Sunday, December 31, 2017
British chief executive and family killed in Australian seaplane crash
January 01, 2018 at 06:27AM
How Do You Vote? 50 Million Google Images Give a Clue
January 01, 2018 at 01:40AM
Artificial intelligence is making it possible for Street Views to be mined for insights about the economy, politics and human behavior — just as text mining has done for years.
'Veganuary' becomes the latest New Year trend
December 31, 2017 at 07:17PM
Tesla the Car Is a Household Name. Long Ago, So Was Nikola Tesla.
December 30, 2017 at 04:00PM
The star of a man once renowned as the prototype of a genius inventor has faded. But his reputation is having a revival, and his creations still resonate.
Inside the Hollywood Home of Social Media’s Stars. (Don’t Be Shy.)
December 30, 2017 at 01:00PM
High jinks and networking abound at 1600 Vine Street, the apartment complex minting the next generation of Instagram and YouTube celebrities.
Nintendo’s Switch Brings Some Magic Back
December 30, 2017 at 04:02AM
This time last year, the company that made Mario and Donkey Kong household names seemed to have lost its touch. Now, with the new console, it’s on a roll.
Why Are All Our Words in Bubbles?
December 29, 2017 at 11:11PM
Facebook. Twitter DMs. Texts. So much of our communication arrives (and leaves) in little bubbles. We asked some design experts why.
Unfiltered Fervor: The Rush to Get Off the Water Grid
December 29, 2017 at 10:47PM
Driven by misgivings about how tap water is treated, start-ups are turning to springs and the air for purer sources — and drawing an elite audience.
Tech Tip: Dealing With Destructive System Updates
December 29, 2017 at 05:54PM
Software updates are supposed to make your computer better, but when they do the opposite, be prepared to do some troubleshooting.
San Francisco’s Skyline, Now Inescapably Transformed by Tech
December 29, 2017 at 01:00PM
Salesforce Tower, which at 1,070 feet is the tallest office building west of the Mississippi, will be inhabited in January, signaling tech’s triumph in the city.
Accused of Slowing Old iPhones, Apple Offers Battery Discounts
December 29, 2017 at 04:28AM
In an apologetic statement, the company said it would cut the price of iPhone battery replacements by $50 for anyone with an iPhone 6 or later.
Bookstore Chains, Long in Decline, Are Undergoing a Final Shakeout
December 29, 2017 at 02:55AM
Book World is closing its 45 stores amid the holiday shopping season, signaling the final gasps for large book sellers as e-commerce rises.
China Offers Tax Incentives to Persuade U.S. Companies to Stay
December 29, 2017 at 02:32AM
Following a tax overhaul in the United States, Beijing has announced a temporary exemption for foreign firms investing in certain sectors.
Uber Sells Stake to SoftBank, Valuing Ride-Hailing Giant at $48 Billion
December 29, 2017 at 02:23AM
The deal is a notable drop from the $70 billion valuation Uber once commanded, and is a humbling coda on a rough year for the company, which has been rocked by a series of scandals.
South Korea Clamps Down on Bitcoin Trading Amid Market Frenzy
December 29, 2017 at 01:22AM
In one of the biggest hubs for virtual currencies, the government said it would no longer let people buy or sell Bitcoin or its rivals anonymously.
That Game on Your Phone May Be Tracking What You’re Watching on TV
December 29, 2017 at 12:20AM
The start-up Alphonso collects viewing data for advertisers through mobile gaming apps that can track users on the devices’ microphones, even when the apps aren’t in use.
CryptoKitties, Explained ... Mostly
December 28, 2017 at 11:20PM
Why are $20 million and 180,000 people suddenly in the market for digital cats? We gamified the blockchain.
Opinion: Your Mother’s Maiden Name Is Not a Secret
December 28, 2017 at 07:32PM
There has been no shortage of incidents proving that website security questions are far from secure.
Tech Tip: Moving Your Number to Google Voice
December 28, 2017 at 06:08PM
Google’s telephony service can give you a unified number and with a little extra work, you may be able to use your original landline digits.
Does Survival of Cryptocurrency Technology Depend on Human Emotion?
December 28, 2017 at 04:00PM
Some technologies continue to exist even if their creators set them aside in favor of something else. A stone wheel remains a stone wheel, regardless of whether you use it. A printing press in a museum still operates precisely as designed, even though it’s been bucked in favor of digital printers. And combustion engines will still run on gasoline, even when the day comes that no one cares to use one anymore.
But this kind of staying power is not the case with the technology that underpins cryptocurrency: blockchain. If people stop caring about a given cryptocurrency, the blockchain that runs it will eventually die out.
How is this possible?
