3 ms·

Incentives are key to bring the technology back into the realm of usefulness (in the grand scheme of things). Externalities need to be priced into energy costs.

by jupp0r 5y ago

Incentives are key to bring the technology back into the realm of usefulness (in the grand scheme of things). Externalities need to be priced into energy costs. In principle there is no problem with using the electric power of a small country for proof of work purposes, as long as the production of that energy is not harmful to everybody via global warming or pollution. In the end, more efficient ways of achieving the same result will prevail in a well functioning market. Currently everything is skewed because crypto is mined with cheap coal power that the global society is subsidizing by paying for externalities. I don't think crypto is unique in this. Gold and diamond production is also pretty expensive and useless (apart from their industrial applications, which are limited in comparison to their use to store value).

tablespoon 5y ago
> Incentives are key to bring the technology back into the realm of usefulness (in the grand scheme of things). Externalities need to be priced into energy costs. In principle there is no problem with using the electric power of a small country for proof of work purposes, as long as the production of that energy is not harmful to everybody via global warming or pollution. I disagree. Pricing externalities into energy costs isn't sufficient, because proof of work is basically pissing massive amounts of irreplaceable energy resources into the wind in order to play a stupid, unnecessary game. I think it's better those resources stay in the ground or be used for a more productive purposes, and making miners pay more for energy isn't going to change the fundamental wastefulness of their activity.
- jupp0r 5y ago
  You convinced me. Eventually it should be forbidden (or made prohibitively expensive) to use fossil fuels for energy generation or transportation purposes because the reserves that are left should be used in the chemical industry and others. I didn't want to defend mining (it is wasteful, even when powered by 100% renewables), just wanted to point out that most of the current harm to society is caused by its fossil fuel electricity generation needs.

by jupp0r 5y ago

tablespoon 5y ago

> Incentives are key to bring the technology back into the realm of usefulness (in the grand scheme of things). Externalities need to be priced into energy costs. In principle there is no problem with using the electric power of a small country for proof of work purposes, as long as the production of that energy is not harmful to everybody via global warming or pollution. I disagree. Pricing externalities into energy costs isn't sufficient, because proof of work is basically pissing massive amounts of irreplaceable energy resources into the wind in order to play a stupid, unnecessary game. I think it's better those resources stay in the ground or be used for a more productive purposes, and making miners pay more for energy isn't going to change the fundamental wastefulness of their activity.

jupp0r 5y ago
You convinced me. Eventually it should be forbidden (or made prohibitively expensive) to use fossil fuels for energy generation or transportation purposes because the reserves that are left should be used in the chemical industry and others. I didn't want to defend mining (it is wasteful, even when powered by 100% renewables), just wanted to point out that most of the current harm to society is caused by its fossil fuel electricity generation needs.