doesn’t need them.” He also claimed the tech mogul had a deep understanding of economics and cryptography needed to write the Bitcoin whitepaper.
Source: https://news.bitcoin.com/satoshi-nakamoto-founder-of-bitcoin/
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/isgo8
Location of Bitcoin Servers
The blockchain is a distributed database that allows for secure, transparent and tamper-proof transactions. The blockchain technology is used to create digital currencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.
The blockchain is maintained by a network of computers that are connected to the internet. These computers are called nodes. The nodes are responsible for validating transactions and maintaining the blockchain.
The nodes that maintain the blockchain are located all over the world. This ensures that the blockchain is secure and tamper-proof.
As of January 2019, there were 9,521 Bitcoin nodes. Of those, 5,214 were located in the United States, 2,025 in Europe, and 992 in Asia.
Source: https://andronishoneymoon.com/blog/where-are-bitcoin-servers-located.html?ysclid=lxdyzghejr500141749
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/C2btT
Who Controls Bitcoin’s Servers?
The answer is no one. Or at least, no one solely controls it. Bitcoin is maintained by a global network of volunteers. Anyone can access the server and contribute to its upkeep.
Source: https://andronishoneymoon.com/blog/where-are-bitcoin-servers-located.html?ysclid=lxdyzghejr500141749
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/C2btT
Who is the Biggest Bitcoin Miner?
The biggest Bitcoin miner is Bitmain. Bitmain is a Chinese company that manufactures Bitcoin mining hardware and software. Bitmain is responsible forapproximately 70% of the Bitcoin mining market.
Source: https://andronishoneymoon.com/blog/where-are-bitcoin-servers-located.html?ysclid=lxdyzghejr500141749
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/C2btT
Is There a Limit to the Number of Bitcoins
The maximum total supply of Bitcoin is 21 million.
The number of Bitcoins issued will likely never reach 21 million due to the use of rounding operators in the Bitcoin codebase.
No additional bitcoins will be generated when the Bitcoin supply reaches its upper limit. Bitcoin miners will likely earn income only from transaction fees.
Source: https://www.investopedia.com/tech/what-happens-bitcoin-after-21-million-mined/
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/G7L5K
What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Bitcoin holders can lose access to their bitcoins, such as by losing the private keys to their Bitcoin wallets or passing away without sharing their wallet details. A June 2020 study by the crypto forensics firm Chainalysis estimated that up to 20% of the Bitcoin already issued may be permanently lost.
Source: https://www.investopedia.com/tech/what-happens-bitcoin-after-21-million-mined/
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/G7L5K
Bitcoin and Organized Crime
Bitcoin was infamous for being extensively used to execute illegal transactions and for terror financing purposes in black markets on the Dark Web. The Silk Road was the first online darknet market that allowed users to browse and shop anonymously without the risk of being tracked. Bitcoin was extensively used on this website for purchasing illegal items. The pressure on the authorities kept piling up, as they call for regulations kept getting louder and louder.
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For example, AlphaBay was the largest criminal marketplace on the Dark Web where Bitcoin became the preferred currency for transactions. The platform served as a marketplace for a wide array of illegal goods and services, from drugs and hacking tools to stolen data and false documents.
There were over 250,000 listings for illegal drugs and toxic chemicals on AlphaBay and over 100,000 listings for stolen and fraudulent identification documents.
On AlphaBay users could buy and sell goods without revealing their real identities, relying on the cryptographic nature of Bitcoin transactions to maintain a level of privacy and anonymity.
Source: https://medium.com/coinmonks/the-dark-side-of-bitcoin-98311e87e036
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/5SrML
Energy Consumption
The amount of electricity consumed daily by the Bitcoin network (mining) is more than the entire electrical consumption of countries the size of Switzerland and Czechia. That’s a lot of electricity.
And this creates zero economic production. It is simply to generate new Bitcoin every 10 minutes. Bitcoin may have monetary value, but it only has value because people choose to give it by buying scarcely.
Source: https://medium.com/coinmonks/the-dark-side-of-bitcoin-98311e87e036
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/5SrML
Is a Bitcoin Transaction Really Anonymous?
Transactions are recorded on a public ledger known as the blockchain. This ledger contains a complete history of all transactions, from the very first one, and is visible to anyone who wants to inspect it by going to blockchain.com/explorer.
So, if your Bitcoin address is ever linked to your identity, every transaction will be linked to you.
This is also the case when transferring Bitcoin to another person. For example, if you send funds to a friend, he will be able to view all of your previous and future transactions, not to mention your real-time balance.
Source: https://medium.com/coinmonks/the-dark-side-of-bitcoin-98311e87e036
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/5SrML
Deloitte & Bitcoin
Source: https://majorkalhoun.substack.com/p/deloitte-and-bitcoin
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/mmqde
Trump on Crypto
The former U.S. president reiterated his anti-crypto stance: “Well, I never loved it because I like to have the dollar. I think the currency should be the dollar so I was never a big fan. But it’s spilling up bigger and bigger, and nobody is doing anything about it.”
Emphasizing, “Look, I want a currency called the dollar,” he warned:
I don’t want to have all these others, and that could be an explosion someday — the likes of which we’ve never seen. It will make the big tech explosion look like baby stuff. I think it’s a very dangerous thing.
Trump has never been a fan of crypto. In August, he predicted that cryptocurrencies are “a disaster waiting to happen.” In June, he called bitcoin a scam that needs heavy regulation.
Source: https://news.bitcoin.com/donald-trump-crypto-very-dangerous-warns-of-explosion/
Archive Copy: https://archive.ph/d80Dk