First, let’s review what a blockchain is and how it works. Despite its futuristic-sounding name, it’s actually a simple thing: a digital ledger maintained by a special kind of computer. Traditionally, a ledger is a piece of paper on which changes of ownership are recorded by hand. An ancient ledger might read that I have one sheep and you have three sheep. If either of us buys or sells a sheep, the ledger is updated accordingly. It tracks our account balances, so to speak.
As opposed to sheep, a blockchain records changes in ownership of its “base token.” A blockchain’s base token is also called its “cryptocurrency.” The Bitcoin network’s base token is a bitcoin, the Ethereum network’s base token is an Ether, and the Dash network’s base token is a Dash.
The people who run the specialized computers that execute account balance updates on the blockchain are called “miners.” If they own a competitive number of computers as compared to other miners in the network, they’re likely to win the right of entering an update to the blockchain. Making this update results in the creation of new base tokens — and the miner gets to keep them as his “pay.”
It’s these people who will make or break the future of cryptocurrency technology.
From the giant warehouses of mining computers in China to the little flash drive miner sticking out of your friend’s laptop, all mining efforts are focused on one thing and one thing only: turning a profit. For this reason, miners program their machines to only contribute effort to the cryptocurrency they estimate will bring the most profit — the network with the least mining competition and the highest payout. This is where human emotion begins to play a part.
Because none of us can predict the future, we’re left to make decisions based on how we feel. For example, no American can know for certain that a dollar will be worth anything tomorrow, but we feel pretty confident that it will be, so we choose to work in exchange for dollars today. If every dollar-holder in the world decided to sell all their dollars for something else tomorrow, however, the infrastructure that runs the dollar — that is, the partnership between the Federal Reserve and U.S. Government — would die.
So it is with a blockchain. Whereas all dollar-holders cast an implicit vote in favor of the humans running the U.S. Government and the Federal Reserve, the holders of any cryptocurrency similarly cast a “yes” vote to the humans who make up that network’s infrastructure – its miners.
A dollar collapse tomorrow is exceedingly unlikely due to the gargantuan demand for dollars at this time. The same cannot be said for each of the more than 1,000 (yes, more than 1,000) cryptocurrencies that can be bought and sold using online exchanges today. Some of these cryptocurrencies have a mere four or five-digit market cap, which could feasibly be wiped out tomorrow by a mere whiff of bad news — the creation of a bad feeling. And still, other cryptocurrencies have fewer than 20 miners, meaning that on a bad day, the said blockchain is less than 20 peoples’ feelings away from extinction. Does that seem far-fetched? Here’s a list of hundreds of dead blockchains.
Some have called the advent of cryptocurrency the “Wild West” of money, and they would be correct. And like the Wild West, crypto country is rife with two things: opportunity and risk. It is unreasonable to believe that over 1,000 cryptocurrencies will survive in the long-term. Why? Because miners will eventually begin to coalesce around just the most profitable blockchains – the networks whose base tokens they feel will either retain their value or increase. In other words, miners will eventually want to be paid in the base tokens that shed the title of “cryptocurrency” and organically take on the more familiar one of “money.”
Cryptocurrency technology — that is, blockchain technology — may or may not win out in the long run. But, if there’s one thing society cannot function without, it’s money. Across the world, human emotion appears to be moving in favor of the transparency offered by blockchains. If this trend continues, it is almost certain that at least one cryptocurrency will see phenomenal adoption in the years to come. Which one will it be? The answer to that question is still far from settled. This Wild West has only just been discovered, and everyone’s still trying to work out how they feel about it.
Guest post by Amanda B. Johnson of Dash
At an Air Show in China, Drones, Not Jets, Are the Stars
December 28, 2017 at 08:01AM
China makes the world’s most popular drones. The country’s passion for unmanned flying machines runs deep — and starts at an early age.
The Shift: Some Things About Tech Were Good in 2017. No, Really.
December 28, 2017 at 05:02AM
Amid a series of scandals and sins, a few righteous tech innovators actually brought positive change this year.
The Robots Are Coming, and Sweden Is Fine
December 28, 2017 at 02:25AM
In a world full of anxiety about the potential job-destroying rise of automation, Sweden is well placed to embrace technology while limiting human costs.
Tech Fix: 5 New Year’s Resolutions to Protect Your Technology
December 28, 2017 at 01:10AM
The cybersecurity nightmares of 2017 highlight the need to protect yourself. Here are some resolutions for living a safer digital life this new year.
The Library of Congress No Longer Wants All the Tweets
December 27, 2017 at 11:42PM
Having archived almost 12 years’ worth of public tweets, the institution says it has enough and intends to be more selective.
When Harry Met Barry: The BBC Obama Interview
December 27, 2017 at 09:17PM
The former president said he was adjusting to life outside the White House, and expressed concern, without naming names, about the possible corrosive effects of social media.
Today’s unanswered question: Why do organizations think they are secure?
