Lifeboat Foundation

Although blockchain is traditionally seen as secure, it is vulnerable to attack from quantum computers. Now, a team of Russian researchers say they have developed a solution to the quantum-era blockchain challenge, using quantum key distribution (QKD).

Quantum computers are different from binary digital electronic computers based on transistors. Whereas common digital computing requires that the data be encoded into binary digits (bits), each of which is always in one of two definite states (0 or 1), quantum computation uses quantum bits, which can have more by being in superpositions of states.

Writing in the journal Quantum Science and Technology, the researchers set out a quantum-safe blockchain platform that uses QKD to achieve secure authentication.

Continue reading “Quantum Computing Key Could Protect Blockchain Security” »

Other than the United States, 5 U.S. territories and 12 sovereign nations use the US dollar as their legal currency. (Note that Micronesia covers six sovereign countries).

Additionally, I have traveled to island nations and some countries in Asia and Pacific that peg their currency to the US dollar. In these regions, citizens accept US dollars interchangeably with their own national currency, and their governments don’t seem to discourage or prosecute such transactions.

What gives value to paper?

Continue reading “What Countries use US Dollar and Why?” »

Please don’t pay any attention to this posting. It is not for you… *

This graph presents indisputable fact: It compares US dollar growth as reported by the US government and Bitcoin growth (for all time), extrapolated by pure math.

I wish that this would put to bed the fake news, conspiracy theories, and “nothing backs it” nonsense. Unfortunately, seismic shifts in architecture or process take time for society to understand and accept. Early adopters will be the fortunate buckos. Timid or clueless denizens will complain bitterly about the unfair advantage of those who wise up before it hits a 6 figure exchange rate. Eventually, comparisons with legacy currencies will be utterly meaningless. It will become the currency. It will be the gold-pressed latinum of universal recognition and intrinsic value.

15 years from now, some will look back on our era and claim that the Winkelvoss twins were lucky. Risk, patience and an understanding of economics is not ‘luck’. They have the gift of prescience.

Continue reading “The USD is Tulip Mania—BTC is not” »

One of bitcoin’s biggest bulls has inked a deal with an unlikely partner to create a cryptocurrency price index.

Billionaire Mike Novogratz and Bloomberg LP on Wednesday announced that they are teaming up to launch the Bloomberg Galaxy Crypto Index (BGCI), which will track the aggregate performance of a basket of large-cap cryptocurrencies.

“Today’s launch of the Bloomberg Galaxy Crypto Index reflects our clients’ growing interest in cryptocurrencies,” said Alan Campbell, Global Product Manager for Bloomberg Indices. “The index brings our rigorous approach to index construction to cryptos and will provide investors with a transparent benchmark to gauge the performance of the broader market.”

Continue reading “Bloomberg & Billionaire Bull Novogratz Launch Cryptocurrency Price Index” »

A hilarious but accurate (!) introduction to bitcoin and cryptocurrencyby the British comedian John Oliver.

Digital currencies are generating a lot of excitement. John Oliver enlists Keegan-Michael Key to get potential investors equally excited about the concept of caution.

Continue reading “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)” »

With the utmost of respect for Mr Buffett, when he calls BTC “rat poison” he is expressing his philosophical viewpoint of the program (i.e. decentralized currency), not making a prediction of its future (not that I, or anyone else can really know what that it).

The Oracle of Omaha is still not a fan of bitcoin. Neither is Warren Buffett’s top lieutenant Charlie Munger. But to be fair to crypto bulls, both have missed out on an amazing rally.

Lately, there has been a lot of concern about the recent explosion of AI, and how it could reach the point of 1) being more intelligent than humans, and 2) that it could decide that it no longer needs us and could in fact, take over the Earth.

Physicist Stephen Hawking famously told the BBC: “The development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race.” Billionaire Elon Musk has said that he thinks AI is the “biggest existential threat” to the human race.

Computers running the latest AI have already beaten humans at games ranging from Chess to Go to esports games (which is interesting, because this is a case where AI could be better than humans at playing games which were built as software from the ground up, unlike Chess and Go, which were developer before the computer age).

Continue reading “The Road to Killer AI: ML + Blockchain + IOT + Drones == Skynet?” »

Business Impact

If quantum computers threaten blockchains, quantum blockchains could be the defense.

Quantum computers could break the cryptography that conventional blockchains rely on. Now physicists say a way of entangling the present with the past could foil this type of attack.

Continue reading “If quantum computers threaten blockchains, quantum blockchains could be the defense” »

Nader Al-Naji started mining bitcoin in his Princeton dorm in 2013. Now, he’s working on a stable cryptocurrency that be believes could actually replace money.