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Is anyone worried about that unsustainable bitcoin energy usage article on HN a few days ago? Would Litecoin have those same problems?

MBCook 9y ago
Wouldn't that happen to any general crypto currency that got popular?
- brownbat 9y ago
  The different hashing algorithms have different power requirements. Scrypt (LTC) and KECCAK-256 (ETH) are less power intensive than SHA-256 (BTC). Those are just proof-of-work. Proof-of-stake or proof-of-importance would have barely any power footprint, but there are still debates about whether they could replace PoW and offer similar security guarantees.
  - MBCook 9y ago
    Proof of steak is basically the kind of system I was thinking of. Proof of work seems like a very good solution as long as people are relatively equal, but you could use proof of steak to ensure that. Of course that means that you need some way to set up the initial steaks and decide who gets them. And that means it isn't as democratic like bitcoin is, which I know is a big plus for many people.
    - brownbat 9y ago
      Proof of steak sounds delicious and I would absolutely buy that coin. (Sorry, couldn't help it.)
      - MBCook 9y ago
        I knew that looked off. I dictated that using Siri and it's not surprising it used that homonym.
- kwelstr 9y ago
  No, there are some that don't use proof of work, so no burnt energy. Bitcoin is the king right now and Ether the queen, and those two do burn energy.
- nosuchthing 9y ago
  Alternative crypto currency network designs try to reduce the energy cost of PoW though delegation to a limited set of masternodes, or via "Proof of Stake" which so far has required a pre-existing supply of coins to exist (and one should ask who mints the supply...?) https://mycrypto.guide/ https://mycrypto.guide/
  - MBCook 9y ago
    That seems more like the kind of system I was thinking of, but you're right the initial set up and dolling out of the supply brings you back to the kind of problems bitcoin was trying to avoid.
    - omarchowdhury 9y ago
      Unless the supply was initially distributed through PoW, and then the system switched to PoS. That is the plan for Ethereum.
      - nosuchthing 9y ago
        Ethereum launch in review: - Investment Prospectus: https://www.ethereum.org/pdfs/TermsAndConditionsOfTheEthereumGenesisSale.pdf https://www.ethereum.org/pdfs/TermsAndConditionsOfTheEthereu... - Premine Part I: Anyone can buy ETH in exchange for BTC for the next 42 days - Premine Part II: On top of Premine Part I, +10% of the total ETH allocated during Premine Part I will be distributed to "early contributors" - Premine Part III: On top of Premine Part I and Premine Part II, +10% of the total ETH allocated during Premine Part I will be distributed to the Ethereum Foundation - The supply of ETH is uncapped and inflationary at a rate of +25% per year - The premine is being conducted by "EthSuisse", a Swiss entity which will be prompty dissolved after the premining period ends. The Ethereum team makes no guarantee that development of Ethereum will continue after the dissolution of "EthSuisse" - Regardless of how many BTCs are raised during the premine period, ~4000 BTC is explicitly reserved to pay for "Expenses incurred prior to and related to Genesis Sale". Translation: they are pocketing the first 4000-5000 BTC > The Ethereum Platform is being developed primarily by a volunteer contributor team - many of whom will be receiving gifts of ETH in acknowledgement of their dedication - and will continue to be developed on a volunteer basis by some developers as well as under a more formalized contracting or employment relationship for other developers. The group of developers and other personnel that is now, or will be, employed by, or contracted with, Ethereum Switzerland GmbH ("EthSuisse") is termed the "Ethereum Team." EthSuisse will be liquidated shortly after creation of genesis block, and EthSuisse anticipates (but does not guarantee) that after it is dissolved the Ethereum Platform will continue to be developed by persons and entities who support Ethereum, including both volunteers and developers who are paid by nonprofit entities interested in supporting the Ethereum Platform. via Cyther606 ( https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8072947 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8072947 )

MBCook 9y ago

Wouldn't that happen to any general crypto currency that got popular?

brownbat 9y ago
The different hashing algorithms have different power requirements. Scrypt (LTC) and KECCAK-256 (ETH) are less power intensive than SHA-256 (BTC). Those are just proof-of-work. Proof-of-stake or proof-of-importance would have barely any power footprint, but there are still debates about whether they could replace PoW and offer similar security guarantees.
- MBCook 9y ago
  Proof of steak is basically the kind of system I was thinking of. Proof of work seems like a very good solution as long as people are relatively equal, but you could use proof of steak to ensure that. Of course that means that you need some way to set up the initial steaks and decide who gets them. And that means it isn't as democratic like bitcoin is, which I know is a big plus for many people.
  - brownbat 9y ago
    Proof of steak sounds delicious and I would absolutely buy that coin. (Sorry, couldn't help it.)
    - MBCook 9y ago
      I knew that looked off. I dictated that using Siri and it's not surprising it used that homonym.
kwelstr 9y ago
No, there are some that don't use proof of work, so no burnt energy. Bitcoin is the king right now and Ether the queen, and those two do burn energy.
nosuchthing 9y ago
Alternative crypto currency network designs try to reduce the energy cost of PoW though delegation to a limited set of masternodes, or via "Proof of Stake" which so far has required a pre-existing supply of coins to exist (and one should ask who mints the supply...?) https://mycrypto.guide/ https://mycrypto.guide/
- MBCook 9y ago
  That seems more like the kind of system I was thinking of, but you're right the initial set up and dolling out of the supply brings you back to the kind of problems bitcoin was trying to avoid.
  - omarchowdhury 9y ago
    Unless the supply was initially distributed through PoW, and then the system switched to PoS. That is the plan for Ethereum.
    - nosuchthing 9y ago
      Ethereum launch in review: - Investment Prospectus: https://www.ethereum.org/pdfs/TermsAndConditionsOfTheEthereumGenesisSale.pdf https://www.ethereum.org/pdfs/TermsAndConditionsOfTheEthereu... - Premine Part I: Anyone can buy ETH in exchange for BTC for the next 42 days - Premine Part II: On top of Premine Part I, +10% of the total ETH allocated during Premine Part I will be distributed to "early contributors" - Premine Part III: On top of Premine Part I and Premine Part II, +10% of the total ETH allocated during Premine Part I will be distributed to the Ethereum Foundation - The supply of ETH is uncapped and inflationary at a rate of +25% per year - The premine is being conducted by "EthSuisse", a Swiss entity which will be prompty dissolved after the premining period ends. The Ethereum team makes no guarantee that development of Ethereum will continue after the dissolution of "EthSuisse" - Regardless of how many BTCs are raised during the premine period, ~4000 BTC is explicitly reserved to pay for "Expenses incurred prior to and related to Genesis Sale". Translation: they are pocketing the first 4000-5000 BTC > The Ethereum Platform is being developed primarily by a volunteer contributor team - many of whom will be receiving gifts of ETH in acknowledgement of their dedication - and will continue to be developed on a volunteer basis by some developers as well as under a more formalized contracting or employment relationship for other developers. The group of developers and other personnel that is now, or will be, employed by, or contracted with, Ethereum Switzerland GmbH ("EthSuisse") is termed the "Ethereum Team." EthSuisse will be liquidated shortly after creation of genesis block, and EthSuisse anticipates (but does not guarantee) that after it is dissolved the Ethereum Platform will continue to be developed by persons and entities who support Ethereum, including both volunteers and developers who are paid by nonprofit entities interested in supporting the Ethereum Platform. via Cyther606 ( https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8072947 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8072947 )