December 27, 2017 at 07:42PM
Recently I’ve been asking friends, colleagues and clients what they think are the most important unanswered questions in tech. I thank Ian Murphy, who works in the security industry, for the following conundrum:
“Why do companies with little or no real security experience think they know their environment better than anyone else? That is, because it’s ‘their”’ network, they feel best placed to identify attackers (even those with advanced techniques who hide in the normal traffic noise)?”
It’s a good one. I’ve been working in IT for decades and I remain baffled how we lock up our houses, secure our vehicles, seal away our valuables and yet, in the corporate environment, senior executives still question the need for security expertise. Ignorance, it would appear, is bliss.
While the problem may be technological, I suspect the answer is inherently human. Back in the day, when I was an IT director for a subsidiary of Alcatel, it took a major security incident on my watch to trigger any release of monies from my superiors.
Now, I recognise that I am already looking guilty of transference — wasn’t I the person responsible for securing the network and servers? While this is true, anyone who has worked in this environment know just how complicated it can be to ask for security budget. I know I tried.
And indeed, I remember the feeling of “I told you so” even as I worked with my team to rebuild the previous day’s data sources from (offline – phew) optical backup drives. Suddenly the cheque book was open and we could self-authorise training courses and enforce stricter policies — it was an internal breach.
So, I’m not sure organizations do think they are inherently secure, or that it’s nobody else’s business. I think, a bit like that feeling as we head down a dirt track on a mountain bike, we simply hope that the bad things won’t happen. That might have worked back in the early 1990’s, at least some of the time.
The difference now however, is that bad things are happening, all the time. We have moved from a state of security by exception (where probability was relatively low, even if impact was high) to a situation where all organisations are under constant attack.
This isn’t the latest missive from the industry, keen to sell you some security solution, it’s a fact. The probability is very high that, right now, an automated software package will be trying to infiltrate your corporate boundary. The impact is as high as it ever was, so overall risk has increased.
Somehow however, we still retain the attitude that ignoring the problem will get us through. Denial has been a fantastically useful tool in our evolution, without which we may not have survived as a race.
Like the shell on a tortoise, however, it wasn’t designed to deal with the threats of technological age. Indeed, the smarter cybercriminals are basing their strategies on our hope against hope that the bad things will not happen to us.
So, the answer to the question is potentially not that companies think they know their environment better. Rather, that they don’t want some third party coming in and rubbing their noses in their own ignorance.
Indeed, I’ve heard of cases (perhaps we all have) where organizations have decided against an audit, lest it turn up things that will have to be dealt with. Which is quite staggering, if you think about it.
What’s the answer? Sometimes it takes a major breach to shake board-level execs out of their reverie. However, relying on this approach is possibly the highest-risk strategy of all.
Tech We’re Using: A World of Deal Making, Gleaned With an iPhone X
December 27, 2017 at 06:31PM
Michael de la Merced, a DealBook reporter in London, discussed his favorite tech tool — an iPhone X — and British norms for using the gadget socially.
Tech Tip: Escaping a Malware Trap
December 27, 2017 at 05:43PM
Fake tech-support alerts and other poisoned web pages can put your computer at risk, so learn how to spot them and keep your security software updated.
Article: Marketers Need Artificial Intelligence to Reach the Segment of One
December 27, 2017 at 07:01AM
Radoslaw Dobrolecki, US business development director at RTB House, discusses how artificial intelligence can help predict customer behavior at scale.
How Big Tech Is Going After Your Health Care
December 27, 2017 at 02:28AM
Apple, Google, Microsoft and other giants are accelerating their efforts to remake health care with new tracking apps, sensors and other tools.
Freed From the iPhone, the Apple Watch Finds a Medical Purpose
December 27, 2017 at 01:49AM
A wave of new medical accessories are connecting to the Apple Watch so that people can manage their health from their wrist. It’s a leap forward in the utility of wearable devices.
Tech Tip: Adding Even More Life to Live Photos
December 26, 2017 at 10:18PM
In iOS 11 and the High Sierra edition of the Mac operating system, you can edit and enhance Apple’s slightly moving pictures.
Pictures of the Day: 31 December 2017
December 31, 2017 at 10:03AM
Sharpen your wits with our year-end quiz
December 31, 2017 at 10:00AM
Saturday, December 30, 2017
Tesla the Car Is a Household Name. Long Ago, So Was Nikola Tesla.
December 30, 2017 at 04:00PM
The star of a man once renowned as the prototype of a genius inventor has faded. But his reputation is having a revival, and his creations still resonate.
Inside the Hollywood Home of Social Media’s Stars. (Don’t Be Shy.)
December 30, 2017 at 01:00PM
High jinks and networking abound at 1600 Vine Street, the apartment complex minting the next generation of Instagram and YouTube celebrities.
Nintendo’s Switch Brings Some Magic Back
December 30, 2017 at 04:02AM
This time last year, the company that made Mario and Donkey Kong household names seemed to have lost its touch. Now, with the new console, it’s on a roll.
