March 29, 2014
There is a fascinating theory in economics called The Tragedy of the Commons . It destroys shared resources around the globe and probably has frustrated you a time or two. Think of the coworker who leaves a dirty microwave or the family member who drinks the last glass of milk and you will see the tragedy at work. A more grave example is industrial polluters who do not clean up their messes. Some argue that the absence of a spotlight changes how people behave.
When we move into the digital realm the commons become even more tragic. Over the first two decades of the Internet’s life we saw seen millions of malicious attacks that take advantage of the community focus of the web.
Third parties like payment processors and marketplaces are usually needed to verify, authenticate, moderate transactions across the web. Bitcoin’s eliminates this need for a third party via distributed ledger systems. This turns turns the entire community into a spotlight. Each and every action is logged with all participants. This is quite simply revolutionary and has a multitude of applications. Companies that can use Bitcoin and crypto-currencies to eliminate the tragedy will win in the long run.
What are your favorite applications of crypto-currencies?
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