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Does it matter? Crypto, arguably useless to 99.9% of US citizens is using wasting 2% of all energy.

by ecf 3y ago

Does it matter? Crypto, arguably useless to 99.9% of US citizens is ~~using~~ wasting 2% of all energy.

g42gregory 3y ago
I believe 25% of US households own crypto at this point [1]. It’s more widely adopted then you think. BlackRock CEO said it’s “bigger than any Government”. And he would know. :-) [1] https://cointelegraph.com/news/grayscale-finds-that-over-25-of-us-households-surveyed-currently-own-bitcoin https://cointelegraph.com/news/grayscale-finds-that-over-25-...
MichaelVangard 3y ago
Not all electricity is created equal. I don’t think Bitcoin miners should be allowed to fire up an old coal power plant just for the sake of mining Bitcoin, but in the case of renewables, like hydro, wind, solar, etc., there is going to be, at times, more electricity generated than we can use or store. All other use cases aside, the ability for Bitcoin miners to turn excess or otherwise wasted electricity into revenue is to the benefit of 99.9% of US citizens by way of lower power bills and/or property taxes. That’s pretty cool if you ask me. Being able to approve and move forward with a big solar or wind farm project because you have a Bitcoin miner willing to partner with you for the excess electricity generated seems like a win-win to me. Again, we obviously don’t want Bitcoin miners using dirty electricity or straining the grid in peak times where higher priority use cases arise, but that’s a matter of governance and oversight.
- tass 3y ago
  Is it profitable to be a part-time miner? I thought the equipment was too expensive and short lived to sit idle.
  - MichaelVangard 3y ago
    At the per kWh price a lot of these miners contract for, it’s profitable even with older hardware. These arrangements also help extend the lifespan of older hardware.
dorkwood 3y ago
So just because it's useless now, that means it will never be useful? I guess we should give up on every new technology that's not immediately beneficial.
- EliRivers 3y ago
  It's been almost fifteen years and the principle use is crime and ponzi. Not only has it not been immediately beneficial, it's been without benefit for a long time.

Does it matter? Crypto, arguably useless to 99.9% of US citizens is ~~using~~ wasting 2% of all energy.

by ecf 3y ago

Does it matter? Crypto, arguably useless to 99.9% of US citizens is ~~using~~ wasting 2% of all energy.

I believe 25% of US households own crypto at this point [1]. It’s more widely adopted then you think. BlackRock CEO said it’s “bigger than any Government”. And he would know. :-) [1] https://cointelegraph.com/news/grayscale-finds-that-over-25-of-us-households-surveyed-currently-own-bitcoin https://cointelegraph.com/news/grayscale-finds-that-over-25-...

MichaelVangard 3y ago

Not all electricity is created equal. I don’t think Bitcoin miners should be allowed to fire up an old coal power plant just for the sake of mining Bitcoin, but in the case of renewables, like hydro, wind, solar, etc., there is going to be, at times, more electricity generated than we can use or store. All other use cases aside, the ability for Bitcoin miners to turn excess or otherwise wasted electricity into revenue is to the benefit of 99.9% of US citizens by way of lower power bills and/or property taxes. That’s pretty cool if you ask me. Being able to approve and move forward with a big solar or wind farm project because you have a Bitcoin miner willing to partner with you for the excess electricity generated seems like a win-win to me. Again, we obviously don’t want Bitcoin miners using dirty electricity or straining the grid in peak times where higher priority use cases arise, but that’s a matter of governance and oversight.

tass 3y ago
Is it profitable to be a part-time miner? I thought the equipment was too expensive and short lived to sit idle.
- MichaelVangard 3y ago
  At the per kWh price a lot of these miners contract for, it’s profitable even with older hardware. These arrangements also help extend the lifespan of older hardware.

dorkwood 3y ago

So just because it's useless now, that means it will never be useful? I guess we should give up on every new technology that's not immediately beneficial.

EliRivers 3y ago
It's been almost fifteen years and the principle use is crime and ponzi. Not only has it not been immediately beneficial, it's been without benefit for a long time.