I propose that someone create a proof-of-work system that creates a distributed auction of the computing power of the miners. This has the twin benefits of not

I propose that someone create a proof-of-work system that creates a distributed auction of the computing power of the miners. This has the twin benefits of not wasting electricity on doing useless hashes, and of providing a backing for the value of the created currency (because the currency can be used to purchase computing power from miners). A standardized NP-complete problem formulation could be used. I haven't worked out exactly how to do this (specifically: if the problems posed to the miners are not random, what is to prevent a miner from posing a problem to which they already know the answer?), it's just an idea. more rumination at https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Intrinsic_worth_brainstorming#pseudo-BTC_that_uses_computational_power_in_service_of_some_problem https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Intrinsic_worth_brainstorming#pse...