Let's work backwards: what problem does Bitcoin actually solve? It successfully incentivizes continued upkeep of its blockchain, making it a useful, global, tru

Let's work backwards: what problem does Bitcoin actually solve? It successfully incentivizes continued upkeep of its blockchain, making it a useful, global, trustless, pseudonymous, immutable, long-lived database. You don't need a tinfoil hat to appreciate the utility of a datastore whose continued operation and upkeep is ensured by the promise of vesting, and successfully leverages market forces and emergent market behavior to ensure its own longevity. And, it provides a market-based incentive for the community to be on the lookout for sybil attacks. Later chains have been targeted for more specific applications more explicitly. Some focus on exchange of value, some focus on store of value, some focus on the continuity of records. These are useful properties, and those who dismiss blockchains clearly do so within the context of extreme hype about their potential applicability to other aspects of life. That's what this article is -- like hundreds of others: an attempt to bring the hype back down to earth and promote a more measured conversation.