Why Are All Our Words in Bubbles?
December 29, 2017 at 11:11PM
Facebook. Twitter DMs. Texts. So much of our communication arrives (and leaves) in little bubbles. We asked some design experts why.
Unfiltered Fervor: The Rush to Get Off the Water Grid
December 29, 2017 at 10:47PM
Driven by misgivings about how tap water is treated, start-ups are turning to springs and the air for purer sources — and drawing an elite audience.
Tech Tip: Dealing With Destructive System Updates
December 29, 2017 at 05:54PM
Software updates are supposed to make your computer better, but when they do the opposite, be prepared to do some troubleshooting.
San Francisco’s Skyline, Now Inescapably Transformed by Tech
December 29, 2017 at 01:00PM
Salesforce Tower, which at 1,070 feet is the tallest office building west of the Mississippi, will be inhabited in January, signaling tech’s triumph in the city.
Accused of Slowing Old iPhones, Apple Offers Battery Discounts
December 29, 2017 at 04:28AM
In an apologetic statement, the company said it would cut the price of iPhone battery replacements by $50 for anyone with an iPhone 6 or later.
Bookstore Chains, Long in Decline, Are Undergoing a Final Shakeout
December 29, 2017 at 02:55AM
Book World is closing its 45 stores amid the holiday shopping season, signaling the final gasps for large book sellers as e-commerce rises.
China Offers Tax Incentives to Persuade U.S. Companies to Stay
December 29, 2017 at 02:32AM
Following a tax overhaul in the United States, Beijing has announced a temporary exemption for foreign firms investing in certain sectors.
Uber Sells Stake to SoftBank, Valuing Ride-Hailing Giant at $48 Billion
December 29, 2017 at 02:23AM
The deal is a notable drop from the $70 billion valuation Uber once commanded, and is a humbling coda on a rough year for the company, which has been rocked by a series of scandals.
South Korea Clamps Down on Bitcoin Trading Amid Market Frenzy
December 29, 2017 at 01:22AM
In one of the biggest hubs for virtual currencies, the government said it would no longer let people buy or sell Bitcoin or its rivals anonymously.
That Game on Your Phone May Be Tracking What You’re Watching on TV
December 29, 2017 at 12:20AM
The start-up Alphonso collects viewing data for advertisers through mobile gaming apps that can track users on the devices’ microphones, even when the apps aren’t in use.
CryptoKitties, Explained ... Mostly
December 28, 2017 at 11:20PM
Why are $20 million and 180,000 people suddenly in the market for digital cats? We gamified the blockchain.
Opinion: Your Mother’s Maiden Name Is Not a Secret
December 28, 2017 at 07:32PM
There has been no shortage of incidents proving that website security questions are far from secure.
Tech Tip: Moving Your Number to Google Voice
December 28, 2017 at 06:08PM
Google’s telephony service can give you a unified number and with a little extra work, you may be able to use your original landline digits.
At an Air Show in China, Drones, Not Jets, Are the Stars
December 28, 2017 at 08:01AM
China makes the world’s most popular drones. The country’s passion for unmanned flying machines runs deep — and starts at an early age.
The Shift: Some Things About Tech Were Good in 2017. No, Really.
December 28, 2017 at 05:02AM
Amid a series of scandals and sins, a few righteous tech innovators actually brought positive change this year.
The Robots Are Coming, and Sweden Is Fine
December 28, 2017 at 02:25AM
In a world full of anxiety about the potential job-destroying rise of automation, Sweden is well placed to embrace technology while limiting human costs.
Tech Fix: 5 New Year’s Resolutions to Protect Your Technology
December 28, 2017 at 01:10AM
The cybersecurity nightmares of 2017 highlight the need to protect yourself. Here are some resolutions for living a safer digital life this new year.
The Library of Congress No Longer Wants All the Tweets
December 27, 2017 at 11:42PM
Having archived almost 12 years’ worth of public tweets, the institution says it has enough and intends to be more selective.
When Harry Met Barry: The BBC Obama Interview
December 27, 2017 at 09:17PM
The former president said he was adjusting to life outside the White House, and expressed concern, without naming names, about the possible corrosive effects of social media.
Tech We’re Using: A World of Deal Making, Gleaned With an iPhone X
December 27, 2017 at 06:31PM
Michael de la Merced, a DealBook reporter in London, discussed his favorite tech tool — an iPhone X — and British norms for using the gadget socially.
Tech Tip: Escaping a Malware Trap
December 27, 2017 at 05:43PM
Fake tech-support alerts and other poisoned web pages can put your computer at risk, so learn how to spot them and keep your security software updated.
Article: Marketers Need Artificial Intelligence to Reach the Segment of One
December 27, 2017 at 07:01AM
Radoslaw Dobrolecki, US business development director at RTB House, discusses how artificial intelligence can help predict customer behavior at scale.
