Must-Reads of the Week
/ Onward Labs / 10.25.2018 /
Here are the stories, blogs, podcasts and books that expand, contextualize or offer us new insights into this week's blockchain headlines.
1. The New Yorker: The Prophets of Cryptocurrency Survey the Boom and Bust | By Nick Paumgarten | October 22, 2018
Inside the ongoing argument over whether Bitcoin, Ethereum, and the blockchain are transforming the world.
2. Breaker: We Asked Crypto News Outlets If They’d Take Money To Cover a Project. More Than Half Said Yes | by Corin Faife | October 25, 2018.
On the assumption that most outlets would not openly admit that they took bribes for coverage if asked directly by a journalist, it seemed reasonable to set up an undercover investigation on the topic.
3. Wired: Estonia may actually have a use for the blockchain: green energy | by Katia Moskvitch | October 25, 2018.
If you're into buzzword bingo, blockchain will have been top of your list for a few years now. But has it got any real-world applications? There have been plenty of attempts to make it work in different industries, from mining to music. Now a green energy trading platform called WePower is trying to use blockchain technology to make energy markets more efficient – in Estonia.
https://www.wired.co.uk/article/blockchain-energy-renewables-estonia-tokenisation
4. Forbes: Women In Blockchain Are Not A Circus Sideshow | by Kim Elsesser | October 22, 2018.
It’s the question MyCrypto CEO Taylor Monahan hears more than any other: “What’s it like being a woman in blockchain?” Despite her success starting her own company in this burgeoning field, her womanhood is of more interest than her accomplishments. Women in male-dominated industries are often bombarded with questions about their experience being a minority in their field, and blockchain is no exception.
5. BBC: Is blockchain living up to the hype? | by Tom Espiner | October 22, 2018
As we approach Bitcoin's 10th anniversary at the end of this month, we ask whether blockchain - the technology underpinning the cryptocurrency - is fulfilling its promise, or a tech still looking for a better reason to exist.
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-45919700
6. Stablecoins: Understanding Counterparty Risk | by Sarah Olsen | October 18, 2018.
A new kind of digital asset — a stable value coin — often referred to as a “stablecoin,” has been proliferating in the cryptocurrency markets. Briefly, a stablecoin is a cryptocurrency pegged to a stable asset, such as fiat currency like U.S. dollars. Stablecoins are distinct from other cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, where the price is driven by market dynamics (i.e., supply and demand) and not from the asset which it corresponds to.
https://medium.com/gemini/stablecoins-understanding-counterparty-risk-241d55f0b392
7. Coin Beat: Rwanda: Blockchain Tracking Of Conflict Metal | October 19, 2018.
Rwanda begins tracking conflict metal, tantalum using blockchain technology. Rwanda begins tracking conflict metal, tantalum using blockchain technology. Another day and yet another use for blockchain technology revealed. This time it’s Rwanda, as the African nation has recently looked to blockchain in order to track supply chains for the metal tantalum which is used in consumer electronics. This comes in a bid for the country to address concerns about conflict metals & minerals in global markets.
http://coinbeat.com/rwanda-blockchain-tracking-of-conflict-metal/