Why does Bitcoin require arbitrary work?

Fluctuations in the US dollar value of Bitcoins over the last six months

Fluctuations in the US dollar value of Bitcoin over the last six months

Over the last few days it is possible I have become fixated on Bitcoin, a cryptographically controlled virtual currency that presently exchanges at around $800 per. By “presently” I mean this morning. If you are reading this in 2014, odds are the value of Bitcoin has done something surprising, as the chart above suggests it might. Bitcoin has been extremely susceptible to market fluctuations since its creation in 2009. Part of that volatility owes to Bitcoin’s gradual acceptance as currency; until 2011, Bitcoins traded for exactly zero dollars, because you couldn’t use them to buy anything. Now, though, several legitimate retailers accept Bitcoin, and so do a lot of illegal ones.

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Friday links! Market forces edition

The market corrects a lady in Singapore.

The market corrects a lady in Singapore.

Thanks to telecommunications, an amazing amount of time has elapsed between when I clicked “new post” and now. People call me and ask me to do things, and I do them instead of the the things I like because those people have money. You can’t fight the market. While government is an obtrusive artifact that has no right to interfere in our lives, the market is a natural force that must be allowed to operate freely, lest it become enraged. Today is Friday, and the only true freedom lies in letting the aggregate consequences of everyone doing whatever they want tell us all what to do. Won’t you follow the trending line with me?

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