How Big Tech Is Going After Your Health Care
December 27, 2017 at 02:28AM
Apple, Google, Microsoft and other giants are accelerating their efforts to remake health care with new tracking apps, sensors and other tools.
Freed From the iPhone, the Apple Watch Finds a Medical Purpose
December 27, 2017 at 01:49AM
A wave of new medical accessories are connecting to the Apple Watch so that people can manage their health from their wrist. It’s a leap forward in the utility of wearable devices.
Tech Tip: Adding Even More Life to Live Photos
December 26, 2017 at 10:18PM
In iOS 11 and the High Sierra edition of the Mac operating system, you can edit and enhance Apple’s slightly moving pictures.
New Year's Eve revelers face travel misery
December 30, 2017 at 08:27PM
Nepal bans solo climbers from Everest
December 30, 2017 at 05:57PM
Tesla the Car Is a Household Name. Long Ago, So Was Nikola Tesla.
December 30, 2017 at 04:00PM
The star of a man once renowned as the prototype of a genius inventor has faded. But his reputation is having a revival, and his creations still resonate.
Inside the Hollywood Home of Social Media’s Stars. (Don’t Be Shy.)
December 30, 2017 at 01:00PM
High jinks and networking abound at 1600 Vine Street, the apartment complex minting the next generation of Instagram and YouTube celebrities.
Pictures of the Day: 30 December 2017
December 30, 2017 at 10:01AM
Friday, December 29, 2017
Nintendo’s Switch Brings Some Magic Back
December 30, 2017 at 04:02AM
This time last year, the company that made Mario and Donkey Kong household names seemed to have lost its touch. Now, with the new console, it’s on a roll.
At an Air Show in China, Drones, Not Jets, Are the Stars
December 28, 2017 at 08:01AM
China makes the world’s most popular drones. The country’s passion for unmanned flying machines runs deep — and starts at an early age.
Why Are All Our Words in Bubbles?
December 29, 2017 at 11:11PM
Facebook. Twitter DMs. Texts. So much of our communication arrives (and leaves) in little bubbles. We asked some design experts why.
Unfiltered Fervor: The Rush to Get Off the Water Grid
December 29, 2017 at 10:47PM
Driven by misgivings about how tap water is treated, start-ups are turning to springs and the air for purer sources — and drawing an elite audience.
Tech Tip: Adding Even More Life to Live Photos
December 26, 2017 at 10:18PM
In iOS 11 and the High Sierra edition of the Mac operating system, you can edit and enhance Apple’s slightly moving pictures.
Tech Tip: Dealing With Destructive System Updates
December 29, 2017 at 05:54PM
Software updates are supposed to make your computer better, but when they do the opposite, be prepared to do some troubleshooting.
US Army photos of the year 2017
December 29, 2017 at 06:35PM
Tech Fix: 5 New Year’s Resolutions to Protect Your Technology
December 28, 2017 at 01:10AM
The cybersecurity nightmares of 2017 highlight the need to protect yourself. Here are some resolutions for living a safer digital life this new year.
Revealed: Telegraph's Word of the Year
December 29, 2017 at 02:21PM
Gunman kills nine in attack on Egypt church
December 29, 2017 at 02:03PM
San Francisco’s Skyline, Now Inexorably Transformed by Tech
December 29, 2017 at 01:00PM
Salesforce Tower, which at 1,070 feet is the tallest office building west of the Mississippi, will be inhabited in January, signaling tech’s triumph in the city.
Watch: The The Telegraph's Year in Review 2017
December 29, 2017 at 11:46AM
Two men charged over 'Christmas terror plot'
December 29, 2017 at 10:56AM
Pictures of the Day: 29 December 2017
December 29, 2017 at 10:02AM
Fire in the Bronx kills at least 12
December 29, 2017 at 06:51AM
Thursday, December 28, 2017
Accused of Slowing Old iPhones, Apple Offers Battery Discounts
December 29, 2017 at 04:28AM
In an apologetic statement, the company said it would cut the price of iPhone battery replacements by $50 for anyone with an iPhone 6 or later.
Bookstore Chains, Long in Decline, Are Undergoing a Final Shakeout
December 29, 2017 at 02:55AM
Book World is closing its 45 stores amid the holiday shopping season, signaling the final gasps for large book sellers as e-commerce rises.
Uber Sells Stake to SoftBank, Valuing Ride-Hailing Giant at $48 Billion
December 29, 2017 at 02:23AM
The deal is a notable drop from the $70 billion valuation Uber once commanded, and is a humbling coda on a rough year for the company, which has been rocked by a series of scandals.
That Game on Your Phone May Be Tracking What You’re Watching on TV
December 29, 2017 at 12:20AM
The start-up Alphonso collects viewing data for advertisers through mobile gaming apps that can track users on the devices’ microphones, even when the apps aren’t in use.
CryptoKitties, Explained ... Mostly
December 28, 2017 at 11:20PM
Why are $20 million and 180,000 people suddenly in the market for digital cats? We gamified the blockchain.
French ‘jihadist commander’ captured in Syria
December 28, 2017 at 10:02PM
Criminals celebrate Christmas with crime
December 28, 2017 at 09:49PM
China Offers Tax Incentives to Persuade U.S. Companies to Stay
December 28, 2017 at 06:32PM
Following a tax overhaul in the United States, Beijing has announced a temporary exemption for foreign firms investing in certain sectors.
Tech Tip: Moving Your Number to Google Voice
December 28, 2017 at 06:08PM
Google’s telephony service can give you a unified number and with a little extra work, you may be able to use your original landline digits.
Opinion: Your Mother’s Maiden Name Is Not a Secret
December 28, 2017 at 04:25PM
There has been no shortage of incidents proving that website security questions are far from secure.
Does Survival of Cryptocurrency Technology Depend on Human Emotion?
December 28, 2017 at 04:00PM
Some technologies continue to exist even if their creators set them aside in favor of something else. A stone wheel remains a stone wheel, regardless of whether you use it. A printing press in a museum still operates precisely as designed, even though it’s been bucked in favor of digital printers. And combustion engines will still run on gasoline, even when the day comes that no one cares to use one anymore.
But this kind of staying power is not the case with the technology that underpins cryptocurrency: blockchain. If people stop caring about a given cryptocurrency, the blockchain that runs it will eventually die out.
How is this possible?
First, let’s review what a blockchain is and how it works. Despite its futuristic-sounding name, it’s actually a simple thing: a digital ledger maintained by a special kind of computer. Traditionally, a ledger is a piece of paper on which changes of ownership are recorded by hand. An ancient ledger might read that I have one sheep and you have three sheep. If either of us buys or sells a sheep, the ledger is updated accordingly. It tracks our account balances, so to speak.
As opposed to sheep, a blockchain records changes in ownership of its “base token.” A blockchain’s base token is also called its “cryptocurrency.” The Bitcoin network’s base token is a bitcoin, the Ethereum network’s base token is an Ether, and the Dash network’s base token is a Dash.
The people who run the specialized computers that execute account balance updates on the blockchain are called “miners.” If they own a competitive number of computers as compared to other miners in the network, they’re likely to win the right of entering an update to the blockchain. Making this update results in the creation of new base tokens — and the miner gets to keep them as his “pay.”
It’s these people who will make or break the future of cryptocurrency technology.
From the giant warehouses of mining computers in China to the little flash drive miner sticking out of your friend’s laptop, all mining efforts are focused on one thing and one thing only: turning a profit. For this reason, miners program their machines to only contribute effort to the cryptocurrency they estimate will bring the most profit — the network with the least mining competition and the highest payout. This is where human emotion begins to play a part.
Because none of us can predict the future, we’re left to make decisions based on how we feel. For example, no American can know for certain that a dollar will be worth anything tomorrow, but we feel pretty confident that it will be, so we choose to work in exchange for dollars today. If every dollar-holder in the world decided to sell all their dollars for something else tomorrow, however, the infrastructure that runs the dollar — that is, the partnership between the Federal Reserve and U.S. Government — would die.
So it is with a blockchain. Whereas all dollar-holders cast an implicit vote in favor of the humans running the U.S. Government and the Federal Reserve, the holders of any cryptocurrency similarly cast a “yes” vote to the humans who make up that network’s infrastructure – its miners.
A dollar collapse tomorrow is exceedingly unlikely due to the gargantuan demand for dollars at this time. The same cannot be said for each of the more than 1,000 (yes, more than 1,000) cryptocurrencies that can be bought and sold using online exchanges today. Some of these cryptocurrencies have a mere four or five-digit market cap, which could feasibly be wiped out tomorrow by a mere whiff of bad news — the creation of a bad feeling. And still, other cryptocurrencies have fewer than 20 miners, meaning that on a bad day, the said blockchain is less than 20 peoples’ feelings away from extinction. Does that seem far-fetched? Here’s a list of hundreds of dead blockchains.
Some have called the advent of cryptocurrency the “Wild West” of money, and they would be correct. And like the Wild West, crypto country is rife with two things: opportunity and risk. It is unreasonable to believe that over 1,000 cryptocurrencies will survive in the long-term. Why? Because miners will eventually begin to coalesce around just the most profitable blockchains – the networks whose base tokens they feel will either retain their value or increase. In other words, miners will eventually want to be paid in the base tokens that shed the title of “cryptocurrency” and organically take on the more familiar one of “money.”
Cryptocurrency technology — that is, blockchain technology — may or may not win out in the long run. But, if there’s one thing society cannot function without, it’s money. Across the world, human emotion appears to be moving in favor of the transparency offered by blockchains. If this trend continues, it is almost certain that at least one cryptocurrency will see phenomenal adoption in the years to come. Which one will it be? The answer to that question is still far from settled. This Wild West has only just been discovered, and everyone’s still trying to work out how they feel about it.
Guest post by Amanda B. Johnson of Dash
South Korea Clamps Down on Bitcoin Trading Amid Market Frenzy
December 28, 2017 at 02:42PM
In one of the biggest hubs for virtual currencies, the government said it would no longer let people buy or sell Bitcoin or its rivals anonymously.
Animal photos of the year 2017
December 28, 2017 at 11:00AM
Pictures of the Day: 28 December 2017
December 28, 2017 at 10:02AM
At an Air Show in China, Drones — Not Jets — Are the Stars
December 28, 2017 at 08:01AM
China makes the world’s most popular drones. The country’s passion for unmanned flying machines runs deep — and starts at an early age.
Today’s unanswered question: Why do organizations think they are secure?
December 27, 2017 at 07:42PM
Recently I’ve been asking friends, colleagues and clients what they think are the most important unanswered questions in tech. I thank Ian Murphy, who works in the security industry, for the following conundrum:
“Why do companies with little or no real security experience think they know their environment better than anyone else? That is, because it’s ‘their”’ network, they feel best placed to identify attackers (even those with advanced techniques who hide in the normal traffic noise)?”
It’s a good one. I’ve been working in IT for decades and I remain baffled how we lock up our houses, secure our vehicles, seal away our valuables and yet, in the corporate environment, senior executives still question the need for security expertise. Ignorance, it would appear, is bliss.
While the problem may be technological, I suspect the answer is inherently human. Back in the day, when I was an IT director for a subsidiary of Alcatel, it took a major security incident on my watch to trigger any release of monies from my superiors.
Now, I recognise that I am already looking guilty of transference — wasn’t I the person responsible for securing the network and servers? While this is true, anyone who has worked in this environment know just how complicated it can be to ask for security budget. I know I tried.
And indeed, I remember the feeling of “I told you so” even as I worked with my team to rebuild the previous day’s data sources from (offline – phew) optical backup drives. Suddenly the cheque book was open and we could self-authorise training courses and enforce stricter policies — it was an internal breach.
So, I’m not sure organizations do think they are inherently secure, or that it’s nobody else’s business. I think, a bit like that feeling as we head down a dirt track on a mountain bike, we simply hope that the bad things won’t happen. That might have worked back in the early 1990’s, at least some of the time.
The difference now however, is that bad things are happening, all the time. We have moved from a state of security by exception (where probability was relatively low, even if impact was high) to a situation where all organisations are under constant attack.
This isn’t the latest missive from the industry, keen to sell you some security solution, it’s a fact. The probability is very high that, right now, an automated software package will be trying to infiltrate your corporate boundary. The impact is as high as it ever was, so overall risk has increased.
Somehow however, we still retain the attitude that ignoring the problem will get us through. Denial has been a fantastically useful tool in our evolution, without which we may not have survived as a race.
Like the shell on a tortoise, however, it wasn’t designed to deal with the threats of technological age. Indeed, the smarter cybercriminals are basing their strategies on our hope against hope that the bad things will not happen to us.
So, the answer to the question is potentially not that companies think they know their environment better. Rather, that they don’t want some third party coming in and rubbing their noses in their own ignorance.
Indeed, I’ve heard of cases (perhaps we all have) where organizations have decided against an audit, lest it turn up things that will have to be dealt with. Which is quite staggering, if you think about it.
What’s the answer? Sometimes it takes a major breach to shake board-level execs out of their reverie. However, relying on this approach is possibly the highest-risk strategy of all.
Blog Archive
-
▼
2017
(69335)
-
▼
December
(1787)
- British chief executive and family killed in Austr...
- Kim Jong-un claims he has nuclear button on his de...
- London welcomes 2018: spectacular fireworks to cel...
- How Do You Vote? 50 Million Google Images Give a Clue
- Families of First World War veterans to be allowed...
- Vast majority of public backs ban on ivory sales
- Britain's trains are oldest since records began, f...
- Congo security forces kill at least seven proteste...
- Nuclear war with North Korea is closer than ever, ...
- Up to 1,600 cars destroyed as fire engulfs multi s...
- Egyptian mummy can 'live forever' after developmen...
- Police officer shot dead and four wounded in Color...
- Costa Rica plane crash claims 12 lives including 1...
- Callers complain of 40-minute waits as NHS 24 hot ...
- Whitehall warned there can be no 'excuses' for goi...
- Dealers 'using social media sites to sell drugs to...
- Staff of billionaire H&M boss roll up sleeves to b...
- VIP paedophile accuser 'Nick' travelled the world ...
- Dubai welcomes 2018 with a record-breaking laser a...
- Charlotte is most popular girls name as parents in...
- Former UKIP councillor arrested on suspicion of mu...
- Block off streets to stop smart apps turning sleep...
- Death of the French kiss? Mayor refuses to give 'l...
- Chocolate menus, celebrity impersonators and the c...
- 'Veganuary' becomes the latest New Year trend
- Prince Philip has crowd in stitches outside Sandri...
- Watch: crowd evacuated from Australian beach after...
- The world celebrates New Years Eve 2017, in pictures
- New Year's Eve celebrations: world welcomes 2018 a...
- Four Britons feared dead after sea plane crashes n...
- 'Bookkeeper of Auschwitz' loses final appeal again...
- Jeremy Corbyn's New Year message: Labour will be a...
- Pictures of the Year, 2017
- Horse world braced for riot of ('conservative') co...
- Tesla the Car Is a Household Name. Long Ago, So Wa...
- Inside the Hollywood Home of Social Media’s Stars....
- Nintendo’s Switch Brings Some Magic Back
- Why Are All Our Words in Bubbles?
- Unfiltered Fervor: The Rush to Get Off the Water Grid
- Tech Tip: Dealing With Destructive System Updates
- San Francisco’s Skyline, Now Inescapably Transform...
- Accused of Slowing Old iPhones, Apple Offers Batte...
- Bookstore Chains, Long in Decline, Are Undergoing ...
- China Offers Tax Incentives to Persuade U.S. Compa...
- Uber Sells Stake to SoftBank, Valuing Ride-Hailing...
- South Korea Clamps Down on Bitcoin Trading Amid Ma...
- That Game on Your Phone May Be Tracking What You’r...
- CryptoKitties, Explained ... Mostly
- Opinion: Your Mother’s Maiden Name Is Not a Secret
- Tech Tip: Moving Your Number to Google Voice
- Does Survival of Cryptocurrency Technology Depend ...
- At an Air Show in China, Drones, Not Jets, Are the...
- The Shift: Some Things About Tech Were Good in 201...
- The Robots Are Coming, and Sweden Is Fine
- Tech Fix: 5 New Year’s Resolutions to Protect Your...
- The Library of Congress No Longer Wants All the Tw...
- When Harry Met Barry: The BBC Obama Interview
- Today’s unanswered question: Why do organizations ...
- Tech We’re Using: A World of Deal Making, Gleaned ...
- Tech Tip: Escaping a Malware Trap
- Article: Marketers Need Artificial Intelligence to...
- How Big Tech Is Going After Your Health Care
- Freed From the iPhone, the Apple Watch Finds a Med...
- Tech Tip: Adding Even More Life to Live Photos
- Pictures of the Day: 31 December 2017
- Teach boys ballet and zumba to make PE gender neut...
- Silicon Valley's chemical drinks diet may soon arr...
- Sharpen your wits with our year-end quiz
- Social media companies ignoring pleas over extremi...
- 'Dad's Army' volunteers to help Border Force patro...
- Donald Trump steps up pressure on Iran as protests...
- Tesla the Car Is a Household Name. Long Ago, So Wa...
- Inside the Hollywood Home of Social Media’s Stars....
- Nintendo’s Switch Brings Some Magic Back
- Why Are All Our Words in Bubbles?
- Unfiltered Fervor: The Rush to Get Off the Water Grid
- Tech Tip: Dealing With Destructive System Updates
- San Francisco’s Skyline, Now Inescapably Transform...
- Accused of Slowing Old iPhones, Apple Offers Batte...
- Bookstore Chains, Long in Decline, Are Undergoing ...
- China Offers Tax Incentives to Persuade U.S. Compa...
- Uber Sells Stake to SoftBank, Valuing Ride-Hailing...
- South Korea Clamps Down on Bitcoin Trading Amid Ma...
- That Game on Your Phone May Be Tracking What You’r...
- CryptoKitties, Explained ... Mostly
- Opinion: Your Mother’s Maiden Name Is Not a Secret
- Tech Tip: Moving Your Number to Google Voice
- At an Air Show in China, Drones, Not Jets, Are the...
- The Shift: Some Things About Tech Were Good in 201...
- The Robots Are Coming, and Sweden Is Fine
- Tech Fix: 5 New Year’s Resolutions to Protect Your...
- The Library of Congress No Longer Wants All the Tw...
- When Harry Met Barry: The BBC Obama Interview
- Tech We’re Using: A World of Deal Making, Gleaned ...
- Tech Tip: Escaping a Malware Trap
- Article: Marketers Need Artificial Intelligence to...
- How Big Tech Is Going After Your Health Care
- Freed From the iPhone, the Apple Watch Finds a Med...
- Tech Tip: Adding Even More Life to Live Photos
- Two security guards killed at Las Vegas hotel-casino
-
▼
December
(1787)